Sunday, March 19, 2006

A Day of Pampering

I recently had a comment on my blog about the cost of the gardener we hired last week-end, so I thought (not to rub it in) I would give you a little overview on the price of different goods and services here in Chengdu.

Yesterday we started out our day by going to breakfast at our local Western restaurant, Peter's Tex-Mex Grill. We live about 2 blocks away from Peter's so we frequent it quite often.

Our breakfast consisted of:
-3 eggs with toast
-breakfast burritos
-biscuits & gravy
-fluffy omelet
-2 fresh squeezed orange juices
-2 coffees

The total for our breakfast was $12.10.

After breakfast we decided to check out the new Nike/Adidas/Columbia/Nautica outlet. I was very happy to find something that actually fit me and was not in extremely tiny Chinese sizes. Although spring seems to have come here I went the entire winter without a proper winter coat, so I decided to purchase a Columbia coat. It set me back $61.73.

One of our favorite things to do in Chengdu is hit the local dvd shops. Before we moved to China I was very sad thinking about the television and movies I would miss the next two years while I lived in China. I was happy to discover recently released movies in dvd format right next to our house. I found a few movies that I had been looking for...

A History of Violence: $1.85
Paradise Now (Winner of the 2005 Golden Globe for Best Foreign Film): $1.23
Ice Age: $2.47

After our shopping excursion Gemma and I decided we needed to get our nails done. We went to one place, but they were charging $3.70 for a manicure. We decided to try the hair salon that I go to once in while to get my hair washed and blow dried. Gemma, her friend Maddie and I went to the salon and left the boys at home. We decided to have a couple things done. Gemma had a manicure, Maddie and I had our toes done and we all had our hair washed and blow dried. There hair wash is amazing! They give you a great head massage which lasts about 20 minutes. I have been trying to go once a week, but I always seem to run out of time. If you ever visit China you should definitely treat yourself to this service.

Our total day at the salon:
-Gemma's manicure: $2.47
-Maddie's pedicure: $4.94
-Kim's pedicure: $9.88
-Gemma and Maddie's hair (each): $2.47
-Kim's hair: $3.46

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After our pampering!



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On our way to the Coffee Beanery Gemma stopped to watch a woman peeling water chestnuts. The Chinese call water chestnuts fruit and eat them raw. They definitely taste different than the ones in a can from back home!

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Maddie and Gemma sharing their smoothies with Angus!

After our pampering we went to find out what Jonny and Angus had been up to. They were ready to get out of the house for a while. We headed to the Coffee Beanery for coffee and then we decided to take a quick tour of Chengdu in a couple rickshaws. We hired 2 rickshaws, which cost us $.99 a piece and headed down to the Shamrock (about 1/2 mile away). The kids loved the ride and of course I was freaking out because there were several buses and taxis that came within inches of our rickshaw. Our trip back home was another $.99.

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The girls rickshaw!

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The boys rickshaw!

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So that is what a week-end day is like for us in Chengdu. I think after my next trip to the vegetable market I will list the prices of the fruit and vegetables that I buy. The fruits and vegetables are interesting looking and amazingly cheap!!!

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Oh my gosh Kim, are you going to be able to get some pampering done with me when you are back in AZ this summer or will you be to spoiled by the cheap prices there? That is just amazing!

Anonymous said...

Wow! It's like going back 200 years at those prices you are paying. How are you ever going to get used to US pampering prices? I am looking forward to seeing the lovely markets and be envious over the prices for fresh produce. Keep on blogging and taking it all in. I envy you. Jean