Welcome to India and f#*k you

So, as I went mentioned in my last post, I had heard it might be a challenge just to get to the hotel without being scammed. Guess what?

It went like this: I picked a hostel out of the Lonely Planet (the most popular guide for budget and adventure travel) in the area I wanted. I got a prepaid voucher for a taxi at the airport--this part is on the up and up. Once in the taxi, the driver mumbled something about not knowing exactly where it is but, "he'll find out." Oh, first I should mention that I only picked up my Lonely Planet India this morning since it's heavy and I was waiting to trade my Lonely Planet Nepal for a discount. On the flight I read that it's best to book your Delhi hotel ahead of time as the best places fill up fast and many of them will provide an airport transfer if you have a reservation. Oh well, too late for that. I then read a half page on the many taxi scams. Okey dokey.

So, I got in the cab and we were off. We had the now familiar taxi driver conversation about where I'm from, how long I'm in India, etc. He seemed nice enough and I started to relax, thinking maybe I won't have to worry about this one. In my experience, the Lonely Planet, understandably, has to tell you the worst of it. But about twenty minutes later he pulls up in front of a "travel agency" and goes into the office, ostensibly to find out exactly where the hostel is. "Oh shit, here we go," I thought. Sure enough, he comes out and says, "can you come in?" This is almost exactly how the Lonely Planet describes it: They taxi driver takes you to a travel agency on some pretense, then they call your hotel to make sure your reservation is in order. Lo and behold, "the hotel is full and they don't have your reservation. Oh dear, that's too bad, but I happen to know another hotel that can take you." They even put you on the phone with your "hotel," but it's actually a confederate playing the part.

I was having none of it. Those of you that know me well, know that it takes a lot for me to lose my temper and how much I shy away from confrontation, but you should have seen me in this office. First of all, the area of Delhi that I was going to is a stretch of road about a half mile long and one of the more popular places for backpackers, so this line about not knowing the location of the hostel was obvious BS. Secondly, there's no reason the hotel has to confirm my reservation if the agency is just calling for directions. The "travel agent" and I were soon in a shouting match. He was trying to put me on the phone with the "hotel," wondering why I was being so difficult when he was only trying to help. I was demanding to just be taken to the hostel, that there was no reason to check my reservation. I eventually just stormed out of the office. Luckily, the driver was waiting outside and less willing to get into it with me. Strangely, he still seemed like a decent guy and didn't put up a fight when I said just take me to a corner near the hostel--all of this obvious on the map, by the way. Golly, wouldn't you know it, all of a sudden he knew exactly where the place was.

Well, fortunately the hotel had a room and I had some terrific Chicken Tikka Masala for dinner (who knew the Indian food would be so good here) so all's well. And now I'm off to bed.