![]() ![]() Unfortunately, still no shorts in clubs, Mumbai isn’t quite that far ahead of the curve. The next day as I was walking along the street, we see the exact same kid, but instead of offering shoe shinings with his shoe-shining kit, he is selling maps! Where the heck did that kid get the maps from? And what happened to his shoe-shining stuff? I’m pretty sure some beggar-master has these kids on a rotation and the entire story was fraud.ģ. Sure enough Jeremy’s heart melted and he forked over a few extra rupees. This kid’s story, and if its true i’m going to feel like a jerk, involved him losing his father, being the eldest son and needing to get money to pay for his public school because after 7th grade it is no longer free. Part of this trade, I think I’ve figured out, is to utilize the time you spend shining their shoes by filling the silence with sob stories that will encourage the customer to open their wallets. ![]() Before long Jeremy acquiesces and we find ourselves waiting while Jeremy gets his shoes shined. While we were strolling along the waterfront after a nice meal at a pizzeria (am I writing about India right now?), a ragged looking teenage boy (oh, there we are) starts trailing us and quickly identifies Jeremy as being in need of a shoe-shine. One of the funnier stories that came out of the weekend involved one of the shoe-shiners, well at least that’s what we thought he was. Before long you are encircled by a crowd of them. They sense fatigue and will quickly swoop in. The abundance of tourists does have its upsides, but don’t stand still for too long lest the hawkers become more akin to vultures. Admittedly, we were staying in a very touristy area. He patters on the drum rythmlessly (new word) as you pass by, and unlike the shoe-shiners, you are constantly reminded he is chasing you because you hear his drum pitter pattering behind you like some phonic version of Chinese water torture. This one thinks he can sell drums to tourists without even bothering to learn a good tune first. The worst of this batch is by far the ‘drum man’. Unlike the stall-bound variety, these hawkers can’t be avoided with a quick pace and an adverted gaze, these hawkers are persistent and can follow you for a whole block. Of the hawkers, there are two kinds, the ones tethered to their stalls, who employ their tricks as you pass to catch your attention, and then there are the more nefarious kind of hawkers, those whose wares are light enough that they can take their show on the road. Since I have been in India for four months now, the latter doesn’t seem like such a risk anymore since I feel my sanity is daily slipping away. The tourist industry’s bottom-feeders line the sidewalks with their stalls, creating a narrow tunnel of a sidewalk that forces tourists trying to walk down a street to make a choice walk on the road and risk your life, or walk on the sidewalk and risk your sanity. The people of Mumbai have had enough exposure to tourists that they long ago realized that we don’t bite, and annoying us enough can sometimes result in getting us to shell out some greenbacks to buy the overpriced tchotchkes they are trying to unload (money is various colors here but gandhi-backs just didn’t sound respectful). The Hawkers- One thing I like about Hyderabad is that, apart from stares, the locals don’t make much of an attempt to bother me when I walk around town. I didn’t even make it out to the taco bell (a travesty for which I have no defense and I will surely be judged in the afterlife).Ģ. I spent pretty much the whole weekend in the part of town called Colaba and after two full days in the city I still have tons to see during my next trip. You also will be glued to your window wondering how the hundreds of shacks adjacent to the landing strip don’t get blown over by the plane, but that’s another story. Its the biggest city in India and from the moment the airplane starts its descent you will be glued to your window trying to see where the city ends. As one of the mega-cities of the world, Mumbai is home to over 12.5 million people. ![]() My Travel Companions Jeremy, Vanessa, and Nick at the India Gateġ. ![]()
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