Chicago China Town

On our trip to Chicago last week, one of the places I really wanted to visit was China Town.

We took a taxi cab from downtown Chicago and headed south to China Town. Our cab driver let us off on the corner and we were on our own. We crossed the street and went under the red and green bridge and felt like we entered a different country as we peered in the windows of the shops and stores and bakeries. While walking down the sidewalk we passed an open doorway with a staircase leading to the second floor. At the top of the staircase we saw some purses hanging on the wall. I instantly remembered a story a co-worker had told me of his wife going to New York and buying some "knock-off" high brand purses in a similar environment. So I grabbed Frances by the arm and we headed up the stairs to do some purse shopping ! ! !

We each picked out a purse and were very happy with the prices !

We also visited some of the trinket shops, here is one that had a large selection of bamboo....

And then we passed a bakery and had to get a sugary treat....

I saw these chicken feet in the bakery and had to take a picture!

We stopped in a few more trinket stores where Frances bought a Chinese silk purse and then our last stop was Fat Lee Grocery......

This was a true Chinese market and was very interesting. The butcher shop in the back of the store had a large fish tank full of bullfrogs. When I took my camera out to take a picture of it, the butcher started shaking his head and his hands, saying, "no, no, no picture please".

I did manage to get a few shots away from the meat section. There was lots of fresh fruits and vegetables, a lot that I did not recognize....

Frances picked out some items to take home and I got some pasta in the shape of flowers.

After that store, we were ready to find a taxi and get back closer to our hotel!