We had our first class today. It was a history and economy. I'm no good
with economics so some of the information into one ear and out
the other, but the history of the formation of modern China was
interesting. Beihei Park is the place where the wall with 9 dragons is
located. I had seen this work before in my art history book, and I
wanted to see it in real life. In the middle of the park is a large lake surrounded by classical Chinese gardens. The interior of the buildings in Beihai are elaborately decorated with paintings of historical figures and animals.
Then we went to some random waterfront shops. I tried haggling but I get too nervous sometimes. Haggling and bargaining in China is serious business and practiced like a sport. Depending on your tactics and resistance against paying the hugely inflated prices the merchants tell you their stuff is worth, you can get some things for a fraction of the original price.
Here are some haggling techniques I've used in China:
1) pretending only to have a certain amount of kuai.
2) Saying "tai gui le" (too pricey).
3) Walking away.
4) Naming a price.
They would much rather sell the item for any price possible than miss out on a potential sale, so these can guarantee you a good bargain if you find yourself in a shopping battle. In most stores, you can haggle, save for malls and bigger franchises. Some people found it fun, but I found it very tiring because of how aggressive the salespeople are here, so I simply stuck to stores that had set prices.
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