Today was filled with all sorts of weird things. The first part of the day was nice, because I simply rested. I went to the internet shop (they are all over the place), where I met a great little family that owned the shop. Connected to the shop, behind it, is their home! Which is quite common. The shop is like a little hole in a wall, and there is a door in the back that leads to their house. It's very cute, and the family was very welcoming. I sat with them for hours, as they assisted me in buying my train tickets online. We had ice cream, which is sold at every corner for less than $1 each. It's great.
At 6pm, I took a train from Agra to Jaipur, which is in Rajasthan. It was about a 5 hour train ride, and I met some great people on the train that helped me practice my Hindi. Upon arriving in Jaipur, I was mobbed by taxi drivers. "Hello ma'am, yes here I am. You take rickshaw? I will take u where u need to go!" I chose the first one that approached me, which I will not do again. He led me to his younger brother who ended up being my taxi driver. He's 24, and a typical guy. Except, my experience is that the Indian men are much more forward. In southern India, the feel is much more different- it is very traditional there, the men are respectful and rarely look women in the eye (same with women to men). However, in Jaipur (north), it is a city full of tourists! There is a huge scam all throughout India, but especially in Jaipur, called the Gem Scam, which you can read about at the website. The taxi driver brought me to my hotel and insisted that I try the hotel next door to mine. I compared the two, and his did seem better. But, when I met the owner and his employees, I knew they were all slime balls. I negotiated a fairly good price, though, and all I wanted to do was sleep. The taxi driver convinced me to hire him the following day for an all day trip around Jaipur, where he would show me everything. For the lost cost of Rs. 300 (about $6 for the whole day), I accepted. He picked me up at 10am the next day, and brought me to many wonderful places. I saw the monkey temple, which is surrounded by monkeys, the King's graveyard, the observatory, and the water palace. That night, we attended a fair that they nightly only half and hour away from Jaipur. The fair/festival is called Chokhi Dhani, which is famous and written about in all India guide books! For only $6, we entered a new world. There are traditional Indian dancers all around that I watched, singing, Indian folk dance, magicians, puppet plays, camel rides, elephant rides (which was closed the night i went), and a large dinner provided!! The dinner was served in a large restaurant, where we sat at these long tables on cushions on the floor. We were served several portions of every kind of Indian curry dish. It was so yummy!
Now to the scary stuff: Throughout the day, this taxi driver was trying to convince me that having a boyfriend in the U.S. doesn't mean anything in India. He told me how many girls come to Jaipur and have boyfriends, but they spend the night with Indian men, because "their boyfriends will never know". I insisted that despite what others may do, I am 100% faithful to Shane and only Shane. Hoping he would let it go, I tried to enjoy the sights. However, after Chokhi Dhani, when he was bringing me home, he asked if i wanted to "get a room with him". I refused him more times that I've ever had to say no before. Finally, he said: "Where did you learn this word, NO? It's very bad- you should say YES to everything." I was disgusted. Thank God he brought me safely to my hotel! I am so glad I was strong enough to say no, otherwise it could have been a complete disaster. Apparently, many women go to Jaipur just to have sex with the men there. It's absolutely despicable. I paid him when he left, and he apologized. Throughout his apology, however, he kept saying: "nobody ever forgets the sex they have with me". I wanted to scream at him. We had plans to meet one of his friends whose wife was German the next day, and I really wanted to still because I wanted to see their baby. We planned on him picking me up at 11am, but I had to go to the train station to confirm my ticket. So, I asked one of the guys outside my hotel to tell him I was going to be late. Right before I went to the train station, I stopped at an internet station. The men that worked there knew where I was staying, and this is how I learned about the "playboys" and the "gem scam" in Jaipur. They told me not to trust them, because they will tell me that they have a friend who has a German wife, and gain my trust this way! I couldn't believe it, because they explained everything I had experienced. Then, after bringing me to the German couple that own a jewelry store, they would somehow try and convince me to bring many precious gems to America to sell for lots of money. Of course, a down payment is required, and then the person gets in trouble at the border and often arrested. After learning these things, I decided not to speak to the taxi man any more. MUCH TO MY SURPRISE, he followed me to the train station and tapped on my shoulder while I was in line. "Kelly, why were you not at your hotel?" I explained to him that I was going to be late, but that I decided I didn't want to go afterall. He asked me why and insisted that I go with him. I made quite a few loud responses in the train station and outside to embarrass him and make him leave me alone. He continued to follow me for a couple hours. I went to a police stand and asked them to tell him to leave me alone. However, as soon as I left, there he was again. After awhile, he left me alone. I needed a taxi to bring me back to my hotel, and someone approached me telling me we could walk. I didn't know who he was, but he started telling me about his friend that has a German wife! Immediately, I knew he was part of the scam too! As soon as I got to my hotel, I gathered my things, hired a trustworthy taxi driver, and before leaving I was bombarded by my old taxi driver and his friends insisting that I tell them I am ignoring them. I told them I was finished with them, and that I no longer wanted to talk to them. I asked them to leave me alone, and then my taxi man drove me away. The entire day, I was scared that he would find me. After eating, I went to the train station and boarded my train hoping to God that he wasn't following me. I was able to calm down after an hour on the train, and I was so glad I was out of there! But, all I wanted to do was go home. I felt violated, disrespected, and there was nowhere I could go. I felt like every man that I talk thinks dirty thoughts about me, and I was disgusted.
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