Lost in transit

i do all the laundry, the bulk of the cleaning and cooking, and keep track of all the paperwork. the man does the shopping once a week. i think i got the better deal. i HATE shopping in general, and i've just never gotten through a Big Shopping Trip (the weekly or bi-weekly one, where you buy toilet paper, etc.) without needing a nice, stiff drink around the middle of the store. in the states i'm bad at it; here, i'm simply useless. i hardly ever remember to bring the right size coin to free the cart/trolley (like at the airport - you get it back, but you have to have it to get the cart), people stand shoulder-to-shoulder in the middle of the cheese aisle like they're waiting for enlightenment, and the bag- your- own- at- lightning- speed- or- else thing (also here) is a skill i'll never master.
the Tea Egg and Sugar COmany (TESCO- a british-based large grocery chain) is a special circle of hell, as far as i'm concerned. and that's a cakewalk compared to the corner markets where everything is behind the counter and you have to ask the almost always grouchy shopkeeper to give them to you. language barriers aside, how DARE YOU ask for something on the top shelf? horrid.
shudder. makes me thirsty just thinking about it.

Where I live the policy of the grocery packers is bruise all the fruit as best you can, squish all the baking items as best you can, and never double-bag cans or heavy items. Don't smile, don't acknowledge, and don't take a coupon without a three-sided debate. You've guessed it. I hate shopping and all I would really enjoy is to go to the grocery store in December and spray water on all those carts so they will freeze together in a solid train and stop others from shopping as well. That's all my gripes for today. Thanks for hearing me out.

In Brazil the operator has a seat but there's always someone else to pack for you. Here in Italy operators are generally very friendly and chatty (but then, most italians are), they have a seat as well, but you gotta do your packing on your own, baby - and pay around € 0,05 for each plastic bag. Which is why I always keep a couple of old plastic bags and a few fabric ones too. I feel so ecological. They find it weird too, italians must be the most non-ecological people in the world.

Oh, but I love shopping anyway, and I ALWAYS go shopping for groceries when visiting a foreign country. Plus I take anyone who comes visit me here in Italy to a supermarket tour - and nobody complains!

Polish grocery shops over the last few years have gone through the great change (still not complete) of supermarketization (is that a German word?).

In the old shops, all goods were behind the counter. (Think of the "General Store" in one of those old-timey movies.) You waited impatiently in line, then (while everyone who came in after you waited impatiently behind you) you told the woman behind the counter what you wanted. You recited your grocery list, item by item, and the woman ran around behind the counter and assembled your order as you spoke. Then you stuffed everything into bags that you brought with you, or you paid a little extra to get bags with your order.

Now, except for a few small old-style shops, it's like everywhere else: you run around with a cart or basket, grab stuff, and take it to the front, where the woman standing behind the counter rings it up and (generally) bags it for you. Bags no longer cost extra, unless maybe you're asking for the heavy-duty ones instead of the flimsy things that blow in trees like captured ghosts.

Dear all; thanks for all your excellent posts. It's good to know I'm not the only one who hates the supermarket shopping experience. I've recently dabbled with buying my groceries online - once you know your way around the website and are prepared for some "surprises" (like the two teeny individual potatoes that arrived instead of two kilograms of potatoes - boy how we laughed) then it's much less hassle than fighting your way through go-slowly crowds, screaming kids and old people that seem to populate my local supermarket.

In Hungary, they glare at you for approaching the checkout. They charge you for the flimsiest plastic bags. If you forgot to weigh your fresh produce, they cuss at you and throw it to one side. They *so* do not pack your bags for you.

If you don't have the right change, they probably will not give you any. If you're lucky, you might get a boiled sweet instead of a 5 Forint coin, which are too small and fiddly for them to bother to pick out of the till.

Oh man, I hate German grocery stores. I once saw an old woman (we're talking Grandmotherly) flip off another old woman who cut in front of her in line at the check-out. My sister likened her first experience in a German grocery store to the Last Judgement.

