Sunday, October 30, 2005

Pan Jia Yuan (Dirt Market)

This is where we walked on Saturday. It is home to a big antique market. What does 'antique' mean? Well, most of the markets in Beijing (and there are many many) have piles upon piles of things. Many have mass-produced bowls and plates and some random hand-made (but not home-made) kitschy items. This market had a lot of old things, mostly used, in addition to the regular stuff. There were carved tea pots, incredible amounts of calligraphy accoutrement, wood carvings, and beads.
The ground of this open air market used to be dirt, hence the name 'Dirt Market'. Now it is covered in paving stones and sheltered beneath sprawling roofing structures (kind of like warehouses without walls).

No comments: