Tiananmen Square and Chinese scams

This morning I went to Tiananmen Square. It’s HUGE! I knew that it was the largest square in the world, but until you are standing in the middle of it, it’s hard to realize how big it is (you can fit 5 places de la Concorde in it).

Soon after my arrival I also got scammed (well, I kind of knew I was getting scammed but I went along). The scam works like this: a young English speaking clean-faced person approaches you an tells you that he/she is an art student (it could also be an older guy/woman who tells you that he/she is an art teacher) and invites you to see the art exhibit of her school. When you see a painting you like, the student tells you that the one you like was not made by a student but a by a famous artist who donated it to the school and that the proceeds from the sale of the painting will be used to fund a scholarship. So, I got suckered into it. I do like the painting, but I probably paid 10 times its true price (the original price was $400, I eventually paid $140, but I am sure could have paid $20, or even less). Oh well, the girl who sold me the painting worked very hard for it.
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