skizziks

Sorry for the confusing titile, I have no idea what to call it. If you can come up with a better one, please change it.


here is the deal: Let's say item X costs 5 bucks in your country.

Lets say you are in another, poorer country where item X costs 1 buck.

Let's say the country haggles for prices, and since you are not from there and are the "rich foriegner" and cant speak well, you always end up paying more even though you try to haggle. lets say you pay 3 bucks for item X.

You paid less than you normally would, but you paid more than everyone else. Do you feel ripped off? Why?

I do. Even though I know I'm paying less, it pisses me off that they can and actively do take advantage of me. Comes across as greedy, and makes me feel animosity towards them. Why cant they just be honest? Even though the price difference is often no more than 50 extra cents, its not the money, its the principle of it all, the feeling that i'm being taken advantage of.

telekinetic

huh? O_o

Are you asking, do you get mad even if you're getting a deal, if you know someone else is getting a better deal? Sounds more like a rant than a question.

Me? Nope, not really...a deal is a deal, if I didn't like the price I wouldn't buy, regardless of what others pay.

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Halx

No matter what I'm paying, I usually always feel like I'm getting ripped off.. unless it is in some 3rd world country where it is so ridiculously cheaper than where I live. I remember being on a cruise this summer and having to pay $6.75 for a cocktail. All the people complained about how expensive it was but I was like "Shit, that's half as much as I pay in New York."

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Baraka_Guru

Crap, that's 2.5* times more than I pay at home! And five times more in New York?!

It's all relative.

I imagine if I were spending a long time in a Third World country, I'd get the feeling I was being ripped off if I had to consistently pay 2 or 3 times more than locals....even if it costs a quarter of as I would pay at home.

If it were only for a week or two, I probably wouldn't care, so long as I was only paying quarter of what I'm used to.


*I'm pretty sure I can make a decent Bombay & tonic at home for just under $3.

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skizziks

not a rant, a question of why paying more, even though it´s less than you are used to, can make you feel ripped off. i´m not the only one who feels this way, i was talking about it with some other travelers who brought it up.

another thing i didnt mention is, for example today, i bought two oranges, lady said a price, i gave her a coin expecting change, she asked if i had 50 cents more, i figured it would make change easier, she said "ok, good" and got even more than she asked for. i asked about change and she acted like that was the price. flat out ripped the fuck off.

Fremen

Like Halx said, I usually feel ripped off no matter what the prices.

Hell, products are so marked up from what they actually cost to manufacture, it's ridiculous.
Look at automobiles and children's toys as two examples.
Both cost much less to make than they are sold for.
At least with cars, they last longer.

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MSD

On such a small scale, I consider it a virtue of capitalism, especially if someone's currency is so much less valuable than mine. I don't get upset if I'm willing to pay what they ask, and even more so if I can afford to help out a business owned by someone less privileged than I am.

skizziks

And if everyone is paying 50 cents, and you always have to pay 1.50, wouldnt you eventually get tired of it, especially if they WONT negotiate because you are "rich."

Willravel

No, I don't feel ripped off at all. I live in a nice house in a nice neighborhood in a nice city in a mostly nice country. I have a good job, plenty of friends, and I don't want for anything that I might need. Am I mad that someone can go to Mexico and get a computer for $100? Of course not.

Amaras

In another country, as I've never stayed too long, I figure I'm paying tourist costs. I'll still haggle, of course, knowing full well I
won't get a local's price.
I stayed 6 weeks in New Zealand, and everyone pays the same. Longest I've stayed, anywhere outside of Canada.

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genuinegirly

Oo, I like that way of thinking, "tourist tax". Except it goes to the greedy buggers rather than the government, which would screw them over anyway.

I feel bothered when I can't haggle below a certain point when someone next to me just paid less. Sure, it's an odd feeling. That's why I prefer not to visit places where haggling is commonplace.

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MSD

If a street vendor or small business owner in another country is likely making a tenth of what I do, I don't feel bad about it at all.

I've even bought candy from kids representing a "charity" on the street and said, "nice scam you guys have going, keep up the good work," figuring that the people who can't afford $2.50 for a chocolate bar probably aren't going to be the ones paying for it.

Maybe I have a warped view of the virtues of capitalism, or maybe I wish I had thought of that when I was in high school. Either way, I can afford it.

Vigilante

If I spent 3 bucks, I still got a deal. I could always not buy it if I wanted to pay more back home. I'll haggle anyways, just to see what happens.

People do stuff to try to look poorer so I don't always feel bad in a situation like that, like the bum I saw one time talking on a cell phone

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Nisses

Did anybody consider that you don't *have* to buy the item?

Chances are pretty good that if you keep at your price, either they cave, or you get to walk away and *keep* your money.

If it's sold by streetvendors, there's likely another one 2 streets down that will sell the same item.

I've never paid more than I wanted to pay for something outside of the country.
However, I always spoke a language the merchant/vendor spoke as well. Or had somebody with me that did.

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skizziks

To clarify, I'm talking about food and lodging. I should have mentioned that up front, I forgot people think "buying things in a foreing country" means souveniers and crap. I dont buy tourist crap and souveiners, I'm just trying to live. If/when I do buy extra stuff, then yeah, I pay whatever and I´m happy with whatever I get.

murp0434

yes. this is capitalism at it's finest. the market decides what to pay for an item. if you decide to pay more than the person before you, that's your decision, and that's capitalism.



also: Part of being American(ized) is paying more for things that are easier /more convenient. I could buy fake oakleys for cheaper than I just bought them from this guy, but even though Jose down the street has them for cheaper I'm to lazy to fight with this guy about a $.50 difference or walk down the street to comparison shop. If i payed less than i expected then it was a good deal.

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