As if in direct contrast to my recent haircut in a swanky Chinese salon in Shanghai, Matt decided to go to a canal-side street barber while we were in Tongli. He was a very kindly fellow with a fancy comb-over, and he only charged 30 yuan ($5) for a wash, cut and blow-dry. First of all he took great care washing Matt's head over an enamel basin using a small scrubbing brush and a cake of soap, then after blowing his 4mm long hair dry, cut and clippered it with great speed, care and precision.
Despite the worrying arrangement of piggy-backed powerpoints and cords going everywhere, no electrocutions occurred during clippering, and Matt walked away with hair exactly 2mm shorter than before, and a head smelling like carbolic.
Labels: canal towns, haircut, Tongli
