Time
Contributor: Cassandra Ann Stoklosa
Country: China
City: Shanghai
Everything - traveling through the city, purchases, etc. - seemed to take longer in China. Instead of the simple transaction process and go-go society that is the US, Chinese tend to accept that with 1.3 billion people, everything will move a bit slower.
We noticed the time issue in the markets as well...when you haggled for a good price, you had to commit time to that vendor to show your interest and ensure that they did not lose too much face. We learned this the hard way but once we spent more time with certain vendors we found they were more willing to negotiate prices.
While traveling via car was a nightmare, the trains and subways were fast and efficient. Assuming you could squeeze in.