Shopping

Shopping around here is also a different experience from I’ve ever had at home. First off, there are clothes. I’ve been told that in the cities, most people buy pre-made clothes, whereas out here in the countryside, people mostly get things tailored (or make their own clothes). That involves buying fabric, going to a tailor, getting measurements taken, specifying what style you want everything in, and coming back some time later to pay for it and pick it up. So far, I have three salwar kameez suits done and two at the tailor’s. My first suit took about one week to finish, the last two I have in are estimated at four weeks. It really depends on how busy the tailor is, how many assistants he has, and, in the case of my most recent suit, how healthy the tailor is. It took at least two weeks longer than this tailor originally appraised, because he got very sick and couldn’t sew for a week or so. Getting things tailored requires more patience, but they fit better and you can customize them all you like.

One thing I am really enjoying is the personal touches that different tailors put into the clothing. One point of note is around the cuffs of the pants, the salwar. The cuff is reinforced with stiff interfacing and is about one inch wide. Rather than just stitching the interfacing in and being done with it, every tailor does several rows of machine stitches around the cuff in a sort of decorative pattern. I will take some pictures when I get a chance. Some tailors make the patterns more intricate than others.

It is tough, as someone who sews, when I get a suit back and there are parts of it that I look at and say to myself, “I could have done that better.” What that means, in the long run, is that I’m bound to be really picky with tailors, and always pick the ones that cost a little more and take a little longer. Maybe someone will teach me to stitch my own suits by the time I leave here.

Shopping for food and other supplies is fun too. Most stores here are what we would call “garage stores.” They are made in flat-roofed cement buildings with metal garage doors over the front that are slid up when the store is open. In Rakkar and Sidhbari, these garages are usually not big enough even to hold a car. Each little store has its own selection of things, so you have to know which store has the things you need. Produce stands change their wares as new things come in season or go out of stock. Food is fresh and delicious. There are two food stores practically out my front door, so if I need an extra potato as I’m making dinner, it’s easy to run out for another.

When you buy produce, rice, spices, beans, flour, and the like, shopkeepers weigh what you want on a scale, and charge you based on weight. One time, when buying two tiny heads of garlic, they shop keeper gave them to me for free, since they were worth less than a rupee. Another time, when I tried to buy four little eggplants, they didn’t weigh enough to be a good round price, so this vegetable seller added another one to my bag.

Some shop keepers are very friendly. For example, when I went to buy dictionaries, a notebook, and a few folders from a stationary shop, the shop keeper introduced himself as having visited the United States and wanted to know all about Anya and I. While I perused different dictionaries, he even offered us tea, which we declined. When we finally checked out, he threw in a couple of pens for free for me and a little note pad for Anya.

Other times, you really have to haggle to get a good price. As a foreigner, people will tend to ask you for the full price on something, which is higher than the normal price. By asking for a ‘discount’ they will bring the price down. Some places are harder to haggle at. Anya has told me of how she will sometimes spend ten or fifteen minutes in a store chatting with the shopkeeper, trying to bring the price down. I, however, haven’t gotten the guts to haggle quite so intensely yet.

Although unrelated, I feel that I should mention a major victory for myself. For lunch today, I cooked Indian food from scratch for myself for the first time. And it was delicious! It took about an hour, but it was definitely worth it.