Having been here a while my hair was getting a little long and scruffy around the edges, time for a hair cut. There are millions of hair dressing salons all over China, you see several on just about every street. I walk past 5 on the way to school every day and thats only 2 different roads. The price varies from 10 yuan to 200 yuan for the fancy places. I had my eye on the one just below my apartment that I know some of the other teachers have been to and would only cost 20 yuan.
I was feeling brave and thought i’d just walk in and do my best miming of what i wanted. Then again looking at the styles of some of the staff at the hair dressing salon, who seem to be in an endless competition for the unusual, this could be a risky strategy. Sense prevailing I asked one of the teaching assistants, Grace, to translate “short back & sides plus a little off the top” into Chinese and she even wrote down the characters and pinyin adament that i should try to say the instructions and not just show them the piece of paper.
Off I set with the scrap of paper at the ready, not trusting my shaky at best pronunciation. It was 9:50pm but they were still open and busy as ever. I hesitated slightly at the door but was ushered in with smiles, this was it. I was shown to my seat and asked something to which i responded with my translated instructions being the only chinese of any relevance in a hair dresser that I knew. “Liâng bian jiân duân, zhong jian bú yào jiân de tài duân” literally “both sides cut short, the middle don’t cut too short.” He seemed to understand, but maybe he was just being polite. I showed him the characters just to make sure, and this was received with lots of head nodding, this might just work out i thought to myself.
The first guy then proceeded to wash my hair, no basin just a little squeeze bottle of water and shampoo. 15 mins later he was still massaging my scalp occasionally breaking to remove the impressive lather he had worked up with my hair. All this while i was free to browse the internet, a novelty indeed in a barber’s shop. Then I was directed to the basin for a thorough rinsing. Next was the other side of the salon to the guy who was going to cut my hair. I had to repeat the instructions which i don’t think i did very well, but after getting clarification from the guy who washed my hair he set to work.
He toiled away, and in the beginning i thought they hadn’t understood because it wasn’t being cut as short as i imagined. However, it was just part of the meticulous process and after about 30 mins he appeared to have achieved what he wanted and i was ushered off to the basin for another wash and rinse. Then back to the chair for a final touch up, blow dry (see photo) and hairspray for that lasting hold. It had taken just less than an hour, cost only 20 yuan and he had done a great job in my opinion. I will definitely be back there again, and now great them fondly as i walk past in the mornings.
Oh-no… the death of Mugatu!! 🙂
Sounds like you’re coming along on the language front there, bud. Good work!
Speaking of work, I need to get back to mine after catching up on your blog. Keep it rolling, son. Really enjoying the insights into life in a completely foreign country. Sure by now you are feeling at least a little more settled & hey, if you can order a beer and get a haircut… what more do you need?
P.S. A little concerned about all your all-male extended physical contact thing you got going on. 15 minutes for a shampoo… the guy clearly enjoys his job!