Living abroad one invariably will notice differences between their mother country and their host country – be they cultural, social, religious, political, economic, etcetera. For me, one of the most significant of my daily routine is the presence of an intense and pervasive bargaining culture here in Turkey, it is truly polar-opposite to the ‘everything labeled and posted’ consumer system we have in the States. Having grown up in Southern California the system of economic transactions was based largely around explicit, specifically written, rules – menus with prices, correctly labeled shelves, accurately priced products, a general uniformity in price for similar goods, and corresponding trust between consumer and merchant. The Turkish system is not like this, it is wonderfully and horribly different.

Continue reading Çok Pahalı – That’s Too Expensive