Last night, I went shopping with Diana on the little streets by Qianhai. There’s a gorgeous old street, lined with craft and clothing and tea stores, and one place selling nothing but decorative matchbox covers.  There’s also a stinky-tofu vendor down at one end of the street, so we didn’t investigate those shops.

In some places, we were quoted prices in Euro. I don’t know if we seemed particularly European or it’s related to the falling dollar. (Don’t I look British? How much that is in pounds sterling?)

We’re living in such a great location right now. I love helping tourists find their way. Makes me feel like a BeijingRRR! Seeing visitors also reminds me of all the things I love in the city. It’s easy to get bogged down struggling with the language, and it’s good to be reminded of all the awesome things in my neighborhood. I mean, my morning commute walks me past the drum tower!

And we’re near some great coffeeshops. Humanaught posted some great comments about the balance between roughing it in China on a couple kwai or living in the expat bubble. My own balance involves slipping away from the Beijing bustle with a coffee every so often. Fortunately Diana feels the same way, and when we finished investigating the little shops, we stopped off for coffee.