Adventures By Design

In which the travelers spend a lot of money

Today was our big shopping day. After some consideration we decided to go back to one of the tailors we had used last time we were in Hoi An. This tailor had made some clothes that we were very happy with, so we hope to get good results this time too. We went into the shop and each of us quickly acquired a salesperson eager to help us spend our money. We looked through the catalogs they gave us and after much deliberation on Gin’s part, and a few quick decisions from Ric, chose some things to have made.

The clothes we ordered are mostly for work so they’re pretty dressy. Gin got a suit with pants, a skirt, and a jacket, some capri pants (it’s supposed to be quite hot in Suzhou, can’t wear full pants all the time!) and three shirts to go with it all. She also got a nice wool coat with a hood that should be all she need for Suzhou’s winters. Ric already has a couple suits, so although the salespeople kept harassing him to buy another, he declined. Instead he got five shirts (two long sleeve, three short), two pairs of linen pants, and a corduroy jacket that will make him look like a university professor. After some consideration he also ordered a wool jacket for the winter which should look a little more professional than the hoodies he usually wears.

When we finally got all of that ordered, fabrics chosen, and measurements taken we were starving so we headed a restaurant called Bobo’s Cafe that Jesse and Janelle had recommended to us. We also invited two women from our hotel that we had been chatting with, Dana and Alicia. When we arrived at the restaurant it was completely empty except for the proprietor (whose name may be Bobo, but we doubt it). We settled in anyway, but Ric had to run back to the hotel to give Dana and Alicia some revised directions. While he was gone two women passing by on the street asked Gin how the food was. She replied that though she hadn’t eaten, the restaurant came highly recommended. The women decided to give it a shot. Then, after Ric had gotten back, another group of three people asked if the food was good, and we assured that it was delicious, so they took a table too. Later a group of four people came in as well. Within 20 minutes the place went from deserted to practically full. We’ve now decided that if we ever own a restaurant we are going to hire some one to sit at the front and tell people how good the food is.

We had a great dinner, and enjoyed chatting with Dana and Alicia. They are Canadian (from Toronto we think) and both still students. Dana is in her first year of medicine, and Alicia is going into teacher’s college next year. After dinner we headed home to our hotel. Tomorrow we’ll have fittings for all our clothes, so hopefully things work out well.