Part 3.Attitude to foreigners.

I will put in the form of statements, how I see it. And describe each one a bit.



Foreigners have money.

Why this one is coming as the first one to my mind? May be because of everyday communication with sellers, drivers, when they try to cheat you? if I’m going to the shop, I check for the written prices, thanks, every item has printed price on it. It’s really hard to explain, that you’re earning on the same level as an average Indian employee in corporate sphere.

“special price” – common expression, which you hear, when say ‘no’ for the first time in barging. Barging also has its structure. First you ask the price (if you ask in Hindi, you should know enough to be able to understand the answer), sure, price will be too high. You say ‘no, babba’ and try to go. This is where round 2 of the battle starts, babba will check how much he can earn on you with giving you an opportunity to think, that you have cool negotiation skills. Number of round depends on your wish to have something, patience and the real (reasonable) price for smth. In the tourist places you can start from 300 and buy for 25 -30 rupees. ‘Poker face’ skill will help you a lot in such kind of the negotiations.

For me the most uncomfortable situation is when you need to remind about 2-5 rupees change to somebody. It’s very small money, but if you don’t have them, nobody will give you something in the shop. Sometimes I just go for the principle, if you write such kind of prices, then find change. May be I’m cheap, but I don’t think so.

I like rickshaw drivers for this. When you are walking on the street, lots of them will stop and propose their service, the funniest thing is that I’m walking with the helmet from the bike))

For system of price differentiation was very strange for the first time. When you go to the historical monument, you need to pay 10-20 times more, than Indians. Now we manage it somehow with driver’s licenses and other tricks. Actually I understand the origin of it. For travelers from Europe 5 euro entrance for the museum is not a big price. And it becomes quite good business.

Remembered one funny moment. Agra fort, street café. Menu with the prices of good restaurant, when we almost had left, the waiter brought us a menu with Indian prices, which were half of it. The same printing, the same dishes, you’ll never see the difference from the other table. Creativity, yeah? )

Beggars – I don’t like when they touch me. brrr… feel very bad about it. I often think, what happens to these nice small girls, when they have grown up? Die? Become prostitutes? How many of them go to any basic studies? And their parents are not far from the kids, sitting on the sides of the roads and sending them to beg.