China is Changing

We've been here for a little over a year and a half and things have changed a great deal. China is getting ready for the Olympics, for sure. They are planting trees and flowers and grass everywhere. We've had more blue sky days, but they are still far out numbered by the bad pollution days. China has begun to attempt to reduce waste. We now have to pay for plastic bags at the grocery store but the store has distributed cloth bags for our use. There are still massive piles of litter all over the place but it's a step in the right direction.

Another way that China is changing is the prices. Prices are going up everywhere, including our little grocery store. I've noticed that, pretty much across the board, the numbers on the stickers are higher. Juice is 1.5 kuai higher, from about $1.20 per litre to $1.40 per litre. Soup has gone from 49 cents per cup to 63 cents per cup. String cheese from Australia has gone from $2.50 per 4 pack to $3.33 per 4 pack. It's a little here and a little there, but it adds up, especially when you figure in the falling value of our dollar. Also, the local merchants are raising prices on the things I've posted about in the past, such as tablecloths and porcelain.

I know I've posted about our local grocery store but it occurred to me recently that while I am sorry to see prices rising, I am very grateful to have the store in our area. We have the BIG grocery store about a mile away and the little grocery store at the clubhouse in our compound. It's funny, though, to think about shopping back home at the huge grocery stores. Our little grocery store would fit in the bakery section of our store back home and our BIG grocery store would fit in the produce/deli section of our store back home-- twice!