Shopping and Bargaining

Today we went to see the fabric market where you can have any piece of clothing copied with any fabric.  There are 3 large floors of every kind of fabric imaginable.  You can give them a shirt and they can copy it for you in a couple of days, custom fit for about $15 US!

Peter and Jack weren't too interested in the fabrics, but outside the fabric market where many stalls sell knock offs of everything under the sun.  Jack got a "Nike" watch, and Peter got some small binoculars, and we both got some Olympics t-shirts.  Jack and Peter LOVED bargaining with the locals. 

A typical conversation went like this:

Merchant: "I give you friend price! 100 QUAI!"

Me:  "How much if I'm your BEST friend?"

Merchant: "You are my best friend!"

Me: "I'll give you 40 quai."

Merchant, looking insulted: "40 quai! I make no profit!"

(Me walking away)

Merchant: "OK, 50 quai, my best price!"

(Me walking further away)

Merchant: "Ok, 40 quai!"

Me:  Thank you, here's 40 quai.  You're my new best friend!"

 

Jack also bought some "Oakley" sunglasses that Sophie loved.  She immediately put them on.  Here is her Shanghai movie star shot.  We noticed later that "Oakley" is spelled "Oakey".

 

Sue, Sophie, and Peter in the fabric market.

We went to a Szechwan place for lunch, and the owner's kids were playing out front.  He and Sophie played together.  I couldn't resist taking a picture of my future son-in-law!

Here's big brother playing with his game machine.  I guess boys are the same everywhere!

When we left the fabric market, it started DUMPING rain!  Here was the very wet scene when we came outside...

 

There were NO taxis, and we were 10 miles or more from our hotel.  When the rain comes, all of the taxis are immediately gobbled up!  Luckily, just as we came out of the fabric market, someone jumped out of a taxi!!  We grabbed the kids and ran through a couple of inches of water on the road into the middle lane of traffic and dove into it. Not bad for a bunch of foreigners!

Jack and Peter in the taxi, and Peter with his new binoculars that he bargained hard for - he got them for about $15 US!  Good going Peter!

      Tonight we bought a couple of DVD movies on the street, one of which hasn't been released yet in the U.S.!  Excellent quality in its case, for about $.80 US!  How could we resist?  Sue seems to have gotten over making a moral issue of whether or not to buy pirated stuff on the street - she went back tonight to have a more leisurely look at all of the movies without the kids!

I also bought a couple of cappucinos today and the barista asked me if I wanted "tong" with it.  I asked what "tong" was in Chinese and she laughed and laughed.  She brought it out and it was sugar.  I think she thought that I was an idiot not because I didn't know the Chinese; I think she thought I didn't know what sugar was!!  :)

Tomorrow it's back to classes and Sue's first day teaching the high schoolers!  I think she's a big nervous!