Stolen Bike Market: Part 2

Several weeks after arriving in China, some of the Chinese students took myself and Sarah out to buy bikes. Rumors of a stolen bike market where bikes were sold dirt cheap had reached our ears and we determined to go and check it out for ourselves.

The market wasn't actually a market, it was a street filled with shady looking people. As we entered the main intersection, the quickest vendor made his way over to us and asked in a hushed voice if we wanted a bike.

The reason I bring this up again is that recently Sarah's bike was stolen. Bike thievery is incredibly common here in China. Most foreigners I know say the going rate is one or more a year stolen. The Chinese I talk to put their lifetime totals at twenty or thirty. Mine fortunately, is still with me.

The first trip to the bike market required a Chinese guide. Sarah and I were determined that a second trip would only require us. The day after her bike was stolen, we shared lunch together and determined what are plan of action should be. We decided that 100 kuai was a good price, but we wanted to make sure that included a lock.

We paid our bill and walked in the direction of the bike market. As predicted, as soon as we stepped in the neighborhood we were asked if we needed a bike. We told the man yes, and he beckoned for us to follow him behind a row of shacks. We walked down a muddy pathway, past several small huts, and through a small construction site until we finally arrived at the front door of a shack. Opening it, we could see that a single light bulb hung from the ceiling, lighting up what would otherwise have been a pitch black room. A young woman sat at a table eating lunch. She paid us no attention. Our host led us to a back room, kept closed and locked to keep prying eyes out. He reached out and pulled a switch, illuminating the room. There before us stood nearly half a dozen brand new bicycles.

I looked at the vendor, sure he was wanting us to spend more than we were willing. We told him no, these bikes would not do. We needed a cheaper one. His friend, a man who mysteriously appeared in the room as soon as we started talking, agreed to go and find us a cheaper one. We stood silently in the room for a while until he came back with a bright-orange-older-than-my-parents-bike. It was perfect.

We haggled over the price for a while until we were finally satisfied. At first they were willing to give us the bike for 100 kuai, but we needed a lock and they didn't want to include that with the price. After another few minutes of awkward silence, they agreed to bring a lock. The friend then reached into a box and pulled out the flimsiest lock I have ever seen. At this point a third person arrived on the scene, her purse full of bike locks. We stood around a bit more and finally agreed to buy the bike and the two locks for just over 100. The friend pulled out an album full of fake brand stickers and stuck one directly on top of the original sticker on the bike. Not a bad deal if you ask me.