Essay 1: Lost in Translation --- Standing in My Hometown Market

Standing in My Hometown Market

“20 yuan? It’s too expensive! I’ll buy it for 15.” “No way, I can’t make money for 15. What about 17? It cannot be any lower!” “Deal!” Basically, this kind of conversation happens all around the market in my hometown in Hebei, China. People bargain with sellers all the time, and sometimes they even do not want to buy anything. They just bargain for fun. I have no idea when or how my hometown market started, but the locals organize a market on an outdoor square every two days. Since coming to the United States, I have not experienced any outdoor market. Although I can find many Chinese markets here in Chicago, they are totally different from the markets in China.

People can bargain in most markets in China including my hometown market, but this skill is totally lost in the U.S. People here almost always pay the exact price for everything. Back home, I enjoyed watching people bargain. During the weekends, if I woke up early in the morning, I usually followed my mother or called friends to go to my hometown market.  I spent one to two hours scanning interesting goods, or sometimes I stood somewhere and pretended to watch my phone, but actually I was listening people to bargain. When the buyer and seller dealt with an acceptable price, I felt happy for both of them.

In my hometown market, the products are varied. Furnitures, food, clothes, and even small pets are all in the same market. In the U.S. indoor markets, products are finely sorted and divided, which means people need to go to many places to find all the items on their shopping list. However, In my hometown market, people can complete their shopping list in one place. Once I went to the market to look for a special bell that could make a strange sound. I did not find it from other places, but I did not want to go to a specialized store which was far from my home, so I went to the market. At the first booth that sells groceries, the owner said they had one! I doubted it at first, but after several minutes, he really found what I wanted. This kind of experience is unusual in Chicago.

The most important point is that the ambience for the two kinds of markets is different. In my hometown market, it was very noisy and crowded, and it was always full of people every time I went. Moreover, many sellers brought loudspeakers to help them attract customers. The sounds of talking, bargaining, and loudspeakers made the market become really annoying. However, all of these uncomfortable things made the market lively and energetic. Instead of crowds and noises, U.S. markets are usually quiet and clean. People usually buy items quickly and quietly, so the liveliness of the market seems not to exist.

In conclusion, the bargaining, variety, and liveliness of my hometown market are lost in the U.S. markets. To a certain extent, my hometown market is like a flea market because both of them are annoying, crowded, and with people bargaining for products. When Chinese people move to the U.S., they have to follow the local market rules. That is why the Chinese markets in Chicago are totally different from markets in China. I am looking forward to standing in my hometown market once again.