Happy Chun Jie!

From New Years Day

Happy 2nd half of our 3rd wedding anniversary! Happy Chun Jie! Happy Australia Day! Not so happy experiences at the market! Yes, it's been something else around here lately with all the fireworks being let off (our upstair neighbours like to let their fire crackers right off their balcony above our window) and the food festival at the market place next door. We really thought we were getting somewhere with the language too being that I thought I could understand numbers and recognize some phrases that I heard being passed around when I tried to buy things at the market. So I think I'm going to go to the market by myself on New Year's Eve (the eve of Chun Jie) and stock up since things will be closed a few days. I choose some apples and go to give the lady my money and she starts back that she wants me to try this other fruit too called longan which I don't like but I knew Jason hadn't tried it so I thought "sure I'll get some for him". Apparently I didn't pick out enough and she keeps adding more and more to the bag even though I keep telling her enough. Then she tells me the price. I didn't get it at first so I motion for her to say again. She does and I thought she said 3.5 yuan. She shakes her head vigorously and keeps repeating herself louder and louder. So I thought perhaps she meant 3 for the apples and 5 for the longans so I hand her 8 yuan in effort to get her to give me my fruit and stop yelling. Now another man comes over and she explains that apparently I am a stupid foreigner and can't understand a word of what she is saying -- watch her rip me off. So he joins in and I have 2 people yelling at me. After about 5 minutes, she picks up a piece of paper and starts to write down the amount I apparently owe her (now that everyone is watching me). Thinking "Well you could've done that in the first place" I take the paper and read 35 yuan. Actually I think I said that very loudly and with shock and disbelief -- 35 yuan is way much more than I am willing to pay (or let alone have on me)! So I walk away with my apples that I paid way too much for and no longans -- which I might add that I never wanted in the first place!!! Now, Jason has been practicing and believes he has it down and can order us food at our noodle shop next door. Living in Asia and trying to eat out is proving very difficult for me the vegetarian. They cook everything in chicken stock and when you ask them to leave the meat out, they argue that it won't taste good and slip it in anyway. So Jason figures that if he orders me noodles with egg they won't put meat in it (that is what we are told). So he orders and we wait and what comes out but a nice big bowl of...steaming hot chicken broth with a little bit of noodles in it. Oh well, it's back to the drawing board again!!! Can't wait for school to start!

Rachel