Notes on India-Kolkata (I)

A few years ago, I went to Calcutta, India for a meeting, and the opportunity was rare. I saw this mysterious country on the spot and shared my personal feelings with all my friends.

1. First time I saw India

The time difference in Bangkok is one and a half hours less than that in Beijing, and that in India is one and a half hours less than that in Beijing. After a two-hour flight, the plane arrived in Calcutta half an hour late. I changed one hundred yuan (3600 rupees, including handling fee 100 rupees), and it was already four o'clock in Beijing time when I walked out of the airport. The organizer contacted a taxi to pick up the plane. Out of the kindness of the Indians, I didn't expect to suffer a little loss. The local people speak poor English, and "three" is pronounced "Terry". It took the chicken a long time to understand what he meant. One-way airport-hotel online is about 150 rupees, and local Indians collude with taxi drivers, rising to 500 rupees, and two-way airport-hotel (from peerless in hotel to Haowa station) 1000 rupees. It's really dishonest, but since they agreed and I confirmed it with them twice, forget it, it's a blessing to be safe outside!

However, when our luggage was loaded into the trunk, we suddenly saw the taxi driver tipping the locals in India (obviously the wool was on the sheep). At that time, due to the relationship between face and time, foreign land and so on, it was not broken. I didn't expect to take a taxi at noon the next day. I found that they really dared to ask for it, even adding 500 yuan. This is dishonest. Angry blond hair stepped forward to "meet the taxi driver" and told us what we thought. The man explained what he was saying for nothing and knew at a glance that he was going to sing a duet again. If he doesn't come to "meet", I won't give the driver extra money, 1000 rupees, which is 2-3 times the normal price.

I didn't expect the first Indian I met to be like this! Instead of taking care of the guests, I want to take this opportunity to cheat. In the next few days, he continued to act and tried to cheat us of our tips again. For example, help us book air tickets, hotels, taxis, etc. Fortunately, we raised our vigilance and did it ourselves, and we were not fooled again. But a Taiwan Province native and several foreigners were deceived by the illusion, and we didn't see through the scam until we kindly reminded them.

Later, when we visited the Victoria Memorial Hall, there was an episode when we bought tickets, which made us know the "cunning" of Indians (of course, most Indians are still good): we wanted to take this opportunity to change some change for tips. As a result, the conductor was given a large face value of 500 rupees. He fumbled for a long time and only handed me the change of 150 rupees. When I expressed my dissatisfaction, he shrugged, indicating that there was no money in the drawer? Think about it, too. The huge garden is empty, only a few locals. It is estimated that there will be no more than a dozen people in the morning. In other words, this Indian native is playing tricks again. I decided not to be fooled. International poverty alleviation is conditional. Besides, the ticket price they sold us is already 15 times higher, so there is no reason to give us another 50 rupees to kill us. I smiled deliberately and told him that I would come back to get the money in half an hour. If not, I will tell the "leader" of the memorial hall. The face of the Indian natives began to change, he explained in English. We left without listening. After half an hour's visit, I came to him, and he quietly gave me 50 rupees, full of face value, which further proved that the boy was just playing tricks.

2. The first impression of Calcutta

Kolkata is the most populous city in India and was once the capital of British colony India. 1950 after the British troops withdrew, millions of rural people poured into Kolkata city without restriction, looking for opportunities or life in the city. As a result, the facilities in this city were overwhelmed and the order was completely subverted. Up to now, it is estimated that millions of people sleep on the streets every night and do nothing during the day.

Locals call Calcutta the Shanghai of India, which is a ridiculous metaphor. A more ridiculous online joke said, "Indians sighed with regret and said,' Delhi must develop rapidly, or it will be surpassed by China and Shanghai in 20 years!'" " "。

Calcutta is a dead city at night, and there are many people lying on both sides of the street. At first glance, I don't think so, but I feel that the twisted and thin body is as quiet and scary as taking sleeping pills. These people are wrapped in dirty cloth, dedicated to the blurred night lights, and integrated with the dilapidated brick walls of low-rise buildings, which makes people suddenly have a strange idea-has this place just experienced an earthquake, plague or war?

I was staring at it when I suddenly stopped and the shadow in the street stood up. After a few steps, I urinated under the roadside wall without shame, as if it were a matter of course. "His territory is his decision." The pungent smell of cumin pepper mixed with curry urine in the middle of the street makes people sweat a lot.

On the way to take a taxi at night, the tire burst, and the driver took out the spare tire unhurriedly and repaired it in the street. The taxi coming from the roadside watched the joke and sang away all the way. Late at night, Tata cars filed past, playing high-decibel music, as if making money was not important, and happiness was king.

The day turned into a chaotic city. Morning is the time for crows, sparrows and wild swallows to stretch. Among the green trees in Matan Square in the city center, I didn't know that I could accommodate so many birds, and I was not afraid of people at all. Dark-skinned "citizens" get up in the morning, lazily carry water, take out the garbage, fold up the plastic sheets laid on the ground, and make stoves out of garbage in the street. Smoke billowed around and people were numb. Ghosts that seem to have no goals come and go, expressionless, and it is obvious from the overall atmosphere that the city is going into decline.

