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The search for the perfect cake is tedious.
Located in the busy, and hectic bubble that is Guangzhou, a few peaceful nooks and crannies still remain. My family is very new to Guangzhou, having only arrived here towards the latter end of August. We have very minimal knowledge about the city and my inability to read or write Chinese has made the transition even tougher for me. My birthday was on the 14th of October, and my parents and I made a frantic scramble to get a cake on the evening of the 13th. Armed with the slight knowledge that we possessed of Guangzhou and with the smallest amount of help from Google, my parents and I trudged along to the city to get a cake. Reaching Tianhe after almost a 45 minute car ride from Panyu, we bundled out of our car and rushed inside a mall, visiting at least 4 bakeries without finding any suitable cakes. Finally, we learnt of a little gem called Silent Cake.
The branch we visited was in Tianhe, and it was bedecked with various vintage paintings and beautiful flower assortments.
If a person walks into a Silent Cake without any prior knowledge of the store, they will be in for a surprise. It isn’t like a typical store, but it most certainly lives up to its name. The store is quiet, unusually so, and the service is fast and efficient. The employees walk around briskly, with smiles on their faces serving up delicious cakes and pastries, but they never speak. In fact, none of the employees of Silent Cake are capable of speaking. They all have varying degrees of speaking and hearing impairments, and resort to using paper for communication. Everyone from the baker to the cashier can’t speak, and sign language is what they use to understand one another.
The founder of Silent Cake, Qui Junkun, created and established Silent Cake to provide opportunities for a section of society that most employers deny. He aims to create a sense of pride and accomplishment for these people by letting them earn money, and support themselves through hard work and sheer dedication. Silent Cake employs only people with hearing or speaking disabilities. Not many of them are able to understand English, which may lead customers who are not fluent in Chinese or sign language to have a harder time than others. But in the age of the internet with an abundance of translation apps, anything can be achieved. Branches of Silent Cake, which was established in 2018, can be found all over Guangzhou. Buying cake is always wonderful, but to be able to buy cake and help people in the bargain is much more fruitful.
If you ever have the chance to visit one of these shops, don’t hesitate. It’s an amazing experience!
To learn more, click here.
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