和老外聊天的地道口语第86期:在中国一定要学会

E: Hey, Robert, that's a nice shirt you are wearing. Where did you get it?
R: thanks, I like it too. I bought it at the nearby department store.
E: that's nice. Do you know you can get one at the wholesale¹ market near the zoo for a much lower price?
R: yeah, I know that. But at those places. the prices they ask you are ridiculously high, and if you don't bargain hard, you will get ripped-off.
E: true, learning² how to haggle³ the price is one of the things people have to pick up when they come to China for the first time.
R: yeah, but personally, I hate bargaining. If I bargain,I might come to a lower price, but I will never konw the true price of what I am buying; and I always have the feeling that I am overcharged at those places.
E: yeah, I have the same feeling. Also there is another thing that bothers me the quality. Things in a department store are usually quality-guaranteed. But at a wholesale market, you never know whether what you are buying are of good quality or not.
R: that's why I like department stores more. Shopping at a wholesale market like the locals is one of the few things I am unable to grow accustomd to.
E: I understand. While it's always good to follow the local customs, I guess there are exceptions⁴.
嗨,罗伯特.你身上这件衬衫不错,在哪里买的?
谢谢,我也挺喜欢这件衬衫的,就在附近的商场里买的.
挺好的.不过你知道要在动物园旁边的批发市场里买,还会便宜很多吗?
是的,我知道.但是在那些地方,通常他们的要加都很高,要是你不还价的话,你就会被狠宰一顿.
的确是,第一次来中国,人们最开始要学会的东西中有一样就是还价.
是啊,我也有同样的感觉.不过还有另一件事情让我觉得很烦,就是质量问题.在商场里买的东西,通常质量都会有保证,可是在批发市场,你就不知道你买的东西到底是质量好还是不好.
这就是为什么我更喜欢在商场里没东西,我就总是做不到像当地人一样在批发市场里购物,真的不习惯.
我明白.尽管按照当地的习俗来做很好,可是我也觉得应该有例外的情况.

 

1 wholesale   

n.批发；adv.以批发方式；vt.批发，成批出售

参考例句：

• The retail dealer buys at wholesale and sells at retail.零售商批发购进货物，以零售价卖出。
• Such shoes usually wholesale for much less.这种鞋批发出售通常要便宜得多。

2 learning   

n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词

参考例句：

• When you are learning to ride a bicycle,you often fall off.初学骑自行车时，常会从车上掉下来。
• Learning languages isn't just a matter of remembering words.学习语言不仅仅是记些单词的事。

3 haggle   

vi.讨价还价，争论不休

参考例句：

• In many countries you have to haggle before you buy anything.在许多国家里买东西之前都得讨价还价。
• If you haggle over the price,they might give you discount.你讲讲价，他们可能会把价钱降低。

4 exceptions   

例外( exception的名词复数 )； 不包括在内的人（或物）； 规则的例外； 例外的事物

参考例句：

• Most children like sweets, but there are some exceptions. 大多数孩子喜欢吃糖果，但也有一些例外。
• Such exceptions do not invalidate the rule. 这些例外并不证明此规则无效。