Now I’m at the point of restlessness because one thing I have little patience for is having to sit still while being sold something I don’t want or need & ain’t buyin’. & after 2 weeks of that crap, I’ve ‘bout had enough. Deep breath, deeper breath Bird. Anywho, the marble items were very beautiful & as you expect, VERY expensive. Our guide presented us tourist suckas with much pride to the marble shop owner as well as to the gaudy jewelry place that followed after none of us bought the expensive marble elephant, peacock, chairs, etc.
I forgot the name of both shops because I could care less but at our second stop, there was an amazing jeweled elephant on display & we were told it had toured the U.S. Just spectacular. Where’s the picture you ask? More on that later.
By this leg of the tour, I was an overheated-headachy-sun burnt-with my ankles swollen like pumpkins-tired of being played like a stupid tourist female. So the last adjective to describe my mood at this point is CRANK--E. Oh yeah, & IRRITABLE. After feigned polite interest I ended up sittin’ my butt down in the cushy chairs they provide as they court you to part with your delectable rupees. I am not enamored nor am I impressed by these showroom type situations the tour guides take you to where you’re treated like a playa & shown stuff you really must have. Yeah right. Why do I want or need overpriced glitzy stuff when I can go to places like Janpath & Dilli Haat?
The reservation I made on this tour was last minute & I thought I’d covered all my bases with questions like were the entry fees to the monuments included in the tour price, (they were not) & what were the fees for foreigners knowing they would be waaaaayyyy disproportionate to what the Indians pay. The damage? 750 rupees for the Taj Mahal [about $18], 250 rupees for the Agra Fort [about $6]. What do the Indians pay to get into the Taj? 20 rupees. & dammit, I don’t care how it is justified, mankind just keeps on finding reasons to justify discriminating against their fellow Beings-in-Human. Dammit.
But I now know that another question I need to ask before signing up for a tour is what type of places will we be taken to shop. Take me to a market where I can run around like a fool between merchants for the half hour allotted like when I was in Mexico. Hey. Ya live, ya learn.
Ok you ask, so much for your two cents & ranting Bird, WHERE ARE THE DOGGONE PICTURES?????
Ok I say, the chapter that answers that question is called HORRORS!
