Exams officially start this week and here I am doing some last minute revision. It really did help that I have perfect attendance in tutorials for 3 out of 4 of my modules this semester. Certain information that I'm studying from the Powerpoint slides now are actually familiar and not foreign. Compared to the past few semesters which I had no idea what I was doing...
Been doing quite a bit of shopping lately as well. The funny thing is I'm shopping for clothes to wear on my vacation when the aim was to bring an empty suitcase and buy everything there, like I usually do. Shall just blame it on the pre-exam stress and boredom because my parents and Darren are all too busy to care about me #somature.
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| Sundae loves parcels too! |
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| GAH! Not all are mine, thankfully |
Taobao has been my go-to place for clothes these past couple weeks. As gratifying as it was to shop at the local Forever 21 and try on the items before purchasing them, it still brings me extreme satisfaction to be able to get good quality clothes for so much cheaper. I'd like to think my standard of Chinese also improved during this period of time.
Warning: Rant ahead!
Sometimes, I don't get it when people think that items on Taobao are of bad quality because it's all 'Made in China'. It should come as no surprise that most clothes we purchase from Forever 21, H&M, and other chain retail stores are all made in countries like Vietnam, China, Bangladesh, Cambodia, etc. So why does buying directly from these manufacturers immediately mean that the item is of a lesser quality?
When I visited Vietnam, I saw locals selling items from Hollister, Abercrombie, and American Eagle at the wholesale centers. I got to touch the fabric and examine the item first-hand. Guess what? They're of the exact same quality as those I bought in America. Many of the clothing I bought in America were tagged 'Made in Vietnam'. Logically speaking and after careful examination (because I hate hate hate fake goods), this means those in Vietnam were 99% authentic! I'm stating that percentage because there's always room for error in case somebody thinks I'm really wrong about this. I've taken into account that there could be many reasons why those locals were selling those brands (not going to get into that).
Imagine a blouse (Made in Vietnam) being sold in Vietnam for 2USD and in America for 35USD. If you think the 35USD one is better just because it's being sold in America... Does that judgement even make sense? Hellooo the extra cost is added to pay for shipping and tax incurred. The quality is still the same! Adding 33USD to the price doesn't mean the cotton suddenly got 97% purer during shipment.
Maybe some prefer the idea of stepping into the boutique of that actual brand and buying items from the store itself. I do that myself so no judgement there! But if you were to pre-judge and scoff at the quality of items just hearing where they're made, even before checking the items out yourself, I suggest for you to get off your high horse and accept the fact that your $125 branded blouse is being made in the exact same countries you've turned your nose up on.
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| My |
This is my 3-door wardrobe. Initially I confidently told my parents, oh I only need a 2-door one and probably another glass cabinet to display/store my bags because I don't want my tiny room to be so cramped with furniture. Mom was deadly against the idea of that and insisted on getting a 3-door wardrobe first, then adding on other furniture if needed. I gave in to her just to keep her quiet, and thank goodness I did. Just clothes are taking up so.much.space. I don't know how I would've survived with a 2-door wardrobe. At the rate I'm going, my parents think I should just move into a storage box and store myself in it as well.
But give up shopping? Never.
Okay back to studying I've spent way too much time here!
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