Yes, I have been in Beijing for only four days now and I have had a 30-minute foot massage and a 50-minute full-body massage. I know what you're thinking. "Are you kidding me? People act like studying abroad is rough. He's got it easy." Well, that's kind of true.
I stumbled upon my foot massage during my first adventure into what is known as the "Silk Market." No lies, this place is crazy. Think about this - six floors packed with hundreds of booths featuring thousands of fake Nikes, Coach purses and Rolexes with little Asian women yelling "Handsome man, I've got your size." while latching onto your arm and pulling you into a booth. It's shopping at Tippecanoe Mall in Lafayette on crack, no joke. The foot massage came in after Chad, Chris, Patrick and I fought through all six floors and found this tiny gem featuring massages. There is no doubt in my mind us four made the best purchases of the day at the market - a foot massage for US$10 and a Tsingtao (beer) that we drank during the massage for US$2.
The full-body massage was a purchase that we (eight people) sought out after three long days in a foreign country. We taxied out to a massage parlor featuring blind masseurs. The place had one room for four people so the women took that one. Then there was two rooms for three people. What happened next was unfortunate. We played a quality round of ROCK, PAPER, SCISSORS that put myself on the losing end. That meant I was in my own room with a blind masseur who essentially beat me up.
All-in-all both were interesting experiences. They were experiences that I haven't had in the United States and don't have the opportunity to have. The reason for that is the cost of services in Beijing. Labor is extremely cheap in this city and drastically affects the culture and way of life for everyone. There are 16 million people in Beijing and many of them will drive a taxi, sell products or clean rooms for US$40 a month. And the benefits of having that abundance of cheap labor is benefitted by many.
I stumbled upon my foot massage during my first adventure into what is known as the "Silk Market." No lies, this place is crazy. Think about this - six floors packed with hundreds of booths featuring thousands of fake Nikes, Coach purses and Rolexes with little Asian women yelling "Handsome man, I've got your size." while latching onto your arm and pulling you into a booth. It's shopping at Tippecanoe Mall in Lafayette on crack, no joke. The foot massage came in after Chad, Chris, Patrick and I fought through all six floors and found this tiny gem featuring massages. There is no doubt in my mind us four made the best purchases of the day at the market - a foot massage for US$10 and a Tsingtao (beer) that we drank during the massage for US$2.
The full-body massage was a purchase that we (eight people) sought out after three long days in a foreign country. We taxied out to a massage parlor featuring blind masseurs. The place had one room for four people so the women took that one. Then there was two rooms for three people. What happened next was unfortunate. We played a quality round of ROCK, PAPER, SCISSORS that put myself on the losing end. That meant I was in my own room with a blind masseur who essentially beat me up.
All-in-all both were interesting experiences. They were experiences that I haven't had in the United States and don't have the opportunity to have. The reason for that is the cost of services in Beijing. Labor is extremely cheap in this city and drastically affects the culture and way of life for everyone. There are 16 million people in Beijing and many of them will drive a taxi, sell products or clean rooms for US$40 a month. And the benefits of having that abundance of cheap labor is benefitted by many.
2 comments:
Leroy!
Sounds like you are having a blast! I am glad you are enjoying the culture there. How's the language barrier coming along?
We enjoy reading your blogs. Take care!
Sarah and Jeff Clutter
Way to bring Rock, Paper, Scissors to China. Not surprised at all that you lost the battle with your weak skills. Don't forget to be on the lookout for Tao.
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