Bombay Early Impressions - Part 1
Hello India Watchers
(Written by Anita)
Dear Family & Friends, May 13, 1998
I’ve been meaning to write for quite a while, but either we’ve been busy or I haven’t been motivated. I’m feeling more motivated now, mainly because we have been receiving so much nice mail recently, not just e‑mail, but letters, too. We appreciate them all.
I have been realizing I better write again before life here in India becomes so routine that I forget to look at it through my own Western eyes. We’ve already become accustomed to quite a bit. For example:
Turning on the sports channel on TV and getting all sorts of different types of sports like rugby, fencing, lots of soccer, and of course cricket on which we hear announcers say things like: “What a six!” and know what they’re talking about. Surprisingly we are able to watch the NBA playoffs, but the games are live and start either late at night, around midnight, or early in the morning at 5:30.
Going to the one McDonald’s in town, about a 45 minute drive from here, and not thinking twice about seeing the sign that says: “No beef or beef products sold here,” and the menu that includes veggie burgers and Maharashtra (mutton) burgers. Ah, but the french fries taste oh so good, just like home!
Driving in town having to avoid cows, ox‑pulled carts, seeing lots of beggars including the ones with elephantiasis in their legs who don’t want treatment because otherwise they’d lose a lot of income, and people riding bicycles carrying large metal milk jugs making their deliveries of fresh buffalo milk three times a day, or stacked tin pans with lunches that are delivered to people at work or children at school. I also love to see a delivery. person on a bike with a three foot high stack of egg trays bungee corded to the rack in back.
All the British spoken or written around here, like the road sign that says take the diversion. (That's detour for all you Americans.)
All the Indian English that we hear, including on TV, like the announcement that someone has expired (died), or that there will be a preponement, the opposite of postponement.
Low prices for just about everything so that when we have the opportunity to go to a meal where filet mignon will be served along with lots of other food and drinks we say, What?! 400 Rupees!! (That’s about 10 bucks.) (In case you’re curious, I’m referring to the school picnic that will be held at the consulate, and the price is 200 rupees for the kids.)
Getting treated like V.I.P.’s (or V.V.I.P.’s as they sometime say around here) just because we are with the American consulate. I was recently referred to as being on the A-list for invitations!
Taking walks and being careful, when crossing the street, to look for traffic driving on the left side of the road.
Taking walks and being careful not to step in excrement and other stuff on the road or sidewalks that one doesn’t want to step into, or sleeping dogs or people that you don’t want to step on.
Holding our breaths when we go up most staircases in most typical Indian buildings to avoid the urine smell.
Playing chicken almost constantly when we drive. Fortunately we have a big vehicle and we only have to give way (another British term which means, in American, yield) to buses and trucks. I am ashamed to admit I actually enjoy driving here. It’s kinda fun, plus is an easy outlet for all that pent up aggression. And yes, I’m even good at honking the horn.
Drivers driving with their headlights off for most nighttime driving, using them more as signals. A flash of the headlights means, here I come, watch out. Two or three flashes is watch out. I guess headlights almost replace the horn for driving communications.
Watching people do some of their personal hygiene activities right on the street, including getting their hair cut (there are barbers who have a chair on the sidewalk facing a mirror hanging on a wall), getting a shave, having their ears cleaned (yes, even professionals for this job!), bathing (while maintaining modesty), and of course the ubiquitous peeing (and not just the men…)
So, we are feeling almost at home here. (Oops, should this sentence follow the one about peeing in public?) Aaron will tell you he quite loves it. (Again, living here, not peeing on the sidewalk.) He has a sense of independence here that we didn’t give him in the States. Believe it or not, he is safer here going out by himself, or with friends, even to places like discos, nightclubs and rock concerts.
Savage Garden, a popular rock group, was here to give a concert a few weeks ago and both boys got to go. The cost was 350 rupees ($7.50) a ticket. The paper that morning had an article about how the police were going to be watching for and making arrests for hugging and kissing as well as any other flagrant signs of affection. Naturally, alcohol and drugs were also forbidden. Makes for a nice atmosphere for a rock concert, according to some of our friends who also attended. Aaron and Eric even rode a taxi home from downtown at midnight by themselves. Not that we enjoy waiting up on evenings like that, but Aaron had done it already without problems. We hope to get our cell phones activated soon so that we can be in touch with them when they are out on their own. And during the day, even Eric has taken a taxi by himself. But now that our car is here we aren’t using the taxis as much. We are grateful for that, since they’re not air-conditioned (except for the blue taxis, called cool taxis, that cost twice as much - the equivalent of $ .50 instead of $ .25), and the diesel they use creates awful exhaust so when you’re stuck at a red light (and the lights here are long), you end up with what seems like a few lungs-full of carbon monoxide.
We employ a driver, whose name is Hasmukh, who we are sharing with another consulate worker. She will be leaving in December and then we will probably hire him full time. The half salary we are paying now is 2000 rupees (about $50) a month. Hasmukh drives me around, even to the market, and helps me shop, and also picks up the kids from school when they have after school activities. Eric plays cricket and ping pong, Aaron plays basketball, Katie does snorkeling in the consulate pool and drama and cooking. He also drives Gary home. His work day is from 8 am to 6 PM. Our colleague gets him in the morning and we get him in the afternoon. After 6 we either drive ourselves or pay Hasmukh 40 rupees ($1) per hour, the standard overtime rate for drivers. The most important part of having a driver is that he can be the one to find parking. Oftentimes that means just along the street where the no parking signs are. With our diplomatic license plates the no parking signs really mean, for us, Park Here.
I suppose I need to say something about this nuclear issue that has India in the news. At this point we’re not feeling much of an effect. You have probably heard that the government has the people’s support for this, so we don’t say much publicly. Our guess is that we are not going to feel much effect here in Bombay until some of the economic results of India’s, for now cold/non-combatant conflict with Pakistan start being felt. Maybe then we might face some anti‑American sentiment. The political officers are the busy ones, especially in New Delhi. Our consul general has only advised us to be careful of crowds, etc. But at this point we don’t have much to worry about.
(End of Part 1)