THE NEGOTIATOR

I always thought that I could talk my way into or out of anything as well as talk others into going along with me. Being a negotiator was a profession that appealed to me. I would whirl into a hostage situation, smile confidently, be witty and charming and talk the HT into giving me all the hostages and surrendering himself. A day in the markets here, however, has shattered my confidence in my ability to negotiate. I’m horrible at it.

The thing is, since I’m a mzungu as soon as a seller sees me coming the price is automatically jacked up 2 to 3 times what it originally was. And I have no resolve. I’ll crumble and pay whatever price is asked of me and throw in a couple extra hundred just for good measure. Its shameful.

Today I went to the Toi market to get some DVDs for the kids to watch on the weekend. The DVDs here are amazing cause you can by one disc with 10 movies on it. The rule is, you shouldn't really pay more than 100 shillings for them. So when the vendor (whose name by the way is Dan and who kept trying to get me to buy earrings as well – buy 10 get 10 free)told me they were 200 each, I was prepared.

To make a long story short, my friend Samantha and I spent a long time at their table talking and laughing and negotiating- ok, I was flirting; I was able to get a few for 100ksh each, but not all of the ones I wanted. Maybe I’m not so bad at negotiating as I thought. Or maybe I’m just better at flirting. Or maybe they’re sort of the same thing?