Kuta’s ‘in-your-face’
style does not appeal to every shopper, but fortunately
Bali caters to all parts of the spectrum. Those who
do not feel up to facing the Kuta jungle can opt instead
to patronize the village-style markets in Ubud and Sanur,
the up market boutiques in Seminyak, or the...
Kuta’s ‘in-your-face’
style does not appeal to every shopper, but fortunately
Bali caters to all parts of the spectrum. Those who
do not feel up to facing the Kuta jungle can opt instead
to patronize the village-style markets in Ubud and Sanur,
the up market boutiques in Seminyak, or the department
stores scattered around the island’s south. Shopping
in Bali is about so much more than just buying goods.
It is lesson in life: anyone who has taken on Kuta’s
hardened street hawkers and survived knows what we are
talking about.
The constant mantra of “Yes,
have looks… Rolex watches’ or ‘sunglasses,
very cheap price Mrs, only one dollar” is designed
to get you to pause – however so briefly –
and thus entrap you into bargaining over a pair of fake
Gucci sunglasses that you did not want in the first
place but now feel obliged to buy. We are knows the
tricks, yet you can not resent them for trying. These
are shopkeepers who are lucky to earn in a month what
you make in a day, and they have to find creative ways
to compete with the hundreds of other stores selling
exactly the same wares as theirs.
Yep, shopping in Kuta is definitely
not for the faint-hearted, but if you treat it as a
game and keep your sense of humor, it can actually be
fun. And don’t worry if people tell you that you
paid too much; you can rest assured you would pay a
lot more back home for the same thing. Nevertheless,
there are a few rules of thumb that can help you play
the game. When bargaining, it has long been accepted
that you halve the seller’s offering price and
then negotiate from there until a mutually agreeable
mid-point, usually 60-80 percent of the seller’s
original price.
Also if you hit the markets early (which
are advisable if you want to avoid the hotter afternoons),
you may get an extra special deal known as the garus
or "morning price". The Balinese believe an
early morning sale will bring good luck the rest of
the days, especially if you recommend the shop to your
friends. So wait until you and the vendor have good
naturedly reached a stalemate and then ask for the "morning
price"; most of the time you will get the good
result!
It also helps if you know at least
a little Bahasa Indonesia and you may consider supplying
your own carry-bag; rumor has it the shop assistants
‘color-code’ shoppers by supplying them
with different bags according to their bartering skills.
A black-and-white striped or plain red bag is meant
to inform the next shopkeeper that you are easy money,
while a plain black bag apparently tells them you are
no fool. How knows if it is really true, but it may
be worth heading any way. If you do not have the energy
for Kuta’s markets, try village-style market in
Ubud or Sanur. Wherever you shop in Bali, it will be
an enlightening experience, completely different to
anything you see in western countries.
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