Bargaining LessonsBargaining skills are most important when negotiating for more expensive

Bargaining Lessons

Bargaining skills are most important when negotiating for more expensive goods -- most typically handicrafts -- but you can practice many of them on vendors in the local marketplace, where a fiasco(大失败) is just a good laugh. Some of the most challenging, complex, and instructive bargaining you will do is in the public produce market.

The produce is usually sold by the kilo, and these prices are sometimes displayed. But don't expect to start bargaining after they have already weighed it and told you the standard price. Many of the scales just collect dust, because the buyers offer a price for exactly the pieces they want, after guessing the weight, If you think in pounds, instead of kilos, you are already at a disadvantage. In the beginning, you should have a few items weighed, and maybe pay the kilo price -- this is a long learning experience. At some point you will get a feeling for what a good price is for a medium avocado(锷梨), a small papaya(番木瓜果), or a large pineapple. Then you go to a new country, or just down to the coast, and the prices all change! Don't forget to factor in quality, too!

In more underdeveloped areas, weight may be ignored altogether, and various measurements are used. The single piece is basic, but many goods may be sold by the "pile", the bundle, the handful, the cupful, the hatful and several other strange ones. Then you can also bargain about whose pile, hand, hat, or cup is used. Cloth material and rope is often sold by lengths that you have never heard of before.

As with other bargaining, you should be able to get the price down if you buy more things from the same vendor. Now it starts to get really complicated. You want two tomatoes, two avocados, and a papaya) The vendor offers you a smaller papaya and only one avocado for your price. You accept the papaya but put back another avocado. Then she adds some to your price and throws in two limes, which you never even asked for! Now you are completely at sea, and she has only started warming up. Limes at 20 cents a kilo, tomatoes at 45, (how much would those tomatoes weigh？), avocados at ... how much was that？ Let's see ... Then you are interrupted, "Hey, Randy, get two extra avocados will you, and a couple of red onions." Oh, my God, here, just take all my money, and give me some food!

The good news is that a major miscalculation in the marketplace (like a factor of ten) may only cost two dollars, and will be about what you would pay at home. If you go to the vegetable market every morning, even if only for lunch supplies and some fruit, you will not only have great fun, but you will quickly pick up some sharp bargaining skills, and from some of the nicest experts you will ever come across!

Team Bargaining

Go shopping with a friend. The best reason is that they can talk you out of an unwise purchase, or out of a shop that you find difficult to escape. They can also offer a second opinion on the usefulness, value, or beauty of the merchandise you are considering. It is best if only one of you is actually buying in any particular shop, and the other is assigned to be on guard against ploys(策略) that draw you away from rational bargaining.

Use your palmer as a foil in the negotiations. You can say things to each other which would be more confrontational if said directly to the vendor. Your partner can point out flaws in the merchandise, tell you there is better stuff down the road, that you cannot afford it, and that you already spent too much money. She' can say things like "The German guys got some yesterday that were better than this for the same price. Come on, let's go take a look at them." Most vendors selling to tourists will understand enough of this to get the message loud and clear.

You can seem genuinely interested in the merchandise and friendly to the vendor', while your partner points out all the dis

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