Sunday, October 14, 2007

Same Same but 10 times more expensive

In my quest to buy some new running shorts, since I ended up leaving my last pair behind in Zhongdian, I popped around the markets in Hanoi and looked high and low for a new pair. Since I bought my last pair in Beijing for around $US 2 I knew how much I wanted to pay. When I found a pair of shorts that I liked I checked on the price. The woman said it would cost 20.000 Dong..that's just over $US 1. They were exactly what I was looking for, but I wanted to see if she had another color. She called into the abyss behind the clothes rack, where I heard a bit of ruffling, then suddenly a new pair emerged the exact color that I wanted. I said I'd take it and she quickly stuffed both shorts into a plastic bag for me and asked for 40.000 Dong. It was almost too much effort to argue with her so I figures I'd buy both shorts for what was almost $US 3. Of course I didn't realize just how much a deal they were until I got to my hotel and noticed the price tag for the "Made in America" shorts see pic below.

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