In Reply to: negotiating is expcected posted by Camille on Wednesday, 22. November 2006 at 15:45 Bali Time:
I've been travelling in Asia for years and I know that commerce includes bargaining. But there is bargaining and bargaining. Put this in perspective, the amount involved is probably about half the cost of a taxi fare back from the airport. For that you get accommodation, a meal and the use of a pool. Is it asking too much to pay less than $20 Oz for that?
But what really gets me is people who hop on a forum full of westerners and talk about how they got stuff that is really cheap to begin with at a really really cheap price at the end. With the standard of living that most westerners enjoy, it seems really mean to me to bargain people down. I don't think it has anything to do with respect. You're likely to get more respect by showing people that you're not just another stingy white tourist.
I hear what you say about backpackers, but this poster does not come across as a backpacker to me.