Friday, December 03, 2010

hanna the haggler

On November 25th, witnessed Hanzie in a negotiation between her and a stallkeeper in Batu Feringghi. I was about to check out a stall when I saw her. The stall was selling table lanterns, the pretty very asian ones. She was ruthless and adamant. Stood her ground trying bargain the price to the lowest possible (as always, we try to get the best items at the lowest price imaginable.

Just like our Hanzie, the salesperson was pretty stiff too. By stiff, i mean, sticking to her "final offer". Thus, i am proud to say that the success of the purchase can be attributed not just to her ruthless bargaining ethic but also with the help of her accomplices. That would be me, taza, elvie and serra (i kinda like the idea of the mutual benefit we gained. I dont have to do anything but watch). We came into the scene as potential buyers, in hopes of success in Hanzie's negotiation thus getting a joint discount benefit.

The salesgirl finally gave in to her "awesome" bargaining skillz and we all walk away happy with our purchases. She managed to get away with almost half off of the original price - the stuff didn't actually cost that much in the first place. They were selling it with "tourist" prices.

Later, she explained it was only a matter of what you know. Or what she knew: the Chinese had this belief that you should refuse the first and last customer of the day. They bring you "ong" (Chinese term for fortune or luck, i dunno).

One more thing I've learned: Hanzie is an exploiter. In a practical way, though. The photo above is her looking smug (muka puas) right after the transaction.

In a related, Penang is a great place for a vacation, especially Georgetown. However, it is a very tourist-oriented location that prices are a tad bit costly for the average student budget. But there are still places where you can get things a lot cheaper, im sure.

I had a great convo-vacation and will write more about it later. Until then, that's all for now.

I wonder where's my next vacation gonna be? Will i be able to have enough to afford it? Will I have the time?
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2 comments:

DserraJo said...

hehehe! kesian si hanna.. skali dia punya wires sot ni.. kalau bulbs ja nda pa la....

Zen said...

aww...buli ba dia kasi repair tu.