Shop ‘til you drop!

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Shopping has never been my favourite pastime, but in Addis it is certainly an amusing experience. We didn’t need to buy much, but what we did want managed to cause many problems. The main theme is for shop assistants to randomly select an item that they think you should buy -usually bearing no resemblance, at all, to the first item that you looked at in the shop or on the stall.

So, on Saturday we were in Shola Market where Clare wanted to buy some shoes in preparation for the VSO Ethiopia 10th Anniversary celebrations later this week. In one shop, she eventually found some that she liked and having tried on one shoe, asked for the other. It took a while for the assistant to understand the concept of wanting two shoes. Then, while one person was trying to find the left shoe, another kept selecting random styles and thrusting them at Clare with the instruction “Try this!”

Success! After much searching, the left shoe was found. Problem! It was a different size to the right shoe! The explanation? A previous customer had bought odd shoes.

Then, on Sunday, we got a line taxi to Sheromeda Market (not sure of the spelling), which is good for clothing and material. Clare had bought a bedspread on a previous visit and I had organised for one to be made in colours that I like. However, it wasn’t ready so we ducked into various other shops to check out their products - and to shelter from the rain.

In one shop, I spotted the colours I liked in the window and asked to see it. The assistant said that he had one the same inside and would show me that one. The only similarity was that the material was white. The embroidery was a different design (hearts!) and different colours. He still argued that it was the same, even when I showed him the one in the window, but eventually unfolded it for me to see. Having decided that I wanted to buy it, we then proceeded to bargaining. After several trips to look at bedspreads, I knew the right price range. He started at a very high price … I offered less than I was prepared to pay … he came down a bit… I told him that Clare had bought the same thing in a different shop for 190 birr … he said that it was not as good quality or as beautiful … Clare told him it was very beautiful … I offered 250 birr … he said 280 birr …we went to walk out of the shop … he called us back saying, “OK, OK you are a businessman, 280 birr … “No,” I said “250 final price” and he eventually agreed.

Clare also wanted a t-shirt for one of her brothers. She saw one she liked, but it was the wrong size, so she asked if he had the same design in a different size. I am sure that you are getting the hang of Addis shopping by now! Sure enough, he proceeded to show different t-shirts with different designs and in colours other than the one Clare wanted, but at least they were all in the right size. While this transaction was taking place, a lad selling tooth sticks kept asking me if I wanted to buy one for 1 birr. He must have asked at least 10 times, because obviously, if he persisted I might just change my mind and decide that I did really want a tooth stick (for cleaning teeth instead of a toothbrush) after all.

Then, our final stop was a return to Shola market to buy red rope (for a display I had put together for VSO). It was still raining, so we went for the first red rope we saw. The man selling it worked out that there we 46 metres and rather than getting wet while he measured out the 35 metres I wanted, I decided to buy it all. I then wanted a receipt, which a different man was given the job of writing out. The following conversation was in Amharic (mainly thanks to Clare).

Man: How many metres?
Clare: 46
Man: What is the cost?
Clare: 46 birr.
Man: But how many metres:
Clare: 46. It is 1 birr per metre.
Man: How much?

This is an edited version - it went on for much longer. By this time the original seller and myself were also joining in with the answer “46”.

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