In the States I wasn´t much of an Ebay or a Craigslist kind of girl since if you needed to exchange some kind of goods or services with someone on Craigslist there was always that chance that you could end up well, dead. For this reason I was very cautious about using it to sell any of my belongings before I came to Chile. I know many people swear by Ebay, but I am more of an Amazon girl...yeah, go ahead and click on one of those links on my blog and buy something so I can make 50 cents!
When I began the search for my bike, a friend of mine recommended a site here called Mercado Libre, I didn't really know anything about it and I can't say that I'm an expert on it now by any means, but I can say that I've had two successful experiences here to date and would recommend for people here to at least do a search to see if someone here might be selling what you are looking for. Both of the items that I purchased were right here in Santiago and I was able to meet with the sellers face to face to complete the transactions in cash. Since many of these sites like Ebay rely on seller ratings, the sellers seem to go out of their way to be extra accommodating.
This week I used the site again to find a new camera, and I found an honest young man who was selling a new one in the box with the accompanying sales receipt. It only cost a few dollars more than I would have paid for it in the US, minus the hassle of shipping, insurance, and customs. I met up with him at Starbucks to pick it up, so as soon as class ends in a few hours I´ll be on my way to La Serena and ready to take pictures as if nothing had ever happened!
wow, that is honest, and with the box and the receipt, too! There is so much movement in stolen goods here, so it's important to look at those details when you're buying something if that matters at all to you (and I do think it should matter to all of us).
ReplyDeleteGlad you were able to find a replacement camera, and have fun in La Serena. I'll be interested to hear what you think. I don't count it among my favorites, but that's just me.
Eileen-
ReplyDeleteYes, the non-stolen piece was important to me too, and I even got a 9 luka discount off of the store receipt.;)
I know what you mean about La Serena, it won't be high on the list either, it was more of an Elqui Valley trip. Loved it!!!
I just bought a bike off Mercado Libre! I'm still waiting for a response to the email I sent (like, 10 minutes ago...haha) so I hope I have the same good luck you did! I personally really like La Serena. Although it was way different than I had imagined.
ReplyDeleteAbby-
ReplyDeleteOooh! Can't wait to hear more details about the bike. I'm excited about the time change so I can hopefully use it a little more for my evening classes.
I liked La Serena and was happy to see it before the giant summer rush, I'm just a scenery type of girl, so I think I will like places like the Lakes Dist. a lot more.
So glad the camera debacle of '10 is over! I love all these experiences you're having that you'll be able to relay to your students back home. I mean what a great problem-based learning activity for 4h! You can take them to the lab... ;) Cannot wait to see pics from the trip!
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