Here in Taiwan, the checkout operators in supermarkets stand up and they do pack your bags, which is great. However, they seem to make a point of packing soft stuff, like fruit, first, and then heavy, hard stuff on top of it so either you have to re-pack the bag on the spot or come home to find all your stuff squashed and soggy.

The concept of service is also quite special. Providing good and fast service means trying to serve everyone at the same time - no one should have to wait. So while the operator is dealing with you, they may also serve seven other customers, inevitably slowing things down and confusing things. "Just a pack of cigarrettes", "A lottery ticket", "The paper", "Just this soft drink"...

I really hate shopping as a rule, but I hated it less when I lived in London, at least near the end of our stay. At first, we lived near Acton Town and had quite a walk back to our flat with the groceries. Later, we ended up in the Finchley Central, with a great Argos near our flat. For some reason, I didn't mind shopping there.

Now that I'm back in Canada, though, shopping makes me want to kick puppies.

Here in Austria you weigh your own fruit (pressing the corresponding button on the scale to print out the right sticker with price, weight and barcode). If you forget, the cashier will run back and weigh it for you in the fruit section if it is a small store and they are not busy. Otherwise, you run back yourself or just forget it. You bag your own groceries as well, and you either bring your own bags or buy them at the store (paper grocery bags are generally more expensive than plastic ones).

The stores are generally smaller than in the United States, and the selection is not as extensive. The first time my wife visited the United States, she went to the store for some cinnamon. I found her later at home, on her back on the bed with her eyes closed, recovering from what she described as a nervous breakdown. At the store she forgot the English word for cinnamon, and had wandered the aisles looking for something with a picture of cinnamon on it (spices in Austria are often sold in envelope-like packages rather than tin cans or small jars) and she had finally given up, overwhelmed.

Dear Kimbofo,

I think your generalisation of checkout operators is harsh and mistaken. I have just graduated from university and when I was a student I used to work for asda. I smiled every day I went to work and offered to pack for every single person who came through my checkout. I could say that I have met the most appalling customers im my job throughout the 2 years there but then I would generalise (like you do) as I have also met the most generous as well. I would dare you to try and do an 8 hour shift in a supermarket and then understand why our checkout operators dont smile at you. Is it the low rediculous pay I wonder or the rude customer they have to encounter????? Trust me I was extremely polite when I used to work there but I have my limits as well, especially when customers do not respect that I am an individual as well as they are. A checkout operator works an average of 8 hours a day. Within this shift they have to bag numerous bags. You on the other hand only have to do YOUR shopping once a week. Now which is more logical? And please if you reply dont give me the usual lecture that we are paid to do so. Its so unoriginal and I have heard it so many times.

Oh and all you people, get a life. It really isnt that important how you pack your shopping. There are more important things in life than that.

Viki,

I'm sorry you were offended by my post; I wasn't having a go at checkout operators - I understand that the job, for the most part, is bloody hard work. If anything, I was just pointing out the difference between cultures - that is what Lost In Transit is all about.

And you have to admit that there's no cost associated with smiling and being polite to customers - I am ALWAYS polite to checkout staff and I've lost count of the number of times they have just ignored me or even bothered to say hello when I've acknowledged them.

You should also be careful about generalising; I worked as a checkout operator when I was a student as well. I did it throughout my later High School years and then, as a uni student, I worked in various retail outlets, including a department store. In fact, I put myself through university by working two nights a week (6-hour shifts) and both Saturdays AND Sundays (12-hour shifts!) to pay my rent, books etc. I did this for FOUR YEARS! I was still there working AFTER I graduated. And I know how rude / patronising / abusive / grumpy / customers can be, but in my experience this is only a small minority. It's amazing how a simple smile and a friendly hello can disarm a potentially rude customer.

Dear kimbofo,

I am sorry if I took your post the wrong way. I have never been to australia so maybe you are right. There is a difference between cultures (could this be the weather?). Personally, when I was working in a supermarket and customers behaved badly I was still smiling (or trying to smile). Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn't.
And even though I have been in that position before, you are right, I still find checkout operators who don't acknowledge I am there a bit rude.

Accept my apologies.