Kaki Shopping

Photo Credits

Shopping in the US of A is a whole different experience than shopping in Malaysia.  For one, most of the things being sold are of different brands.  Oh, in grocery stores, at least here in San Jose, we do get aisles selling Asian stuff but not everything is here.  We also have Asian markets here, selling mostly the stuff you would see in a Malaysian supermarket, and here’s where you can find a LOT of Asians doing their shopping rounds.  So stuff like oyster sauce, soy sauce in rather familiar brand names and even seasonings and “cooling tea” concoctions can be found here.

Here are a few differences I have noticed from the shopping experience I have had here so far:

• Most of the parking is free.  There are parking lots available in front of the stores and you can park there for as long as you like.  Most of the lots are open-air ones.  I hardly see any basement and multi-storey parking lots here.
• Sales tax is chargeable on every item you purchase.  Depending on the US state, the sales tax could vary considerably.  Here, I need to remember that everything I buy will be taxed an additional 8.25%! ..unless I buy stuff online, that is.
• When I make a purchase with my credit card, I don’t even need to give the credit card to the cashier.  It’s pretty much do-it-yourself here.  There is a terminal that allows the customer to select Debit/Credit from the touch screen and then swipe the card themselves.  The approval is almost instantaneous, and we sign on the touch screen and we’re all set!

I did notice a few instances of kiasuism on a few occasions though.  Stuff I thought would not be present here, but…. anyhow, in supermarket checkout lanes, there are normally a few lanes for speedy checkouts, i.e. purchases less than 15 items, for example.  I saw these 2 ladies, with a cartful of groceries lining up in this lane, and what they did was…they split their purchases!  So one lady goes through with 15 items and the second lady follows suit with the remainder of the items!  I also saw a couple doing the same thing. 

Hey, I’m not racist or anything, but on these two occasions, these people certainly do not look Caucasian.  SIGH….I guess it’s a taste from home, huh?