Church and the Silk Market

This morning we went to a church in downtown Beijing. Before church we went to a Bakery near it. I got some chocolate mousse thing that was really good. The church was huge! It was so crowded. I was really surprised that they sang the same songs that we sing at home. The service was really cool, and the people were so welcoming. What's cool to me, is that there are no denominations in China. Because the number of Christians is so small, they all ban together to form the Christian church in China. They are fighting other persecution, there is no need to worry about the small denominational issues.
After church we went to this place called the silk market. This was definitely a unique experience. The subway is like nothing I have ever seen before! I have never been shoved into such a small space with so many people before. There is absolutely no personal space in China. It would be so easy to get pick-pocketed, because everyone is pushed up against everyone else. The silk market is this 4 story building full of everything you could ever imagine! It's kind of like a flea market, but with nice stuff. I am learning to become a master barterer! :) It really makes you tired at the end of the day, because it takes so long to talk them into an agreeable price. You have to work hard for what you want. Everything is so incredibly cheap here. I got a dress shirt for $5 American Dollars. A meal at a restaurant is $1-2 American Dollars! I kind of bought a lot at the market, because it's all so cheap. I have no idea how I'm going to fit things into my suitcase! Anyway, at this market, there are back to back shops/stands, where they yell at you to come into their store. If you ignore them, they pull you in to look at their merchandise. Crazy! It took us 2 1/2 hours to maneuver through the subway system to get back to campus. Beijing is such a big place. Someone told me today that the city is the size of the whole state of New York! Wow.