Moms used to say this back when I was a kid, when they needed a little peace and space. Today we put a little present-day spin on it: the parents decided to go outside and wander around for a few hours, so their kid could have some space and peace here to watch a movie with a few friends late this afternoon. We have only one room in our apartment where it's comfortable to hang out, and that room feels a little crowded even with just the 3 of us sometimes.
While we were out wandering, I wanted to continue my quest for a bungee strap to replace the nice one that Terry had brought back from the U.S. for me last fall. I used it for attaching parcels to the rack on my bike. Somehow I lost this strap a few weeks ago when I was riding in the rain. I had it in a bag in my bike basket, shoved in next to my school bag. It must have bounced out, unseen under my rain poncho. Today I saw some 2-meter long straps at hardware shops, but they weren't very stretchy and had homemade, savage-looking hooks. Bungee cords have been around home for 30 years or so and seem like such a universal item. They're almost surely manufactured in this country. You'd think it would be an easy item to find. But it's not. It goes this way with countless made-in-China items we're used to seeing in the U.S. that you'd think would be readily and cheaply available here. They're not.
Our main destination today was a eyeglasses shop that was recommended in our city guidebook. Terry has been needing an updated prescription for the glasses he uses when using his computer. We found the shop without any trouble. It was sleek, spacious and had some swanky displays of designer frames which weren't knock-offs, judging from the prices. Terry was immediately helped by an English-speaking optician. Within 15 minutes he'd placed his order. He handed over his black "forms", as the optician called them, and was told that he can come back tomorrow night at 8 to pick them up with the new lens. He paid about the same amount that he'd pay in the U.S. But in the U.S. he wouldn't be able to walk into a shop at 5 on a Saturday afternoon to get fitted and then pick up his glasses on Sunday night at 8. Shops and services here, even professional services such as dental and medical, are usually open 7 days a week, well into the evening. They're eager to do business.
Then we wandered down a little side street, literally to see what's cookin'. The street vendors were attracting hungry passers-by and we were curious to see what was for sale. There were meats on a stick, flat breads, roasted nuts and roasted sweet potatoes. And then there were sweet little faces. I nonverbally asked permission from the mom on the left if I could take a picture of her little girl. Grandmom to the right was insistent about unbundling the little boy from his stroller so I could take a picture of him, too. It was in the high 50's this afternoon, a somewhat chilly day here, so parents had their little ones very warmly dressed.
A few steps away was this cheery vendor, who was making thin, pancake-like flatbreads with pickled vegetables, egg, chili peppers, a few tiny dried fish and a few other toppings I can't remember, cut in two and rolled up, ready to eat. I pointed to my camera and "asked" to take her picture. She was thrilled. So thrilled, in fact, that she insisted on rolling up the bread on her griddle and giving it to us, gratis. I had taken out my wallet to pay, but she smiled and waved me away. It was delicious! We'll go back.
Check out her portable eatery. All her equipment fits into the box on her cargo bike.
Next we paused by this display of roasted sunflower nuts, peanuts, chestnuts and walnuts. The girl on the left pleasantly said hello to me and asked me if I knew Chinese. No, I said, do you speak English? Yes, I'm a student, she said. I found out she's 17 and her sister in the purple sweater is 15. The sister was stirring the sunflower nuts roasting over the charcoal fire in the bucket. The elder sister asked if we wanted to buy something. We got 300 g. of freshly roasted peanuts for 5 RMB, or about $.75. I liked these girls. They were showing initiative without being obnoxious. The peanuts we brought home were good, too.
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