Sunday, December 20, 2009

Random Thoughts and Impressions From Jaipur

1) How are you suppose to read when using a squat toilet
2) Always use the pay toilets in India
3) Why do women sweep the dirt road with twig brooms when they are surrounded by garbage and filth

Women sweeping dirt road with sticks, surrounded by piles of garbage and naked children and cows. The storefronts are a jumble of items: sequined skirts, brass bowls, puppets wearing silk pantaloons, umbrellas embroidered in fuschia and turquoise with gold tassels. The hawkers aren’t as aggressive as we expected. Granted, we’ve experienced it in Cambodia. But we had heard that India was worse. And we were followed relentless by men trying to sell wooden carvings of the elephant god Ganesh, and fans made out of peacock feathers. But after many firm “NOs” they go away. There were also beggars, women holding dirty children and little boys pushing their smaller sisters forward to perform back bends and other tricks for us. That was harder. Because you want to give them money. But you can’t because they give the money to someone else. They know you feel bad, and they use that to their advantage; so would I. So it’s hard to look at them, but it’s harder not to look at them, tolook away or over them and pretend they are not there. So you steel yourself and say no, no, no, no. And no again and again until they finally give up and go away.

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