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| INTRODUCTION |
| John: Hi everyone, and welcome back to SwahiliPod101.com. This is Intermediate Season 1 Lesson 7 - Bagging a Bargain in Kenya. John Here. |
| Medina: Hamjambo, I'm Medina. |
| John: In this lesson, you’ll learn about bargaining. The conversation takes place at a shopping mall. |
| Medina: It's between a store clerk and Victor. |
| John: The speakers are strangers, therefore, they will speak formal Swahili. Okay, let's listen to the conversation. |
| DIALOGUE |
| Muuzaji wa duka: Hujambo, naweza kukusaidia? |
| Victor: Ndio, tafadhali. Natafuta suruali ndefu. |
| Muuzaji wa duka: Njoo huku tafadhali. Hizi hapa. |
| Victor: Suruali moja kwa dola 1,500? Hiyo ni ghali sana. |
| Muuzaji wa duka: Zina mtindo bora na zimeundwa na kampuni inayosifika sana. |
| Victor: Ndivyo. Na je, nikinunua mbili? |
| Muuzaji wa duka: Kwa uhakika, utapunguziwa. |
| Victor: Niaje nikitumia kadi kope? |
| Muuzaji wa duka: Ni sawa. Tunapunguza kwa bidhaa mbili au nyingi za aina moja. |
| Victor: Sawa, nitachukua mbili. |
| John: Listen to the conversation with the English translation |
| Store Clerk: Hello, can I help you? |
| Victor: Yes, please. I'm looking for a pair of pants. |
| Store Clerk: Come this way please. Here they are. |
| Victor: A pair for 1,500 dollars? That's very expensive. |
| Store Clerk: They are very good quality and from a brand company. |
| Victor: I see. What if I buy two? |
| Store Clerk: Oh, you'll certainly be given a discount. |
| Victor: Sounds great. |
| Store Clerk: We give discounts for two or more goods of the same products. |
| Victor: Ok then, I will take two. |
| POST CONVERSATION BANTER |
| John: Those were some very expensive pants! I’m glad that he got a discount for buying two. |
| Medina: I don’t think I could afford one pair, let alone two. |
| John: Me neither! Is it common to get a deal like that? |
| Medina: Well, bargaining, which in Swahili is kupatana bei, is a well known business language in Kenya. |
| John: Oh, do sellers markup their prices, so customers can haggle them down? |
| Medina: Yes, they do. If you’re good at haggling, you can get goods at much lower prices. |
| John: What if you’re not good at striking a bargain? |
| Medina: Then you might need to travel around to find the cheapest store. |
| John: Do you have any other tips for getting a good deal? |
| Medina: If you dress in expensive clothes, people will think you have money and won’t drop the prices as low. |
| John: Ahh, so dress more casual. What about if you are an obvious tourist or a visitor? |
| Medina: In that case, it’s best to go with a local, so you don’t get overcharged. |
| John: Okay, now onto the vocab. |
| VOCAB LIST |
| John: Let’s take a look at the vocabulary from this lesson. The first word is.. |
| Medina: suruali [natural native speed] |
| John: pants |
| Medina: suruali[slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Medina: suruali [natural native speed] |
| John: Next we have.. |
| Medina: ghali [natural native speed] |
| John: expensive |
| Medina: ghali[slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Medina: ghali [natural native speed] |
| John: Next we have.. |
| Medina: tafuta [natural native speed] |
| John: to search |
| Medina: tafuta[slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Medina: tafuta [natural native speed] |
| John: Next we have.. |
| Medina: ndefu [natural native speed] |
| John: long |
| Medina: ndefu[slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Medina: ndefu [natural native speed] |
| John: Next we have.. |
| Medina: mtindo [natural native speed] |
| John: pattern |
| Medina: mtindo[slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Medina: mtindo [natural native speed] |
| John: Next we have.. |
| Medina: punguza [natural native speed] |
| John: to reduce |
| Medina: punguza[slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Medina: punguza [natural native speed] |
| John: Next we have.. |
| Medina: chukua [natural native speed] |
| John: to pick up |
| Medina: chukua[slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Medina: chukua [natural native speed] |
