We all collect again and walk back through the greenery of the park - to our bus and off to a Pearl Factory tour. OK, it's a thinly-disguised ploy to get us to buy pearl jewelry. We've been quietly told that the government *requires* tour operators to expose their tourists to a certain number of local-specialty "buying opportunities", but that Odysseys choices are carefully picked for high quality and reasonable prices - and we're coached on what level of discount is *really* reasonable - as opposed to the first offers of the vendors. In this case, we're told 30% is good, 40% MIGHT be possible. And, yes, I suspect that we're being coached to pay *more* than we really could, but every buyer needs to exercise their *own* level of skepticism and caution. Kathy and I have reached a point in our lives where we finally realize that collecting more *things* is really actually *burdening* ourselves: we want memories and photos, but after moving 3 times recently - and moving all of our *stuff* time and again - we understand that it just becomes a millstone around our necks. So we will enjoy the views, but we're certainly not going to *buy* anything.
We pull up and we're encouraged to take advantage of the clean, Western-style toilets available there. OK. Perhaps you don't want to read about toilet stops, but another of the things that we *did* appreciate about Odysseys - is that they included planning for convenient breaks - and for clean places to take those breaks. Annnd now we get into a bit of a discussion about "East vs West" again. Particularly for the ladies. Bear with me. I do have a bigger point to make. Chinese facilities traditionally consist of a porcelain base surrounding a hole in the floor. Essentially just a place to put your feet - and squat. No "throne" like Western-style toilets. And that can be pretty disconcerting for Westerners when we first walk in and wonder "where did the toilet go???" And, perhaps-understandably, the women were *quite* happy to be directed to *Western*-style facilities and, while not making a big deal of it, Odysseys is commended for getting us to bathrooms which were mostly of Western style. But it *did* eventually make me think about "comfort levels" again. Well over 2 *billion* people deal with the "hole in the floor" system (personally estimating - between China, India, and others - at least), so it clearly *does* work. And, particularly for ladies, when you think about it, it is more *clean* to *not* sit on a public seat. Just squat. So ultimately our Western squeamishness is kind of backward: we *should* be more reluctant to use *Western* facilities. While most of us continued to wait in line for "the one Western toilet" in some places, I began to think about this as yet another place to challenge our comfort zones: "If something totally foreign works well for *one third of the people on the planet* then maybe I should at least give it a fair try". Food, customs, clothing, dances, toilets... There. I made my point. Thank you for your indulgence. A "pearl of wisdom", perhaps, and back to literal pearls.
One of our group is asked to pick an oyster out of a collection and we are all encouraged to guess how many pearls will be inside. How many? I figure that "one" is a good find, but we are encouraged to guess higher. Then it is opened and the guide shows us all of the little cultured pearls inside. ***Twenty Three*** if I recall correctly. Wow! See all of the little bumps near the edge of the shell?
We're schooled a bit on how to tell really-good pearls from lesser ones and she extracts a pearl or two and passes them around.
Then she explains that these are not at all of jewelry quality: that these pearls will be crushed and ground up into the delightful "pearl cream" that was in the afore-mentioned ladies room.
Then we're paraded through the showroom to the "special quality" showroom where we're shown the cases full of the "really good stuff". Beautiful. Different shades of pearls - pearl (of course), but also a kind of rose and a grey-ish hue. Beautiful and lustrous. Everybody begins to drift out into the main area as we're told that the room we're in is the "wife" room - while the main showroom is the "girlfriend" room - and the racks on the wall are the "mother in law" collection - purely costume jewelry.
Annnd Kathy and I browse the beautiful pearls in the "wife" room and I ask the fateful question: "Is there anything in particular that you like?".
Ahem. Kathy is *not* someone who gets things for herself. So when she points out a necklace with just *2* Pearls on it of different shades - carefully matched for shape and size - I take notice. And so does the sales girl who has been discreetly following us. Soooo we ask to see it. And it looks really nice. And it looks really nice *on* Kathy. So I ask how much. Wow. THAT much? OK. Well. We aren't buying anything anyway. They ask "So how much *can* you offer?" So I offer what I am willing to pay for jewelry (even with Kathy standing beside me) - which I'm sure is a complete insult. Far lower, even, than our guides told us was a good price. They frown and shake their heads, so we thank them and exit the "wife" room - and our local guide Vivian skips out of the "wife" room and tells us not to be so hasty. That the manager has asked us to come back and talk. Hmmmm... Okay. They counter offer 25% more than my offer - which is exactly *50%* of the original price. Really? Uhhh... OK. Done. And then, of course, we have to get matching earrings - and they help us find a nice set quickly - and I go pay for both transactions. And we smile. I have a happy wife. Which makes *me* happy. And we've got a small, light, beautiful memory of China to take home and remember each time Kathy wears them. But we *certainly* aren't going to *buy* anything. Maybe our guides are really VERY smart.... (smile).
No comments:
Post a Comment