12/17/2009
I love shopping so I was excited to get to go to the market. When we got there it was a little overwhelming…lots of people, lots of lights, and a lot of different languages being spoken. When I went to make my first purchase I was nervous because I had never bartered before. I wanted to buy these cat statues and the man wanted 450 L.E. for them and I thought that was just too much and with the help of Dr. Walsh was able to bring him down to 120 L.E. Here is where I learned the technique of telling them that you have to leave because you are running late. I did need to leave and was running late but the guy kept telling me to name my price and I stayed firm with 120 L.E. and then he would tell me that was not enough money for him. As I headed to the door he finally caved in and said okay 120 L.E. This was so exciting to make this purchase!
As we went to more places, we began to notice that pretty much all the different shops have the same products and each with a different price. I know that some students were upset that they bought from the first place they saw the item of their choice because they saw it offered cheaper somewhere else.
It was convenient as we walked out of the places we visited that we would have to pass by all the gift shops to get to the parking lot where our bus was. At one place, the shops were on the left and there was a fence on the right. The men trying to sell their products had closed in on us and we had to walk single file along the fence in order to get out. As long as we made no eye contact (which helped by wearing your sunglasses) and ignored their jokes about dropping something, we could get by. If you ignore them and make no eye contact they will most of the time leave you alone, but if you look just for a second at their product in their hand they will start asking you for your price you are willing to pay. It was tricky, but after time we got the hang of it and could get out stress free.
Posted at 1:18 PM by Andria Carroll