Shopping at a bazaar

June 25, 2010

After going to the mall yesterday, we decided to stay at home. The weather had slightly cooled down, for it had rained a little bit in the morning, but the monsoons were still behind schedule, and if they didn’t show up soon, there would be major problems (including severe water shortage and power cuts).

In the evening, my mother, aunt, and cousin all went to a local bazaar. My mom needed a SIM card for her cell phone, which could easily be bought in store. Unlike in the US, where phones are locked, meaning that each phone can only work with one cell phone provider (like the iPhone can only work with AT&T), in India, the phone and the cell phone provider can be purchased separately. That is why we could use my unlocked phone from Hong Kong with a SIM card purchased in India. After that, we explored the bazaar. We ate kulfi, an Indian ice-cream, purchased from a street vendor, to provide some relief from the humidity, and we looked at all the wares of all the street vendors, who had set up blankets on the street and were asking us to look at the clothes, DVDs, coffee cups, toys, etc that they had to offer. There were many girls getting henna done on their hands in intricate designs (and I was sorely tempted to get henna done, when I realized that it would make more sense to do it right before I leave for India). Buying food from an Indian restaurant for dinner, we proceeded to look for an auto-rickshaw.

As we approached a three-way intersection, we noticed that a car was unable to go through the intersection because cars coming from the perpendicular street didn’t stop. It wasn’t actually a three-way intersection, but there were two roads that merged into one road, and another road that was perpendicular to the first two. Two of the three roads had a stoplight- the road that didn’t have a stoplight was causing the problem. No one was willing to stop, so the car that was stuck was stuck until someone was polite enough to wait. Which no one was. After several people volunteered to act as traffic police, the actual traffic policeman came, and people finally listened to the government official. Which was weird. In India, everyone complains that the Indian government officials (including police) are corrupt, taking bribes from the people and not doing anything productive for society. But here, when they could have cleared the traffic jam by listening to ordinary citizens, they chose not to, instead waiting for a government official. Democracy: Hate it, but can’t live without it. Or as my grandfather says, “by the people, for the people, of the people, should actually be spelled, b-u-y the people, f-a-r the people, o-f-f the people.”

And finally, the World Cup Round of 16 is coming up! Although I should support India, India has never, ever qualified (India is more of a cricket, field hockey nation than soccer) for a single World Cup. Therefore, I support Spain. Although their entry into the next round is a bit shaky, I still believe they can do it (Fernando Torres will somehow find his goal-scoring skill, and La Roja will hopefully beat Chile 3-0). Tomorrow is Judgement Day.