Grocery Shopping

A woman selling vegetables in an outdoor market. SouYuo, Yunnan Grocery Shopping Everyone in China is a businessman. Stepping out onto nearly any street will provide ample evidence of this. Small family owned stores specialize in anything from toilet paper to plastic buckets to pantyhose. A plethora of these small shops are similar to convenience stores - providing a selection of food which may include anything from dried beans to pre-packaged dogmeat or pig feet, to stationary supplies, lamps, and hygiene supplies. These shops are great for grabbing a bag of frozen dumplings (jiaozi - sounds like "jow-tsuh"), and are worth investiating for each one might have it's own special, regular supply of a tasty food that the others never seem to have - such as dried black beans or a $2 bottle of wine that tastes like pineapple juice. Farmers can always be found walking around town with their vegetables, fruit, or nuts carried on shoulder poles, or pushed in a wagon. They nearly always have the freshest produce, and you can expect to haggle. Some will be inclined to rip you off - after agreeing on a price, they'll weigh out your fruit, and ask for much more money. If this is a problem for you, find a peanut vendor or lychee lady who sticks to the bargained price and stock up whenever you see them. As a foreigner, many Chinese will think you have a bottomless wallet, and compared to the income of an average peasant farmer, this probably isn't far from the truth. If you're planning to travel or live in China, expect to be regularly be charged higher prices because of the color of your skin. I would suspect that you can afford the fifty cent hike in price, though, so when this happens it's best to chalk it up to the price of experience and enjoy your day. Grocery stores give you the option to buy produce without haggling, but it's most often of a poorer quality (bruised, discolored, wilted) and more expensive in the long run anyway. "ManGuo!" They call. "The best mangos! Sweet and fresh! Good for your health! Mangos! The best mangos...." If you're looking for more than a quick snack, the wet markets are the best place to buy fresh produce, meat, spices, even cooking implements. Wondering about, trying to find the plumpest, most delicious veggies available, while dodging lithe men cleaning fish on the sidewalk is part of the fun of preparing a Chinese meal. If you have a sensitive disposition, be aware that live animals are for sale in these markets, and are often butchered and cleaned on the spot. The hygienic standards are not always the highest, and you might see someone gutting a fish or cutting off the heads of frogs on the cement walkway. Wet markets will also give you a clear window into the background of diseases such as avian or pig flu, via crates crammed with live foul. live frogs in a restaurant front; FengHuang, Hunan Don't let the possibility of a little blood scare you off. The vendors who work in the wet market are friendly, it's the best place to practice your haggling, and you will be missing out on a colorful barage of sights and sounds if you venture all the way to this strange country and never set foot in an outdoor market. Hit it at the right time of day, and you can see it bumping as friends and family members meet to gossip and prepare for the evening meal.

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