Confucius said, "He who does not think of the future is certain to have immediate worries," (Wangdao 83).
My Chinese midterm is this Thursday. Enough said :)
November 2, 2008
Trick-or-Bargaining
“万圣节快乐!” or ‘Happy Halloween,’ came out of my mouth at least twice to everyone I met on Friday. I LOVE Halloween and this year it fell on the weekend, so plans began long before the day arrived. My friends and I could not decide on costumes, but ideas were flying about like turbo-speed trapeze artists. Some of the favorites included robots/nerds, chicks from the 80’s, and a dragon. Eventually we decided that 80’s chicks would be fastest and easiest so we bought leg warmers and made our hair (particularly mine) gigantic puffballs. We found a shop to do our hair and make-up. It was more like an 8x10 pink hole in the wall that un-hygienically used the same tools for every customer. But the girls did a good job making us up and by midnight we were ready to party. Even though Halloween outside the U.S. isn’t quite as full of candy, crazy costumes, and trick-or-treating as the states, we still saw our fair share, making this Halloween one of the most memorable experiences. Rewinding just a tad, I want to make a little comment about bargaining in China. First off, I have to mention that every time I have tried to bargain in the past I have failed. Second off, bargaining in another language is always an interesting experience and you don’t always end up getting quite what you want, except for this time.
Like I mentioned before, my friends and I bought legwarmers. We purchased four pairs for the price of about $10. They started out, however at 25 RMB per pair. My friend said that 50 for two pairs was too much, but the woman was not willing to come down with the price. Something inside of me just had to have these legwarmers! I began to talk with the woman in Chinese, employing every tactic I remembered and piece of dialogue we learned in class about bargaining. They say the basic rule is to take the price they give you and divide it in half, keeping in mind the top price you are willing to pay. Then you gradually work your way up to an agreement. “They” must be right because we ended up going from 110 RMB for all four pairs down to 60 RMB. It was a Halloween miracle!
Later, however, another friend and I went to buy her costume. Again, bargaining was necessary. For a while it seemed that neither the seller or buyer would budge in their desired prices, but somehow (probably because we would not just leave) they brought the price down to one my friend was willing to pay. I can see now why many people like to bargain. It can be pretty fun, but I like how it relates to this week’s analect.
There have been many times when I have wished someone had been there to help me bargain, or in some cases, just communicate in general. While practicing the language with locals by yourself can be educational, sometimes it can also be more stressful than fun. Every so often, a friend is needed to just come along and give moral support. I felt glad that I could help my friends get what they wanted out of their shopping experiences. With the many people who have helped me since I’ve come to China, how could I not use what little Chinese I know to facilitate communication?
Right now I just want to mention a few people who have really helped to “establish” my place in their community. First of all I have to mention my host mother. It amazes me how well she has put up with my shortcomings. She has invited me into her world (not to mention her home) to meet her family, her colleagues, and her friends. She helps me with my Chinese and has become a very good friend. I’m glad that we can laugh and chat in two different languages, yet still understand one another. Second, I’m very thankful for my Chinese teacher. This week we experienced two different substitutes and neither of them knew our class well enough to connect on some level to every student. I feel that my teacher’s awareness of each student’s progress in the class is the best indicator that he is a fantastic teacher. Lastly, even though there are so many others, I want to mention my classmates. Learning a language is more like being in a choir than attending lectures. People have their strengths and weaknesses that make the team a dynamic entity. I enjoy watching how my classmates interact with each other. It makes me realize that this is how success comes about. All around me are better listeners, better speakers, students who know more characters, some have fantastic pronunciation, but we all like to talk with each other in a mix of our mother tongues and Chinese. Everyone’s excitement for this language and culture makes the classroom environment very pleasurable and relaxed. I could not ask for a better place or better people for which to surround myself.
Like I mentioned before, my friends and I bought legwarmers. We purchased four pairs for the price of about $10. They started out, however at 25 RMB per pair. My friend said that 50 for two pairs was too much, but the woman was not willing to come down with the price. Something inside of me just had to have these legwarmers! I began to talk with the woman in Chinese, employing every tactic I remembered and piece of dialogue we learned in class about bargaining. They say the basic rule is to take the price they give you and divide it in half, keeping in mind the top price you are willing to pay. Then you gradually work your way up to an agreement. “They” must be right because we ended up going from 110 RMB for all four pairs down to 60 RMB. It was a Halloween miracle!
Later, however, another friend and I went to buy her costume. Again, bargaining was necessary. For a while it seemed that neither the seller or buyer would budge in their desired prices, but somehow (probably because we would not just leave) they brought the price down to one my friend was willing to pay. I can see now why many people like to bargain. It can be pretty fun, but I like how it relates to this week’s analect.
There have been many times when I have wished someone had been there to help me bargain, or in some cases, just communicate in general. While practicing the language with locals by yourself can be educational, sometimes it can also be more stressful than fun. Every so often, a friend is needed to just come along and give moral support. I felt glad that I could help my friends get what they wanted out of their shopping experiences. With the many people who have helped me since I’ve come to China, how could I not use what little Chinese I know to facilitate communication?
Right now I just want to mention a few people who have really helped to “establish” my place in their community. First of all I have to mention my host mother. It amazes me how well she has put up with my shortcomings. She has invited me into her world (not to mention her home) to meet her family, her colleagues, and her friends. She helps me with my Chinese and has become a very good friend. I’m glad that we can laugh and chat in two different languages, yet still understand one another. Second, I’m very thankful for my Chinese teacher. This week we experienced two different substitutes and neither of them knew our class well enough to connect on some level to every student. I feel that my teacher’s awareness of each student’s progress in the class is the best indicator that he is a fantastic teacher. Lastly, even though there are so many others, I want to mention my classmates. Learning a language is more like being in a choir than attending lectures. People have their strengths and weaknesses that make the team a dynamic entity. I enjoy watching how my classmates interact with each other. It makes me realize that this is how success comes about. All around me are better listeners, better speakers, students who know more characters, some have fantastic pronunciation, but we all like to talk with each other in a mix of our mother tongues and Chinese. Everyone’s excitement for this language and culture makes the classroom environment very pleasurable and relaxed. I could not ask for a better place or better people for which to surround myself.
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