Stories from Mahabalipuram
Just a couple of "quickies" for the record...While eating at "Jack's Place" (not the name but what I like to call it...a french guy living there and running a pleasant restaurant) all of a sudden I hear in the background music something which sounds very familiar. He has a very eclectic collection of international as well as Indian music there always playing something pleasant, but this was something different...It was very soft but hard to hear, and was not quite sure I was hearing correctly...but I could have sworn I was hearing Sarit Hadad (a very popular Israeli singer) singing something I had never heard before but the words were definitely Hebrew and quite sad (as are many of her songs)...I listened and listened and was finally 100% sure it was here and was quite surprised, and pleased...finally got a hold of Jack later and asked if it was possible that I heard her, and he said “WOW...yes...how did you know...I have a collection which has music from all over the world and that is one of the songs...glad you liked it!"....
second funny story...Went out one evening to see bags to buy and saw one I liked with a price of 350 rps. Came back the following evening having decided that I was willing to spend 200 rps for the bag and no more. The young guy who was there the evening before was not and I guess his father was in the shop. I told him I wanted it very much but 350 was too much. "how much do you want?" "Not more than 200"...can't sell it to you for that price"..."sorry then, I won't buy it" (I was not trying to be difficult in bargaining here...I just knew that I wouldn't spend more than 200 on it)...I guess he realized I was serious so he said "I cannot sell it to you for only 200...so pay me 201 rps!!!" Which I did and we both closed the deal with a smile!!!.
OK...let's go back to our leaving Mahabalipuram ...while driving up the road from the guest house up towards the main road out of the town, Ravin saw a backpacker bent under a quite heavy load and said..."ask him if he would like a lift, we can get some money back out of the deal"...I was kind of hesitant but stuck my head out the window and saw this thin little Japanese guy puffing away, Ravin said "ask" so I did..."would you like a lift to Chennai?"...blank look....chennai...car...finally understood..Madras, ride and very happily scrambled into the back seat...great break for him instead of walking all the way to the bus stop...which is not really far but with a load on your back not much fun in the heat.. And also the convenience of getting quickly and comfortably to your next destination..
Well, we started to talk..his name was Taka...he had already been traveling for 6 months and still had a year to go in his round the world (sort of) trip...which he was doing on $10,000 which he had managed to save in Japan with a part time job...He must have been in his mid 20's. As he said..."here in India I am rich man...in Japan...very poor". He had taken a ferry from Japan to the Chinese mainland, and he had been traveling since...don't remember exactly how he did it, but it was not easy. He is sleeping the cheapest places, eating the cheapest food...graphically described (his English was very poor) the bed bug bites he had all over his body as well as his bouts with diarrhea.. asking if I had the same problems during my travels....from India, at any rate, he is heading for the Middle East so of course we got around to talking about Israel and I told him, as well as I could get him to understand, places which he should see and enjoy in Israel, but he was planning on doing this in Dec-January so told him to hold off until March. He will be going to Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Israel, Egypt and it was difficult, as it is for most people, to understand that an Israeli cannot travel at all in most of these countries, and is reluctant to travel in the others even where possible...especially as a lone backpacker. Ravin also explained to him that if he had Israel stamped in his passport, there are many countries which will not allow him entrance. He was such a jolly fellow, with a big grin on his face, even when describing the difficulties of his journey, his not knowing "Eng-rish" etc., that we couldn't help laughing along with him, and perhaps even being slightly jealous. Quite a fellow. We took him into town an Ravin arranged a good price for a rickshaw to take him to his Salvation Army Dormitory and he was off...and of course, he never did ask him for money as he had originally planned...the poor guy was alot worse off than Ravin is...
second funny story...Went out one evening to see bags to buy and saw one I liked with a price of 350 rps. Came back the following evening having decided that I was willing to spend 200 rps for the bag and no more. The young guy who was there the evening before was not and I guess his father was in the shop. I told him I wanted it very much but 350 was too much. "how much do you want?" "Not more than 200"...can't sell it to you for that price"..."sorry then, I won't buy it" (I was not trying to be difficult in bargaining here...I just knew that I wouldn't spend more than 200 on it)...I guess he realized I was serious so he said "I cannot sell it to you for only 200...so pay me 201 rps!!!" Which I did and we both closed the deal with a smile!!!.
OK...let's go back to our leaving Mahabalipuram ...while driving up the road from the guest house up towards the main road out of the town, Ravin saw a backpacker bent under a quite heavy load and said..."ask him if he would like a lift, we can get some money back out of the deal"...I was kind of hesitant but stuck my head out the window and saw this thin little Japanese guy puffing away, Ravin said "ask" so I did..."would you like a lift to Chennai?"...blank look....chennai...car...finally understood..Madras, ride and very happily scrambled into the back seat...great break for him instead of walking all the way to the bus stop...which is not really far but with a load on your back not much fun in the heat.. And also the convenience of getting quickly and comfortably to your next destination..
Well, we started to talk..his name was Taka...he had already been traveling for 6 months and still had a year to go in his round the world (sort of) trip...which he was doing on $10,000 which he had managed to save in Japan with a part time job...He must have been in his mid 20's. As he said..."here in India I am rich man...in Japan...very poor". He had taken a ferry from Japan to the Chinese mainland, and he had been traveling since...don't remember exactly how he did it, but it was not easy. He is sleeping the cheapest places, eating the cheapest food...graphically described (his English was very poor) the bed bug bites he had all over his body as well as his bouts with diarrhea.. asking if I had the same problems during my travels....from India, at any rate, he is heading for the Middle East so of course we got around to talking about Israel and I told him, as well as I could get him to understand, places which he should see and enjoy in Israel, but he was planning on doing this in Dec-January so told him to hold off until March. He will be going to Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Israel, Egypt and it was difficult, as it is for most people, to understand that an Israeli cannot travel at all in most of these countries, and is reluctant to travel in the others even where possible...especially as a lone backpacker. Ravin also explained to him that if he had Israel stamped in his passport, there are many countries which will not allow him entrance. He was such a jolly fellow, with a big grin on his face, even when describing the difficulties of his journey, his not knowing "Eng-rish" etc., that we couldn't help laughing along with him, and perhaps even being slightly jealous. Quite a fellow. We took him into town an Ravin arranged a good price for a rickshaw to take him to his Salvation Army Dormitory and he was off...and of course, he never did ask him for money as he had originally planned...the poor guy was alot worse off than Ravin is...
posted by Jane @ 3:08 PM
<< Home