There are many old buildings on both sides of the street in the city center. The hanging ladder built by the construction workers during maintenance is only tied with hemp rope, and it is on the first floor. They look unstable. They have great courage. They have bricks on their heads, bare feet and bare arms, and there are no safety measures. They work in the air five or six meters above the ground. Crows buzzed by from time to time.

In the colonial city of Kolkata, Indians have different feelings for Queen Victoria of England. In the center of the vast green space in Matan Square, stands a Victoria Memorial Hall, an elegant white European-style building, solemn and solemn, surrounded by clear water and green trees. The queen sat on the high platform of the memorial hall, dignified and looking down in all directions. Here are portraits and profiles of the Governor of Calcutta in various periods. Photographing is prohibited in the memorial hall. Tickets are actually per person 150 rupees, and local talents 10 rupees. Actually, it's not interesting, but how can you miss such a landmark when you come?

I found it inside, but I still don't want to take pictures. It's better to meet and be famous.

3. The unique urban features of Kolkata

I used to know that Kolkata, where Mother Teresa was located, was rotten and broken. This time, I saw the crowded bus in Calcutta for the first time. It seems to be a bus in the sixties and seventies, driving as fast as a mad cow. Unlike China, drivers drive on the left, and they have no concept of traffic lights at all, so they are arrogant. The car is full, just like the "caravan" in the movie when I was a child. Where glass should have been inlaid, only a few iron bars were stopped and there was no air conditioning and ventilation. All people are like sardines, unable to move in a "mobile prison". There are always a few people in front of the car, thin and even without shoes. In the process of driving at high speed, they are crowded by people in the car as if they will get off at any time (many people just grab the door and are really ready to get off at any time).

The water in the city is still relatively clear, slightly better than the gray color in Shanghai, and it is estimated to be four or five types of water quality. Many adults and children bathe with soap by the river, and there is no one around. It is said that Indians believe that mud in water has special functions, which can strengthen the body and cure diseases. In the early morning, I saw a street dentist, and the scene was also very surprising. The young man is about 16 or 17 years old. He has no tools around him, only a pile of white cement and pliers. He dares to fill a tooth for a man in his thirties. It seems that he is not a patient, but an animal. Both of them were expressionless. At first, they felt a little funny, and then they got scared.

There are many vendors on the street, and the business is not big, just playing house. Especially the guy sitting on the stone steps, Lamian Noodles, didn't wake up, and began to work with dirty hands. The dough was thrown under his crotch, and the people next to him were still cooking. It didn't feel like cooking or making feed. On the vendor's shelves, there are nothing more than a few cucumbers, a basket of bananas and a few stacks of bread. Interestingly, I saw a row of tall cans and bottles on the wooden shelf in front of a vendor. There are different kinds of biscuits, snacks and cakes in cans and bottles. It seems that it is not for sale, because the quantity is really too small. Much like the old lady at the gate of the rural kindergarten when I was a child.

People who lie down and sleep are usually surrounded by dogs. I don't know whether they are domestic or wild. They are much fatter than people, but as lazy as people. Facing the rising sun, they seem to be unable to lift their spirits.

In the middle of the street, I also saw soldiers in yellow uniforms patrolling back and forth with guns, a bit like special guards. I wonder what's the difference between them and the police. In the alley of the slum, I saw a bony old man, who was picking up a pile of garbage to make a fire. The flame is not big and there is a lot of smoke. There is a porcelain basin above the fire, which seems to be boiling water for cooking. There is a policeman standing next to him, without thinking. The police station is in the middle of the slum, and there are many arresting cars parked at the door. It feels like a bulky big thing used in the British industrial revolution era, with iron gates and iron fences, as if you could throw a poor man into the car at any time and roared away.

On the street, I saw slogans everywhere. Two people, a man and a woman, were elected by the municipal government. The democracy is very American, but what is the use of this democracy? Providing shelter for these naked poor people is far more important than voting. It is conceivable that before the election, whoever gives these homeless people a pie will get an extra vote. But when candidates are waving flags and shouting, they won't care too much about these vagrants. Their eyes are up. In India, where the gap between the rich and the poor is so serious, the status of the poor is extremely humble, and their dignity can be trampled and trampled at will.

There are men, women and children in the crowd lying in front of the store, and even a thin woman can't guess her age at a glance. Judging from her cuddling son and reprimanding daughter, she can't be over 30. If you identify her carefully, it really is. However, that kind of vacant and meaningless eyes makes people feel that worry may be unnecessary, and everyone has reasons to choose their own lifestyle.

Walking beside us, it is obviously a family of three. My father is holding a little boy, with a big black head in one hand and a baggy bag in the other. Both father and son are dirty. The eldest daughter has several paper boxes on her head, and the youngest daughter is holding a roll of plastic sheets and walking slowly forward. Maybe I just got up last night and wanted to find a camp for the night.

On the whole, people in Calcutta are lifeless and hopeless. It's a dead city. Do it at sunrise, sleep at sunset, and so on