Scam!

It probably had to happen sooner or later. A bit like the 'Delhi belly': you can be as careful as you like, but all it takes is one oversight (or a bit of bad luck) and you find yourself spending a couple of days in close company with the toilet! The bellyache passes in two or three days, while the bitterness of a scam leaves a more lasting mark.

We probably 'softened' during this trip because the hospitality and generosity we found starting in eastern Turkey, throughout Iran and even in Pakistan made us open-minded and uncaring. The Himalayas (Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand) in India also spoilt us well!

But then we arrived in Rajistan, starting with beautiful Jaipur. A romantic and colourful city, but where every step is a battle: beggars, Tuk Tuk drivers, shopkeepers ... not only is it a constant nagging (hey, what's your name? Do you need the tuk tuk? Hey my friend, where are you from? Look at my goods) but they all give you the best price, they have the best product, they guarantee you the top offer. The saddest part is that kindness dies. An information on the street, a handshake, a piece of candy ... everything has a price. And so that kindness I encountered in Rishikesh here disappears completely. Or almost! Because it still exists in some people, like the old lady who intervened when an Indian man asked for a selfie with me too insistently (I had bought that woman some food just a few minutes before, by the way). The heart then hardens and we learn to ignore, to look the other way, even if it is a smiling young man, a hungry mother, a gaunt child.

The worst, the real con, was in Pushkar. I was delighted to leave big-city Jaipur and immerse myself in the quieter, more familiar atmosphere of the small city, especially if it is the second holy city in India after Varanasi. I was probably hoping to recapture that magical atmosphere of Manali or even just Tapovan. In part, this was the case: Pushkar is small and quiet, colourful stalls unfold along the main street trafficked mainly by cows, and we can indulge in some shopping and especially enjoy the typical Gulkan Lassi (Lassi with roses). The town evolves around the shores of the lake that is considered a sacred lake and where the ritual known as Pooja takes place. Pooja consists of a prayer for the family accompanied by bathing in the water of the lake where, at the end of the prayer, flowers and other gifts symbolising good luck and health are released. I had read about this ceremony and was excited to take part in it. But first we decided to visit the temple of Brahma, God of creation. And from the moment we approached the temple we got into the Pooja scam!

When we arrived at the temple we were taken in charge by a chain of guys, from the first one who shows you where to leave your shoes to the one who puts flowers in your hand (half to be left at the temple and half to be released in the lake) to the guy who pretends to be a student at the temple and offers to accompany you to put down the flowers at the temple and then at the lake. Once at the lake they put another saucer of offerings in your hand and leave you in the care of the last character in this chain: the monk (or so we think, because it's obviously a scam). At this point Peter and I, who have been side by side the whole time, are separated! The monk makes me repeat prayers invoking the names of family members and then asks for an offering, obviously sugarcoating the pill (offer a dinner to the community). Here I start to be suspicious, I look hesitant but the monk insists, he wants me to promise on my family how many 'dinners' for the community I will offer. With my eyes I look for Peter behind me, the monk tries to catch my attention. I see Peter, I call his name but he does not hear me. I am confused, one part of me thinks the offering asked is too much, the other part of me believes in the good faith of a monk, inside a sacred place, asking for offerings for the poor of the city. I am uneasy, I look for Peter again, the monk tells me that Peter has also donated dinners. A little dazed and confused, I finally decide to support the community and offer money.

At the conclusion of the ceremony, Peter and I stand together, both a little bewildered. "But how much did you give?" we ask each other. We have a bitter taste in our mouths but we justify our choice by saying that we gave money for the community, we did good. But we both have suspicions, so we search the Internet and realise that we have just fallen prey to a scam! How sad and how angry. At the end of the day, neither of us donated too much money, the biggest bitterness comes from the fact that we both felt safe in the hands of religious people, we both thought we were doing something good for the needy and instead we simply oiled a rotten wheel of scams.

This did not spoil our experience in India, not at all, but it made us more closed, less smiling towards people and definitely much more suspicious. A great pity!

Friendliest person: the guy at the hostel who consoled us after the scam, offered to call the police and help us in this situation

Food: The Lassi! In Jaipur we went to the famous 'Lassiwalla' a place crowded with locals that serves sweet lassi in disposable earthenware cups. And then the Pushkar rose lassi, a real treat!

Music: Ankh Hai Bhari Bhari by Kumar Sanu

Highlights of the trip: Sunrise over Pushkar as seen from the Savitri Mata Temple in the company of many cute monkeys