Ding Donghai

The day after moving house, I hopped on a bus and headed to Donghai, a city around an hour west of Xinpu, to visit my alliterative friends Lucia and Linda.

Donghai, meaning East Sea, is best known for its natural crystal production, manufacturing 80% of China’s crystal products, which in this case mean any natural gemstones. (NB My stepmother is a jeweller extraordinaire and this place would be her Shangri La. Dad: Don't ever bring June here - she would have a heart attack and your bank account/marriage would suffer beyond repair!!)

 The crystal capital of China. No, honestly!

Fortune tellers are a dime a dozen and can be found everywhere.

 

Famed as China's "Crystal County," Donghai County has 300 million tons of quartz and 300,000 tons of crystal reserves (with purity reaching 99.99%), which is the highest in the country. The reservation area covers 1,500 square km. The Chinese Crystal King, which weighs 3.5 tonnes and is exhibited in the National Geological Museum, comes from here along with the raw materials of Chairman Mao's crystal coffin.

In recent years, the crystal industry has developed rapidly in Donghai with the goal of becoming the world's crystal distribution centre. Currently, there are more than 200,000 people working for industries related to crystal. They could produce nearly 20 million pieces of crystal jewellery, 5 million crystal handicrafts, making more than 3 billion RMB profits. Every year, the Chinese Crystal Arts & Crafts Mall imports more than 1,000 tons of raw crystal from Brazil, South Africa, Madagascar and Russia, and exports the processed products to more than 30 countries , such as the United States, Japan, Korea and Southeast Asia.

On market day, the place is alive with sellers, crafts people, food stalls, crowds of shoppers, business people and the usual throng of Chinese people who always seem to come in multiples of many.

The vendors range from a person with a rag on the pavement selling giant pieces of stone valued at £5000 to upmarket, shiny retailers in purpose built malls selling tat for a few kuai and every other combination in between. We saw several pieces selling for over £85, 000 that were hideous and some stunning little gems for next to nothing.

Lucia and Linda enthusiastically showed me around and we chatted to all and sundry and I also treated myself to a couple of beautiful stones for my birthday. Linda, who is one of the sweetest people I have ever encountered is in the business, so when I decided to part with cash she got her shouty Chinese 'Imma tekkin no shit from yous!' voice on, and got some rock (ahem, pun excused) bottom prices for me. There is a certain terror that comes when witnessing the duality that sits within Chinese women; they are like hemlock - beautiful but don't fuck with them because they're deadly. One minute all sweetness and light, the next, well, you wouldn't even send your most fierce ninja in to confront the wrath. Often it's superficial and simply the style of communicating, but for untrained delicate Western ears, it's sends a quiver up my bowels.

                   Linda doing her Ninja-crushing thang

 My chosen gubbins

My chosen gubbins vendor

 

Linda, Lucia and Linda's sister. The husbands are also involved in the family bidniz. This is their shop, the only one in which Linda didn't unleash her unique bartering skills...

 

 

 

 

 Having located and purchased some shiny things, we then went to different parts of the market that specialise in different stages of production. I chose some 'thread' that I wanted my jewellery made from and Linda subjected the vendors a terrifying Q&A about costs and materials etc before throwing everything back at them and leaving. The whole thing was perplexing as all I wanted was a birthday necklace. As it turns out, Linda is a dab hand at making stuff herself, so she was merely plundering information which she could then utilise to create a bespoke set of items pour moi, based on all of the things that I was pointing out that I liked! This chick's the business! 
  
The last stop was at a workshop that drills holes in stones in readiness for their transformation from rubble to finery. The dexterity and speed that these women have whilst working the stones is extraordinary to witness. The process took less than five minutes and cost me 3 kuai (30p).

 

 

We made my pebbles holy then went for a typically humungous Chinese lunch. It is customary to be treated/paid for when you are a guest and Lucia and Linda more than spoilt me over the course of the day. I had a wonderful time and am very excited to see what Linda will create for my birthday bling.

 Sack of pearls, just sitting on the floor..

 These were bigger than my head. Again, just sitting on the floor.

This piece was priced at £85,000

 If it can be made from crystal, it can be found in Donghai, specs included.

Each stone has a different spiritual or physical purpose. These are supposedly to stave off period pains.

Everything sits in a wash to purify it before being used for whichever purpose it is destined.

All the way from Argentina, ready to be worked and then shipped out to America among other places.

 

What day shopping is complete without a little snifter at the end?! Lucia treated me to a pre-birthday beer to round off the day. She reminds me in manner, speech and humour of Ros O'Sullivan, so needless to say I had a very entertaining day and am pleased to have such excellent friends to while away hours with.