Garden Center in China Guangxi Nanning (5 of 5)

Why do we end up 'not talking' well, let me explain.

The Chinese love to talk and purchasing something here can and often does become a social event. With my western ways, spending two hours discussing something that should only take two minutes is very infuriating. But I am adjusting to it, slowly.

It means in practise, that when we go on a plant or pot buying jaunt instead of an hour or two, we need to allow the best part of a day as to find our preferred garden plant choices results in visiting several plant nurseries. All requiring plenty of chit-chat.

Firstly on arrival at the nursery you need to find the owner (seller), they may be there, they may not. They may want to sell plants to us at a fair price, they may not.

It all a bit hit and miss and as each encounter is so time consuming, my limited patience is pushed to the limit and my wife often bears the brunt.

So, sometimes we end up in a 'strop'.

Luckily, the tree and shrub nurseries we use mostly here in China Nanning are situated along one stretch of road.

Once we have assembled enough plants from the various nurseries to justify the hiring of a van or small lorry to transport them back to the shop, which is not an easy task, then remembering where all our chosen plants are located and furthermore visualising the volume for loading onto a vehicle can give rise to a 'heated moment' or two...

Another prolonged negotiation takes place between my wife and various van and lorry owners on the mobile phone as she needs to confirm price and above all confirm that they can do it 'NOW'

When you hear, they will be here in 20 minutes, I have learnt, this is the Chinese 20 minutes, probably more like an hour or sometimes two of waiting.

I've given up asking, "Why did you say 20 minutes?" or "Why are they taking so long?"…

As well as plants, we buy Pots and various other bits and pieces for the garden shop.

These also follow very similar lines.

After any of these buying missions we are more often than not both exhausted.

BUT with luck, we have what we need for the shop.

Garden Centre in China Guangxi Nanning as it is now with the newly built Small Bird Aviary on the right.

To the best of my knowledge the only Small Bird Aviary in Nanning, more on this later.