014. I’m sitting on a platform in Ahmedabad. Sanjay* sits next to me, resting a laptop on his knees while searching for overnight trains to Udaipur. His generosity and kindness is astonishing, as it is nearly impossible for me to even imagine this happening in DC.
“Let me buy you a beer before your next train,” I offer.
“Alcohol is not “officially” sold in Gujarat,” he says.
“Then I’ll by you, and your friends (who were also helping via the phone) a beer if you ever come to DC. Or when I get to New Delhi.”
While discussing the legality of alcohol in Gujarat, a gentleman approaches and begins questioning Sanjay, who is quick to refuse the gentlemen’s offer. Despite this, in an instance, a pair of tweezers are soon precipitously close to being inside Sanjay’s left ear. Shocked and without words, I shrug my shoulders in confusion. Sanjay, however, dismissively accepts the gentleman‘s offer, and soon a pair of tweezers are digging into his left ear.
What… what… what are those tweezers doing? Isn’t that painful? Sanjay isn’t even grimacing. Hair removal from the ear must be painful!
And then, after one lavish swing of the arm, we were presented with a huge ball of earwax (or so we were led to believe) sitting on the end of a pair of tweezers.
* I hope Sanjay will clarify anything I may have (most likely) missed.
Welcome to India.. you seem to be enjoying all the delightful oddities that most people don’t come across even after years of living here.
I can’t wait to hear more delightful stories
The doctor I work for has a picture from his last trip to India of a man who waxed and shaped his ear hair just like you would a handelbar mustache. I thought I might vomit.
I’m pretty sure the earwax spa treatment is not in the Chamber of Commerce brochure for Ahmedabad.
Oh My! And I thought it was bad when you’re in Mexico and people come up offering to wash your windshield and sell you chiclets.
wait a minute it just hit me. NO LEGAL ALCOHOL FOR SALE??????
Yikes.
Oye… anxiously awaiting Sanjay’s explanation…
That is MINGING! (As we say in England)
Mmm. Earwax.
Wow!
Eeewwww! Who knows where else those tweezers have been!