The day started much the same as the previous with a late wakeup followed by a swim at Patong beach. By mid-morning a mega storm swept in and thoroughly drenched everyone so we went back to Sopita to dry off before heading to the markets.
Although Blai was the champion negotiator at the start of the trip, it had become apparent that Sim's bargaining skills had quickly developed and he was now the most ruthless negotiator of our party. A basic breakdown of the technique Sim employs follows:
Offer 5 to 10 % of the price suggested by the saleswoman (knowing full well that this will be rejected).
As the saleswoman drops her price you slowly increase your offer.
Eventually the saleswoman will reach a "minimum price" or "best price". At this stage the strategy is to offer a little above your previous best price and say "OK, I've gone up now you come down".
Appeal to the saleswomans maternal instincts by saying you have numerous children and you need the money to feed your children.
Try the intimidation tactic by removing your hat (particularly useful if you have a clean-shaven head) and steping towards the saleswoman saying "OK, serious now, I'll give you a good deal".
If all else fails negotiate a bottle of water for yourself, to be provided by the saleswoman.
On numerous occassions this technique proved invaluable and was able to net us absolute bargains, much below the initial prices offered by the merchants. Unfortunately, Sao failed to learn from his earlier poor purchases (i.e. the slingshot) and bought fishermans pants (essentially a big piece of cotton) for the equivalent of 10 Australian dollars. Sao's mistake was to offer too high an initial price, an amount the saleswoman quickly accepted and before he realised what had happened the deal was done and he was fleeced out of his money.