Getting a haircut in china

This only requires two things: luck, and a picture.

So I figured, really, when am I going to find a better time to tryout a new haircut than while in china? I have a year to grow it back to what it used to be, and the Chinese can't stare any harder at a foreigner anyway, so it’s not like anything’s going to change when it comes to standing out. I started out with some research. I literally just Googled "getting a haircut in china". I was completely amazed at the amount of material I was able to find, the reviews however were very mixed. It was about even between good and bad experiences and I knew picking the right place was going to be the main factor in my success. I thought about it for a few days and decided on a place I passed every time I went to get 包子 (a steamed bun with meat or veggies inside, pinyin: baozi). They were always blaring English pop music so I figured someone had to speak a little English. After dinner with Emily and Tyler I headed over to it. I walked in and stood in the doorway for a bit, before being beckoned in by what I guessed was a receptionist, I showed her my translations I got from my students and the picture of the cut I was going for I had put on my phone.

So she walks off, meanwhile I’m reading their board. Matching words I know with the ones in my book. Basically I gathered a haircut was gunna be about 25kuai. More than I had read about online, but really I’m not going to bargain down a $4.00 haircut. She came back with another guy, who proceeded to start typing away on his computer. He turned the screen around and the English translation haircut came up, like he didn’t understand that in Chinese? I nodded and he turned the screen back and began typing away again. When he was done 58kuai popped up on the screen. I made a confused face and pointed at haircut on the board and "25" next to it. I don't think he expected me to be able to translate. This was the first time someone actually tried to scam me outright. I told him in Chinese, "wo shi ba, bu ar shi wo"? He just stared so I shook my head in disapproval and walked out. On my way I’m guessing the man who was the head stylist approached me, and said hi in English. I just laughed and told him bye. So like everything in china I was now just wingin' it.

I do hate how you can never find a store when you need it, but when you don't need it you see them EVERYWHERE.

I knew for a fact there was one across from the back gate to our school so I headed up there. It was getting late almost 9:45 so I thought they might be closed, and when I arrived it looked like they were getting ready to but I just walked in anyway ( >_> ). There was a middle aged woman, and a man who I assume was her husband and a little boy who was about 7. Between my bad Chinese and her bad English I determined she understood what I wanted. I asked her how much and she said 10kuai, more than what was advertised on the sign outside but I also knew she was going to be doing a lot of work lol. I’m sure it’s different cutting western hair, and a western hairstyle, than the typical Chinese college student style. So I agreed, much to the little boys dismay, he obviously was ready to go home. He kept yelling at his father that he was Chinese and I was American but other than that I couldn't understand. When I asked him what his name was in Chinese he all but turned into a ghost, and hid from me the rest of the time.

So it began. First she washed my hair (with god knows what kind of shampoo but it dried my hair out for days). Then she began cutting, every now and then she would stop and say something in Chinese. To which I would smile and say "wo bu dong" and just pointed to shorter or longer in my notebook. After a while I kind of drifted off daydreaming. I was jarred back awake to the sound of the hairdryer turning on, to which I just about freaked. My hair DOES NOT need any help standing on end, trust me. So this woman now thinks I’m terrified of hairdryers I’m sure, but she got the jest of "don't blow dry my hair". My initial reaction was, "holy crap she cut my hair like Justin beaber", of whom I’m not so fond...
So this is how she cut and styled it:

She kept trying to get my hair to lay flat; all I could do was laugh. However, this is the straightest I’ve ever seen my hair so I can’t say she completely failed. Sometime soon I will have to invest in a hair straightener as I kind of like it (and its predictable). Anyone that knows me knows that this is DEFINITLY not what my hair naturally does, and I could not expect it to do this every day so I had to come up with an alternative. 
This is what I woke up to the next day:

As unhappy as I was the night before with the haircut, it’s hard to be sad or angry when you find out your hair naturally stands on end (I must get this from my dad). After some fussing and product I ended up with this:

So it took 3 or 4 days, but I totally love my haircut now (even if the left side is 2inches longer). Most days I just wake up and shake my head, which totally beats pulling it back and wearing a hat. So, if you decide to get a haircut in china and you think you've made the biggest mistake ever, just give it some time. It grows on you, just like china ^_^