Exploring the nooks and crannies of Beijing's Panjiayuan

A red handkerchief hung around the neck of a bronze statue on the second story of a building in the middle of the antique market in Beijing's Panjiayuan area.

The eyes stared off into the distance, unperturbed, as posters fluttered around in the mildly cool air pushed by humming air conditioners.

One could see a gigantic portrait of Karl Marx on one side, and a smaller one of Josef Stalin waving slightly.

On a broiling Sunday afternoon, we visited what organizers call China's biggest antique market. It was very warm, with temperatures climbing into the mid-30s C, but the breeze managed to reduce the discomfort.

We were both wearing hats to ward off the searing rays of the sun. My wife wore a dark blue floppy hat; I had on a tattered baseball cap of the Boston Red Sox bought years ago in Fenway Park.

Panjiayuan sprawls over an entire block of about 48,000 square meters. Lion statues guarded the entrance as we made our way inside.

The market is very well-organized. Each section features a different theme, helping any tourist who's coming to the place for the first time.

The Englishtown Flea Market in New Jersey is probably as large, but not as organized.

The only thing that bothered me about Panjiayuan is the fact that big signs hang all over the market declaring "No Smoking". It didn't matter. People lit cigarettes and no one told them to stop.

The market was founded in 1992.It normally opens at 8:30 am during weekdays, but the weekend it opens at 4:30 am, when the sun is barely a glimmer on the horizon.

There are signs in English, but maybe not enough.

I could see paintings and calligraphy, sketches, posters and magazines dating back decades.

We wound up buying two magazines, and, despite not understanding the vendor, tried to haggle down their price.

Using a calculator, the woman said the price of one magazine containing the cover photo of Chairman Mao Zedong was 120 yuan ($17.40) and the price of the other magazine featuring performers dancing was 80 yuan.

We saw another magazine and we offered 200 yuan for all three publications.

We thought she initially said yes.

But then maybe she changed her mind.

Or we just didn't understand one another. She pulled back one of the magazines.

In the end, the price we paid for the two magazines was 150 yuan. We whipped out our cellphones and got the deal done on WeChat.

After coming out of the building, which housed numerous bronze statues of Mao, we drifted over to the stone sculptures of Buddha on the far side of the market.

Row upon row of porcelain ware was laid out at the back of the block. The glint of gold and silver shone under the shade of tarpaulins, along with bone carvings, lacquer ware, teapots and elaborate embroidery.

One could see jewels and jade of various hues and colors, amber, pearl, ornamental stones and crystal.

My wife saw a green vase about 60 centimeters high that was worth 500 yuan, a bargain compared with others running 2,000 or 3,000 yuan.

She thought about it for a minute before deciding against it.

We could have had it delivered, but we opted to move on.

We gingerly walked around the porcelain and jewelry stalls, making sure we didn't step on anything. It is an old rule, but worth remembering: "You break it, you buy it."

Friends have told us many of the items being sold are not ancient at all but mostly well-made imitations. Are those fakes? Not really. If they are as well-made as the original, they could be valuable in their own right.

I have to admit, the jewelry, jade and vases in Panjiayuan can be exquisite.

It didn't matter to the scores of people going up and down the stalls despite the stultifying heat.

What is good about Panjiayuan, like all flea markets, is that creature comforts are at a minimum.

This was perhaps our fifth trip to Panjiayuan since arriving in Beijing less than two months ago. It must be lovely during autumn.