Griffs in Goa

Jan 7th

We woke up this morning to the ‘Birdy Song’, the ‘Carpenters Greatest Hits’ followed by the Hokey Cokey being blasted at full volume by our Indian neighbours in the oppposite apartment. I’m expecting Des O’Connor followed by yodelling tomorrow, such is there lack of musical taste.

Our new acquitainces Alan and his partner Cilla go home tomorrow and Jeff and Yvonne go next Thursday, they are good fun and we will miss their company.

Paru is a heavily pregnant itinerant beach seller from the state of Karnataka. She is 23 years old, she has one little boy and her husband works on the local builing site as a labourer for 125/- (1.40p) a day. She has a roadside ’shop’ (a wooden table) from where she does a ‘little business’ selling trinkets and sarongs but to earn reasonable amounts of money she has to work the beach. The Benaulim Panchayat (council) decreed that no hawkers were allowed on the beach and at the beginning of December that was mainly the case. However, now they seem to be slowly drifting back. Most tourists are unaware of the turf war that occurs between the different ethnic groups on the beach. The women from Gujarat fiercely defend their patch from the Karnatakan women and vice-versa. They still are vary wary of displaying their goods. Paru is able to hide her sarongs and other stuff under her sari adding to her large pregnant bulge. The Gujarati women bury their goods in the sand when any police are in the vicinity and retrieve them when the coast is clear.  Paru has to pay the police a bribe to work on the beach. She pays 400/- a week to the tourist police and another 100/- to the brown-capped police who patrol the beach with semi-automatic rifles slung over their shoulders. They are supposed to be Goa’s response to counter terrorism but according to the locals, half of their guns don’t work, however, I would not like to put that to the test.

Paru has to pay 1000/- a month for the rent of her squalid little room. Over half her husband’s monthly salary of 3000/- (35 pounds) is taken in bribes and rent and she has also to send money home to her extended family. She works seven days a week from dawn till dusk. Yesterday she was ripped off. She encountered some Russians who bartered with her for some bangles, a necklace and a sarong. They agreed the price of 450/-. Paru handed over the goods, the Russians said they only had 500/- notes. Paru did not have any change so she went to the nearest shack to get two fifty notes so that she could give them 50/- change. When she returned with the fifty the Russians kept the goods and would not hand over the 500/- claiming that they had already paid her and started shouting at her to go away. Niat, Niat (no, no) they kept shouting. Unfortunately, she did not have a leg to stand on and could not cause a scene as the beach shackowner would get annoyed and ban her from his part of the beach or worse, get the police.

The Russians are a disgrace and make dreadful, arrogant tourists. They are rude, demanding and have too much money. There are two types that I have observed. The first are the short dumpy family, who waddle along the sand in ill-fitting, cheap gaudy clothes. The second type is the tall fat older Russian man who is festooned with ugly thick gold jewelry, he also has a severe haircut and a beer belly. He is always accompianed by a very slim, very young Russian girl who wears very large sunglasses and a very skimpy sparkling, gold bikini. I wonder what these women see in these charmless men. Money and a free lunch no doubt!  I felt sorry for Paru, she is hardworking and honest, perhaps the Russians could learn from her rather than steal from her. Paru wears a red bindi (spot) on her forhead to signify that she is married and she also has a tattoo on the left side of the bridge of her nose. When I asked why the tattoo was where it was. She replied, “Pappa did this to me when I was baby so the Muslims want steal me”. What a strange country this is!!