Today we visited the Tianhou Silk Shop in Beijing. This was my second time visiting the shop but it seemed as if it was my first time gathering and digesting all of the work that the Chinese put into the shop. Inside we were able to watch workers go through step by step to create silk scarves, duvets, and blouses. After learning the steps to produce real silk products, we were allotted time to purchase items if we chose. Personally as I walked around the shop I was not impressed by the items for sale. I continued to compare their prices to those of street vendors and private stores. Simple items that appeared to be relatively cheap were overly priced just for tourists. We were surrounded by many fluent English speaking Chinese workers who were very convincing in selling their silk products. Visiting the Silk Shop made me contemplate what measures Chinese go through that we don’t see to attract tourists. Every leg of our trip was strategized from the workers in the factory setting to the hands on interactions and then the overly stocked rooms. Personally, I would be satisfied with a practical equivalent to the items in the Silk Shop.
-Alicia Montague-Keels
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