Just outside the Qing Ping Market was a sight to behold. Ladies were having the hair on their faces & eye brows removed by these ladies using string. It was fascinating to watch.....could this be what we'd term a 'string facial'? ha-ha!
At the Qing Ping Market there were eggs of all sorts together with salted fish and spices. How shall I describe some of the smells? Hmm....would a cross between dirty socks and fish mean anything to you?
Mushrooms--the variety was mind boggling! They were next to a stand selling dried beetles, centipedes. and snake skins. Geeze, it's like these people will ingest anything.
The fresh fruits were abundant & delicious. We did sample some fruit.
We waited in our room until 12 noon
for our call regarding our visa for Hannah. We've now been scheduled to attend an oath taking ceremony regarding our intentions to bring her to the United States. We go to the US Consulate here in Guangzhou tomorrow at 3:00 pm.
Once our wait was over regarding the visa, we hailed a cab and headed to Qing Ping Market. Travel logue writers Tooker Gomberg and Angela Bischoff capture best the 'adventure' I wanted to take Brent, Ian, and Hannah on. Previously I had read about the market area of this city. I didn't want to be in this part of the world and miss it. Here's an excerpt of what we found. Gomber & Bischoff's article is so good & their description so perfectly on target that I'd like to cut and paste a portion of it for you to see!!! They say what I would want you to know!!! Boy, there sure are a lot of ways to live. I'll then paste some photos of the day on this entry and another!!! Enjoy!
"It was heart wrenching to roam through the Qing Ping Market in Guangzhou (Canton). It was packed with live animals awaiting slaughter some for sustenance, others for alleged medicinal power. Sixty year old turtles would be boiled for their shells and stomachs. Dishevelled cats, cuddly rabbits, various birds, snakes, and beetles awaited their fate. Guangzhou people have a reputation of "daring to eat anything".
It was a vegetarian's nightmare. Deer penises supposedly increase male sexual stamina. Sliced antlers rejuvenate blood. Frog fat beautifies women's' skin. Dried centipedes increase longevity, snake wine helps arthritis, and a special bee cures cancer.
What really turned our stomachs was to see tiger's paws, rhinoceros horns on sale as "traditional medicines". This is highly illegal, and perhaps our presence encouraged the police to show up. For an instant the vendors packed up their wares, which included bear gall bladders. As soon as the cops backs were turned, the goods were back on display."
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