When you have very little money,
No passport,

And nothing to take pictures with....

It's Very Hard.

What wasn't stolen, we left with the concierge at the Guangdong International Hotel -- after visiting the British Consulate there.

Hands free makes walking the crowded streets a lot easier. And what do you know, straight outside was a McDonalds. Not the worst place to start.

A short walk away is the multi-storey, Guangzhou Friendship Store.

How things have changed.... On my last visit to China, there wasn't such a wealth of choice available; and no more the need to buy in dollars, or FEC (those abandoned Foreign Exchange Certificates).

That also means no feasible black-market for the foreigner.

Everything is available, and the prices are comparable to, or even cheaper than, Hong Kong.

Many Cantonese now walk around talking into mobile phones, and the all-you-can-eat buffet, at the nearby Baiyun Hotel (88 Yuan) is not beyond their reach.

We had much less money than them, and passed away the time with a coffee and a can of Coke; while waiting for our train to Beijing and writing up the report for you.