I'm frequently amazed at the arrogance and condescension the Western tourists here display toward the Malayalees. And they seem to hate one another, as if each other Westerner represents to them the inauthenticity of their retreat into tropical paradise. I even saw a woman who had just arrived in Fort Kochi outright glaring at a small child. There's plenty of yelling, as in that whole volume = understanding idea. The Americans are the absolute worst.
Sarina and I are here for different reasons, obviously, but recently it has become more pronounced. She likes going to places in the tour guide, I use the guide to get an idea of reasonable prices and go elsewhere. She likes travel by autorickshaw, I like walking. I memorize maps in a couple minutes, she frequently goes off on her own and gets lost.
Haha, but it's all in good fun, yes?
Last night I discovered that I had my own personal mantisbot bioroid that for the last three years has been tagging along and hijacking my visual cortex with biopsychichemical phermones. I destroyed it immediately upon this revelation and traced the genetic material back to Cleveland; an investigation will be swift upon my return to the States.
We spent yesterday exploring the markets in Ernakulam. Finally, some decent local food eaten by hand in the midst of curious stares and stumbled, broken attempts at communication. For the last couple of days we've been eating at restaurants from the guide book that completely cater to angry foreign tourists.
Each day I learn more firsthand experience of the world the American media political machine hides from us: the pollution, the disease, the poverty, but most of all the goodwill... all of which exists exactly cotemporally and causally with the affluence of the sterile corporatist "West" (and now more appropriately North). Almost never in the States have I experienced such kindness to strangers.
But enough of that sort of rant; my hope in the next week or two is to find a Theyyam practitioner somewhere in northern Kerala.
Sarina and I are here for different reasons, obviously, but recently it has become more pronounced. She likes going to places in the tour guide, I use the guide to get an idea of reasonable prices and go elsewhere. She likes travel by autorickshaw, I like walking. I memorize maps in a couple minutes, she frequently goes off on her own and gets lost.
Haha, but it's all in good fun, yes?
Last night I discovered that I had my own personal mantisbot bioroid that for the last three years has been tagging along and hijacking my visual cortex with biopsychichemical phermones. I destroyed it immediately upon this revelation and traced the genetic material back to Cleveland; an investigation will be swift upon my return to the States.
We spent yesterday exploring the markets in Ernakulam. Finally, some decent local food eaten by hand in the midst of curious stares and stumbled, broken attempts at communication. For the last couple of days we've been eating at restaurants from the guide book that completely cater to angry foreign tourists.
Each day I learn more firsthand experience of the world the American media political machine hides from us: the pollution, the disease, the poverty, but most of all the goodwill... all of which exists exactly cotemporally and causally with the affluence of the sterile corporatist "West" (and now more appropriately North). Almost never in the States have I experienced such kindness to strangers.
But enough of that sort of rant; my hope in the next week or two is to find a Theyyam practitioner somewhere in northern Kerala.
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3 comments:
I'm not surprised at the culture shock difference in kindness to be honest. When Katrina hit, many foreign countries offered aid, including India I believe. But when the Tsunami's hit we slacked in a most embarrassing way.
American's for the most part are just blind, not necessarily to their own fault, but as you said, corporate conglomeration.
"...as if each other Westerner represents to them the inauthenticity of their retreat into tropical paradise."
Ouch. That's a really scary thought. I hope you've written more than what you've shared so far. I definitely look forward to hearing or reading more about it, especially after you've been back to the States for a while.
As a show of good will and authenticity, you should sell Sarina off into slavery. That should quest her thirst for guided tours.
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