Silk Market

The Silk Market in Beijing is an enormous, 9 story warehouse filled with vendors selling basically everything. Tailored suits, shoes, electronics, jewelry, furniture, souvenirs, home decor, etc. If you want something, they probably have it. Masses of foreigners and locals flock here to buy "designer" products at ridiculously cheap prices.


Of course, everything is fake. Fake Polos, fake Louis Vuitton bags, fake Rolexes, fake North Face backpacks, fake iPhones, fake diamonds and pearls. Fake everything...the Chinese way.


If you're a foreigner, these vendors prey on you to rip you off. You have to do a lot of haggling in Mandarin in order to get a fair price. For example, I was buying a pair of fake Versace sunglasses. The saleslady wanted 1200 kuai (nearly $200) and I ended up paying 20 kuai ($3) for the shades.


Of course, all of this haggling is a hassle, and you often have to just walk away from the vendors. Sometimes they just get angry, but more often than not, they chase you down and agree to a decent price.


These signs hang everywhere in the market: "Protect intellectual property rights. Be law abiding vendors." It's more than a little bit ironic considering there's not a single real item being sold in the whole place. But that's China for you: legitimacy doesn't matter - it's all about the perception of legitimacy.

Location:Xizhaosi Xili,Beijing,China