in one shop a young woman spoke a little english and after talya had decided on one of the distinctive ( i thought of the word outrageous , but never voiced it ) turquoise and pink and dark blue plates with the yellow birds and white clouds , the woman became very friendly , asking about america once she knew thats where we were from and telling us about herself sometimes in english and sometimes in chinese , mixing the two just as we had been doing in an attempt to make ourselves understood whenever we asked her specific questions .