Friday, August 1, 2008

My New Haircut: Done the Chinese Way

Before:
Photo credit: Jason


My hair was getting pretty lengthy as of late here. In addition to heat and discomfort, my colleagues took great pleasure in humouring me that I looked like a girl. I thought it time to do away with my long locks and to get a haircut the Chinese way!

Yolanda escorted me to a barbershop after work. The shop we visited looked quite fancy and it was immaculate. It had a distinct resemblance to the higher end hair salons in Canada, of course with much more reasonable prices! Yolanda informed me that the haircut would cost a grand total of 20 RMB ( less than $3 Canadian!!!). Now, the haircutting ritual in a Chinese barbershop is very different from those we are accustomed to back home.

First, you are direct to a reclining chair with a large sink at its head. Here, you recline and one of the barbers in training comes over and gives your hair a thorough washing in the basin. A towel is placed between you and the basin to make sure that your clothing does not get soaked in the process. The hair wash was very relaxing and also included a scalp massage. A towel was then wrapped turban style around my freshly washed head and I was lead to a barber’s chair.

Here, a stylishly dressed barber (Pink Jeans with large tears, coloured hair and a half-length tie) fashioned my hair with style. There was much scissor and comb flinging tricks to enjoy as my Canadian hairstyle gave way for a Chinese one. He used special scissors with a blade that looks like a comb which turned my normally flat hair, into a spiky, Chinese style hairdo. I was surprised that my hair could actually stand up straight like a local! The haircutting process took longer than those back home, but he put a lot of work into the cut, using at least 5 different scissors, a hair shaver and other implements I could not possibly name.

After I was satisfied with the cut, I was led back to the reclining chair to have my head washed again, before being led back to the barber who dried my hair and spiked it slightly with gel. Unfortunately, only my colleague had a camera at the time and she snapped some photos I hope to get sometime soon. I was informed that I was the first foreign customer at the shop which was quite an honour for me!

One notices that all of the barber shop employees have dyed and highly styled hair. This is because they offer their own hair up as an opportunity for budding barbers to practice. As these young attendants strutted about their shop doing their own things, I was continually kept in a state of awe – it was a very entertaining experience.

My barbershop experience was limited but at this link, you can read about a foreigner who worked in a local barbershop for a month. The barbershop itself packs a whole ton of culture, into a very reasonably priced salon environment!

After:Photo credit: Darleen

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Well, you are the first foreigner I saw who speak highly of our country. I think maybe you are half Chinese. Could you write something about how does your half Chinese side affect your way of thinking and lifestyle? Tell us something about you home education!

a dragon said...

I am indeed half Chinese! However, before China, I must admit that my experiences were minimal and I had little idea on exactly what would be in store over here. I suppose that my half Chinese side makes me a lot more open to how things are in China. I can also tolerate eating a whole gamut of exotic things other people are not able to handle. Other than that, I think that my half Chinese heritage makes me feel more like I belong here.

Hopefully you will come across more foreigners with positive opinions on China, I know that I've met quite a few since I've arrived!