So many of the city busses are “double” — one driver, two busses.  Public transportation is the way to go because there simply is not enough parking spaces.  There are 70,000 taxis in Shanghai.  Not sure how many are in Beijing…probably about the same.  And there are almost as many bicycles and motor scooters (not motor cycles) as there are cars and taxis.  In Suzhou and parts of Beijing, there are separate divided lanes for bikes.  At each traffic light there may be 50 bikes and scooters waiting for the light  to turn green. People carry groceries, dogs, and kids.  The kids don’t even hold on; we’ve seen them eating or reading a book as they sit behind their parents zipping along at 30+ mph.

In the sections of Beijing, the scantily-stocked shops are tiny.  They are called xiaomaibu and often the owners specialize.  One may sell paper products, another bottles, and the next one bamboo steamer baskets.   Very often vendors just spread an old blanket on the sidewalk and sell their goods from there — picking up and moving if business is slow.

We won’t be blogging again till we get home.     LAST DAY:   one more adventure in Beijing then the sleeper train to Shanghai.  A final day in Shanghai before flying out in the evening.  All without any sleep!