Thread: Visiting China. What should I get?

Chinese Food of course....! Visit a Dim Sum place.....Oh, and Tea....They have great Tea....

I'd steer clear of the razors I think, especially from any street vendor...I have a good friend in Hong Kong. Let me know if you need any advice.

Yes, tea of course, but take it easy in the customs...
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Originally Posted by zib

Chinese Food of course....! Visit a Dim Sum place.....Oh, and Tea....They have great Tea....

I'd steer clear of the razors I think, especially from any street vendor...I have a good friend in Hong Kong. Let me know if you need any advice.

Second on the tea. I try to get all my tea while in China. It's a steal compared to the prices you'd pay online...

Try some "jun shan yin zhen" (君山银针) tea. It's great and (supposedly) very good for you. If you're a fan of history you may have heard that this was one of Mao's favorites and, I believe, was sent en masse to the Soviet Union as gifts.

How about an infection?... Have you seen Contagion? Don't shake hands with the cook.

Hmm. Not quite the answers I was looking for. I live in Taiwan right now, so I have access to all the knockoffs and tea I need. It's the razors and hones I'm curious about.

I thought buying from a barber would be a better idea because he actually uses the things. Not the best solution, but I have no real connections in the village I'm going to. I'm trying to minimize my risk by asking here what to look for.

i think the question to ask i how many chinese barbers still use traditional straights, and how many use disposable blade straights..

I'd bring back a 1/2 dozen PHIG's

I went to china last year and did my best to try and find stones or any razor equipment for that matter, my Chines3 guest looked at me like I was crazy, good luck and definitely try, but you may find these Hones are not gong to be on every street corner. Lets hope I am wrong and your luck is better than mine,

when you get back please update this thread, good or bad I would love to hear your experience.

Do you speak the language? Know your way around China a bit?

If yes then you are probably more qualified to answer your own question than most of the members here.

My speculation is that you are best off looking for hones or antique razors. Maybe you can find some interesting natural hones that no one here has seen yet. Maybe some cool cold war era razors?

I would stay away from modern Chinese made razors. But if you do find a barber who actually uses the blades and can recommend a good brand maybe you will get lucky.

Of course my real answer is to get Cuban Cigars, but since you live in Taiwan anyway that doesn't really apply.

Michael