1 day in chinatown makes a hard mom humble

More tales from the trip…

When last you saw our intrepid, somewhat dysfunctional family we were prowling the used bookstores of Sydney searching high and low for pulp spy novels. We called the hunt on account of approaching darkness and headed for our next destination – Chinatown. Sydney’s Chinatown is more of an Asiatown, with Chinese, Koreans, Vietnamese, Thais, and all manner of Malasians existing together in an area several blocks by several blocks. While a lot of tourists go there, it was quite obvious that considerable everyday local business was going down as well. One end of the Chinatwon is brodered by a large indoor “dirt mall” – a sort of flea market affair. After the empty streets of Sydney, this appeared a flowing sea of humanity. Our daughter is a good kid, who rarely asks for things. Over the years I have become attuned to her behaviors, preferences and attitudes; I could tell she found several items in the market quite intrequing, but she’d never ask for them. My loved one and I agreed to give her a certain amount of spending money and allow her to select her own items. We, unfortunately, failed to give her any shopping instructions, and she was off like a shot and disappeared into the crowded, dimly lit flea market. Like all parents, several scenarios flashed through my mind ranging from the relatively mild disappointment of being cheated in a deal or being pick-pocketed to actual physical assault or abduction. My heart was pounding. This was NOT Japan; I had no idea what kind of criminal element might operate there. I frantically searched up and down the market, peering into what were practically tiny alleys between stalls. Eventually, my husband rounded her up, with several purchases – jewelry, blouses and socks. What mom couldn’t be proud of a kid who, when given spending money, actually buys socks? After all of the excitement, I needed a sit, so we sat while my husband purchased some creme buns for us. The sign on the shop read, “Emperor’s Freshly Baked Cream Puff. Each Emperor’s Puff is a supreme nutritious snack. Enjoy nice time by specially fine taste.” And, they were tasty, too. We collect foreign englishisms, so we took a picture of the sign. While we were sitting there, an old woman was attempting to pass out pamphlets for the Falun Gong; no one was taking them – perhaps as they were local, they already had copies. My daughter and I felt sorry for her and each took one and threw out a shea-shea (thank you, practically the only Chinese I know). The Falun Gong are a society devoted to bringing about change in China. People in China are killed for being a part of this movement, and there is some stigma attached to them. In the US, some people mistakenly believe them to be a cult, rather than a political action society. I must admit sympathy for their cause. We headed back to the hotel, where the universal Australian ban on heat continued in our chilly room. Funny, it didn’t seem to be bothering anyone else. 🙂