When we let Mom know we were
moving to Shanghai, she had two things to say to Chris.
1)
If anything
happens to my daughter, I will hurt you. (Only the word was not hurt).
2)
If you go to
Shanghai, you need to buy pearls!
I didn’t want to disappoint,
so today Chris and I headed to the Pearl Market.
Shanghai's
Hongqaio Pearl Market is one of the prettiest tourist trap/ shopping areas
I have ever seen. The first floor contained
your basic knock off purses, silk scarves, and trinket booths.
The second floor is a place I called Mama
heaven. From the moment I stepped off the elevator all
I could see were pearls, jade, and vendors who were more than happy to sell me the
goods!
For 2 hours, I bounced from vendor to vendor,
perusing pearls and snagging souvenirs.
The exchanges with the vendor would typically go something like this.
Vendor: You
want to buy pearls? Jade?
Me: I am just
looking. May I see this? (At this time I would point at the bauble.)
Vendor: You
like this? If you want something
different, I make it for you.
Me: How much
is this?
(At
this point, the vendor grabs her 80’s Casio Calculator and types in her alleged
final offer.)
Vendor: This
is my final offer.
Me: Tài
guile! (Too expensive).
At this point
I mentally thank Jie, our mandarin tutor for teaching me this phrase during our
second lesson.
The
salesperson then looks at us with mock outrage.
Vendor: How much you want to spend?
The vendor
then slides the calculator over to me. I
enter a price that is ridiculously low.
From this point on we exchanged multiple rounds of “you are crazy”, “how about this”, “will you be buying anything else”, “I will
bring my friends here when they visit” and “please please, please” and punched offers
on the calculator.
Once we settled on a price, the real fun began. I selected the exact pearls I wanted on my
necklace, and became mesmerized by the vendor hand tying my necklace, earrings,
or bracelet one pearl at a time. Five
minutes later, I had my own work of art!
When all was completed, I handed the vendor some Yuan, felt the side of Mao’s head on my
change to ensure it is not counterfeit, and repeated the process with the next
vendor.
Welcome to paradise, Shopaholics!