| John: And last.. |
| Medina: hakika [natural native speed] |
| John: sure |
| Medina: hakika[slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Medina: hakika [natural native speed] |
| KEY VOCAB AND PHRASES |
| John: Let's have a closer look at the usage of some of the words and phrases from this lesson. The first phrase is.. |
| Medina: suruali ndefu |
| John: meaning "trousers" |
| John: What can you tell us about this? |
| Medina: Suruali means “slacks, trousers, pants”, but in Kiswahili, it also means “shorts.” |
| John: So how do we make sure that people know we’re talking about long pants? |
| Medina: That’s why we add the second word, ndefu. |
| John: That is an adjective and means “long.” |
| Medina: That’s right. |
| John: Can you give us an example using this phrase? |
| Medina: Sure. For example, you can say.. Suruali yangu ndefu ni kubwa sana. |
| John: ..which means "My pants are very big." |
| John: Okay, what's the next word? |
| Medina: hakika |
| John: meaning "certainly" |
| John: This can be used in conversation as an exclamation. |
| Medina: Yes, it can. In fact, it’s commonly used in conversations to show that someone is certain. |
| John: For example, “of course” or “undoubtably.” |
| Medina: It can also be used as a noun. For example Sina hakika |
| John: “I am not certain.” Can you give us an example using this word? |
| Medina: Sure. For example, you can say.. Hakika! uje na familia yako. |
| John: .. which means "Of course! Come with your family." |
| John: Okay, what's the next word? |
| Medina: punguza |
| John: meaning "to discount" |
| John: This is a verb. |
| Medina: Its literal translation is “to reduce.” |
| John: But, when being used in the context of prices, we can say “to discount.” |
| Medina: It can have several meanings depending on the context, but they all relate to the image of “decreasing.” |
| John: Can you give us an example using this word? |
| Medina: Sure. For example, you can say.. Amepunguza mwili wake. |
| John: .. which means "She has lost weight." |
| John: Okay, now onto the lesson focus. |
Lesson focus |
|---|
| John: In this lesson, you'll learn about about bargaining. This is something you might come across a lot in Kenya, and if you want to make sure you get the best prices, you need to know how to bargain. |
| Medina: Yes, you do! |
| John: Medina, can you give us some common phrases that will help our listeners bargain? |
| Medina: Sure! tafadhali punguza kidogo |
| John: “Please reduce it a little.” |
| Medina: ni ghali |
| John: “It’s expensive.” |
| Medina: pesa ngapi? |
| John: “How much?” |
| Medina: If the suggested price is impossible, you can say haiwezekani |
| John: “It can’t be.” Okay, now let’s look at some phrases a seller might use. |
| Medina: hakuna faida |
| John: “There is no profit.” You might hear a seller say this if you suggest a price that is too low. |
| Medina: Bei ya mwisho |
| John: “The last price.” Sellers use this to say they can’t go any lower. |
| Medina: Punguzo la asilimia |
| John: “percent discount” |
| Medina: Sellers also have a couple of stock phrases they use to get your attention. Things like, Kuona ni bure |
| John: “Looking at the product is free.” |
| Medina: From a cloth vendor you can also hear Kupima ni bure |
| John: “Trying on the product is free.” Thanks for the examples, Medina! There are more in the lesson notes. Now, how do people usually pay for their goods? |
| Medina: Cash, which is called taslimu, is most common, but electronic payments are becoming more and more popular, especially a system called M-pesa. |
| John: You need to register for this by phone, then you pay money into the system by giving cash to an agent who then credits your account. |
| Medina: Or, you can do it on your phone. So, you might hear someone say Je, unaakaunti ya M-pesa? |
| John: “Do you have an M-pesa account?” |
| Medina: Or you might hear a seller say Pole, tunakubali pesa taslimu pekee. |
| John: “Sorry, we accept only cash.” |
Outro |
| John: Okay, that’s all for this lesson. Thank you for listening, everyone, and we’ll see you next time! Bye! |
| Medina: Tuonane! |
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