Summer Notebook, Part 5 (treasures from the Far East)

I traveled to China, sans Mike, July 13 -- 21. It was the trip of a lifetime. Since this blog is about the Bungalow, I thought I would share with you the treasures I brought back for the house.

When we moved in, Mike was adamant we get a tea set. I was confused and wondered why he really wanted one -- his explanation was that every house needed a tea set and we didn't have one.

Ok. (picture Mike sipping from a teacup with his pinky sticking out and giggle with me, please.)

I made it my obsession to get a tea set for us in China. Of course, I waited until the next to last day to buy one, but I finally gave in to the purchase after mom and dad bought an extra carry on bag to bring back all of our goodies. I had put off buying a tea set because I didn't think I could get it back home.

I bought this in the Beijing Pearl Market. It is a building with about five floors of New York City's Canal Street. Only, there are more persistent sales people who relentlessly try various methods to get more money out of you. I was called a stingy American Lady for my offer for this particular set. I was told it is a very popular brand in China and is high quality. I don't understand the logo on the bottom of the set, so I'll take her word for it. The cups are also insulated, so the tea stays warm. After many minutes of bargaining and threatening to walk away twice, I purchased this tea set for Mike for 205 Yuan. That's about $30! I chose this one because I love the flowers and I love that it is yellow, like our lil Bungalow! I think Mike likes it as much as I do.

The other purchase for the Bungalow was a joint effort between my mom and dad and me. We visited a silk factory in Shanghai and learned about how silk warms make silk and how the factory manufactures 100% silk comforters and duvets. It was actually very interesting!

We were told if we wanted to purchase silk goods, this would be the place to do it. Sure, you can find silks in the markets, but you can never be sure they are the highest quality and 100% silk. So I purchased a silk comforter for Mike and me and mom and dad bought the duvet for a Christmas gift (Christmas in July!). I looked around and immediately picked out the one below. How about that for a keen eye? I can't believe how well it matched our existing bedroom accessories!

Thanks mom and dad! And Merry Christmas!