Since I’ve been expounding upon the intricacies of shopping in Chinese markets, some may wonder how much crap I actually bought. Well, here it is:
Top Left: 2 sets of terra cotta soldiers in really cool boxes; 4 We Fuck the Fakeshit hats; 1 pair of Euroshoes with “authentic” Goodyear tread soles.
Middle Left: 2 paintings with silk thread embellishment; 1 rolled-up b/w panorama photo of the Potala Palace in the early 1900s; 1 rolled-up hand-painted thangka; 1 rolled up painting of a boat on a lake; 2 “Polo” cashmere sweaters; 2 souvenir Great Wall t-shirts; 1 traditional black Uyghur shirt with gold design; 1 cd case that came free after buying 38 dvds (Entourage Seasons 1-5, Madmen Seasons 1-2, The Lord of the Rings Trilogy); 1 small wooden elephant with an astonishing smaller elephant carved on the hollowed-out inside of its body; 1 Yak Yak Yak Tibet shirt (for my nephew); 1 stuffed camel (for my nephew); 1 squishy Jelly Pig (for my nephew); 9 silk ties.
Bottom Left: 1 traditional Uyghur scarf; 8 pairs of wooden chopsticks; 3 gaudy florescent seashell wind chimes; 4 blossoming flower tea balls; 3 fake Patek Philippe watches in fancy bags; 4 buddhist wheels in another fancy bag; 3 Tibetan silver and turquoise necklaces for the lovely ladies in my family; 1 prayer wheel; 1 box of green tea incense; 4 rock magnets etched with Tibetan words; 1 Chinese flag patch (triumphantly found after hours of searching because I try to buy a flag patch from every country I visit); 4 small rocks brazenly stolen from Everest base camp; 1 yellow bag with a jar of green tea leaves; 1 can of green tea cubes; 1 amazing inlaid wooden box with a set of dominos.
Top Right: 1 hand-embroidered wall hanging with the 8 auspicious symbols; 2 large pocketed wall hangings; 3 paper lanterns; 1 traditional white Tibetan prayer scarf; 1 brown elephant scarf; 1 hat band from the hat a drunk guy gave me at the Qingdao beer festival.
Bottom Right: 7 silk scarves
Not Pictured: 1 clay, egg-shaped whistle-type-thing; 1 Tibetan woolen winter cap.
And that is all.
That’s just not right…
or is it so, so right?
I think you did pretty good considering how LONG you were there!
really? i kind of think it’s a ridiculous amount of stuff.
The silk scarves look lovely. If you’re feeling like it is a ridiculous amount, then give it all away. You’ll feel better.
definitely, tammy. i certainly didn’t buy 7 scarves for myself! lol. yes, fam and friends enjoyed some presents when i got back.
Next stop “Hoarders.”
haha! if only you could see an entire apartment’s worth of my belongings in my parents garage. it really does look like hoarding.