Missy, you want DVD?

A couple of weeks ago, we headed off to Shenzhen for the day. We're not really shoppers. Actually, Rachel adores shopping, but she had to off to a refugee simulation. That's another story.

David, Hugo and I made it through the Hong Kong exit, and into the PRC entry, and then we visited Dafen Artists' Village, where we wandered up and down cobbled streets looking at painting after painting after painting. As you can tell, we love paintings nearly as much as shopping. It was kind of interesting, I must say. The popular thing is to take photos of anything you want, and an artist will paint it on canvass for you at a great price. I did by Nana and Aunty Kath a couple of little things which should be arriving any day now...

The most amazing thing was the loo (another amazing loo!!). You had to pay a little old lady one dollar (about 18 cents Australian) for a packet of tissues to use, and the toilets were....well.. they were.. they had... it was like... oh, just look at the picture. YES!!! One was forced to squat!!! Notice I didn't write that in the first person, so as not to be too indelicate..... Let me tell you, there was no delicacy involved.

When we got to the main plaza, they prepared us by telling us that people would come up to us and possibly touch us (WHAT????) and try and lure us into their shops. Easy to understand, froma cognitive angle. The reality was just bizarre. The minute you near a shop, they call out to you, "Missy! You look my bags? Missy, you want tshirt? Missy, you like my shoes?" etc etc etc. The DVD guys were the worst, though. Funnily, there's a sign on the bottom floor which says that in order to help stamp out crime, you should report anyone who tries to sell you something, but who is not attached to a shop. Ha ha!!!! They are EVERYWHERE!!! They wait at the bottom or top of the escalators, and gather around you, trying to convince you to follow them to their DVD treasure trove.

After about ten minutes, I thought David might need to find a quiet, dark place where he could curl up in a fetal position for a little while.... He adjusted after an hour so, and then we had to go home.

I did buy a few things there - a couple of pairs of shoes, sunglasses, necklaces and tops for Rachel.

It was really interesting. Just don't go to the toilet there - try and hold it in til you get back to Hong Kong. This may cause you irreversible kidney damage, but it's worth it.