I am a really crappy bargainer
The title of this entry pretty much says it all. This has become somewhat problematic when attempting to purchase things in China. It is very common for prices to be tripled when a westerner walks into a shop. Even if your not a westerner, prices are generally higher than they should be and you, as the customer, are expected to bargain. What makes most situations worse is the fact that my ears cannot discern numbers well, so I often don't know what price to counter with and loose a bit of credibility by needing everything written down. The upside is, that even when I fail miserably at bargaining, I'm still only paying half what I would pay in America (Meigou).
The balloon hats have continued to save my ass repeatedly... or just provide loads of entertainment. I was walking through the woods on the mountain overlooking Dali when I ran across a family of Tibetans cooking lunch under a small granite overhang. I passed by them with the usual cross cultural tension I've come to expect from these situations, but then decided to circle back and make them a baloon creation. I can only imagine that it was a strange/surreal experience for them as I, without a word, inflated three balloons and twisted them into a crude flower. When I handed them the finished "product" there was a pause, and then a roar of laughter and joyful yelling. I got a thank you and went on my way. The path immediatly curved into a small valley and then back around to another point on the moutain. After a couple minutes of walking I could look across the small ravine and see the general area where the family was happily eating their mid-day meal. Just as I was about to go around a large bend, I heard from across the valley a pop, and then a lot of commotion and, maybe, an old tibetan woman cursing my name. The running joke has become a story of the foriegn devil and his evil exploding gifts.
Everything is fantastic. I'm on my way to tiger leaping gorge tommarow, so who knows when I'll be able to update again. I'm loving the reduced weight of my pack.
The balloon hats have continued to save my ass repeatedly... or just provide loads of entertainment. I was walking through the woods on the mountain overlooking Dali when I ran across a family of Tibetans cooking lunch under a small granite overhang. I passed by them with the usual cross cultural tension I've come to expect from these situations, but then decided to circle back and make them a baloon creation. I can only imagine that it was a strange/surreal experience for them as I, without a word, inflated three balloons and twisted them into a crude flower. When I handed them the finished "product" there was a pause, and then a roar of laughter and joyful yelling. I got a thank you and went on my way. The path immediatly curved into a small valley and then back around to another point on the moutain. After a couple minutes of walking I could look across the small ravine and see the general area where the family was happily eating their mid-day meal. Just as I was about to go around a large bend, I heard from across the valley a pop, and then a lot of commotion and, maybe, an old tibetan woman cursing my name. The running joke has become a story of the foriegn devil and his evil exploding gifts.
Everything is fantastic. I'm on my way to tiger leaping gorge tommarow, so who knows when I'll be able to update again. I'm loving the reduced weight of my pack.
posted by Robert at 7/02/2005 07:57:00 AM
1 Comments:
Be very careful regarding curses from old ladies... I got one once and I won't even tell you what color they turned.
Glad to hear things are going so well. I got distracted by work for a couple of weeks and didn't have time to check on you. Leslie and I are thinking of selling our house and moving north a little. We think of you and wonder what you are doing and where you are.
Stay safe!
Eliot
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