Shanghai, China -- At the Pearl Village Shop, freshwater oysters from China’s Tai Hu Lake are lumped together waiting to be scooped out and opened for the pearls they contain. Cultured pearls are made by inserting pearl beads inside oysters, which the bivalve wraps with a calcium carbonate substance because the abrasive beads irritate then. A shop attendee handpicks about 20 pearls from a freshly opened oyster and gives us some facts about pearls. Video taken by INQUIRER.net multimedia reporter Erika Tapalla.
