Ok, India is wonderful, crazy, colorful and complicated as well. Today I wanted to mail a box of gifts, textbooks, etc. home as not to drag it with me on the rest of my travels. I found a box at the retreat, packed my box and brought it to the post office via a tuktuk. Luckily my driver was with me as the post office refused to mail my box...I thought we would just slap more tape on it and goodbye! My tuktuk translator said I would have to bring it to a tailor to be sewn up in a cloth bag. Off we go to a very nice tailor who does not have the time to sew it up but puts strapping on it and sells me some fabric for rs.100 ( $2.00) We then zoom off to another tailor who makes the bag on his sewing machine, fitting it perfectly and hand stitching it closed with a big needle...Now we zoom back to the post office where everyone there is in on the job of mailing the package. Much gabbing ensues where everyone weighs in on how to label it, etc. then there is a panic as I don't have an Indian address. Eventually the box is labeled with a blue magic marker and put on a desk in this totally non-automated primitive office. I am then moved to pray over the box as some workers laugh and the head guy says "you need to pray to God". I ask them to be careful and am now hope my box arrives or there will be no gifts for anyone... keep an eye out for it Mom, I sent it to your address! By the way, it only took 3 solid hours to get the job done.
Heeheehee. Yes, the postal system. One of the many complicated ventures there. It's like the traffic - you have no idea how it all works, but somehow it does! :)
ReplyDeleteWOW Ms. Castellan I thought the Dublin post office was a pain in the ass, but you have found a much more impressive pain in the ass.
ReplyDeleteJack