First Trip to China

Jiesi, Kim and I woke up bright and early to take the KCR to Lo Wu and then take the train to Guangzhou. When we crossed the border to Shenzhen and were about to buy tickets for the train, there was an announcement about the trains not running because of an accident. The woman at the counter told another woman that the train probably wouldn't start running until 10 p.m.

We didn't know what to do. There were buses that probably would have gotten us to Guangzhou, but Guangzhou is a big place. We wouldn't have known how to get to our hotel from wherever the bus would drop us off. Plus there was a horde of people waiting to get on the buses, and it would take longer than taking the train.

We decided it wasn't worth taking the bus to Guangzhou and possibly being lost when we get there or getting scammed by taxi drivers (everyone says people in Shenzhen and Guangzhou are shady). We would just stay in Shenzhen and do some shopping.

I bought a fake agnis b. purse. But I haven't even seen agnis b. purses in California, so noone will really care whether my bag is real or not. But I don't care about the authenticity of the purse. It's really cute and it's made out of quality material. I can't exactly say the same about the tokidoki for LeSportsac bag I bought at Ladies' Market the other day, but it's cute.

I bought my mom the toothpaste she wanted that's made out of watermelon skin. It was ridiculously cheap!

Kim wanted to buy some tea, so we found a nice shop where the saleswoman asked us to sit down on these lacquered wooden stools as she brewed some tea leaves on this setup on the lacquered table top. We got to try two different types of tea - oolong and ginseng. I liked the special ginseng tea the most and bought a bag. It would make a very nice gift.

At the top floor of the plaza were tons of tailor shops. I saw a lot of really nice wool coats and spotted some houndstooth, but I didn't like any of the ones I saw. I spotted two white coats in different stores that I tried on that were really nice. As I was thinking them over, I spotted a really nice houndstooth peacoat in another store. I tried it on and, with the advice of my friends, decided that that coat was the best fit for me.

The price was decent, so I decided to get one tailormade for myself. The tailor took my measurements and I put down a deposit of half the cost. I will pick up the coat in a few weeks after my trips to Malaysia and Thailand.

I'm excited about picking up my new coat! All my other coats are too loose on me now. Plus I've been searching for a good houndstooth coat or skirt for weeks!

My friend, Aaron, has been getting a lot of things tailormade for him in that mall. I guess it's one of those things to go to Shenzhen for.

Overall, I was very happy with the way the day turned out. I bought what I intended to buy in Guangzhou, and I have more time to work on my final research paper that's due Monday. Plus I got sick of all the salespeople beckoning us, and I didn't like the feeling of having to clutch my purse and being super careful every time I open my bag or take my wallet out. And I wouldn't have wanted to see anymore people spit into trashcans.

I just hope I can take a trip to Guangzhou the next time I head into China to pick up my coat!