Bling heaven and Haggling

Our group is finally complete. Erin arrived late on Sat night, so all nine of us are here, plus Jane and Bhooi. Two big days in Delhi, so here's the catch-up.

Saturday: the market

We walked to Central Market, a short stroll from Amar Inn. Whilst the Amar Inn is not the fanciest hotel it does have air con and hotwater and is quite central such that we can actually walk to this market. The pavements are narrow and uneven, so you're dodging tree roots, kerbs and people. 

We started with a big lap to see what we could see. Nothing really opens in Delhi til after 11am and apparently after dark the Central Market is heaving so although the middle of the day was hot and muggy, it was better for dealing with than hoards of people.

Lots of stalls sold the same things, including beautifully decorated saris that weren't quite what we were after but the local women look gorgeous, many in matching tunic, trousers and scarf (dupatta) sets, though Jeans (in this weather!) and tshirt are also common.

When the heat got too much, we hid in an air-conditioned shoe shop full of bling: a diamante-encrusted tiger handbag, wildly impractical heels and embellished sneakers. 🤩

I'd deliberately packed light with just 11kg suitcase (one of the other guests arrived with just 4.5kg bag!!) with the intention to shop once I was here. I came away with 3 outfits (trousers, tunic and scarf) for NZ$20 each. Despite instructions to do so, haggling over NZ$5 can feel petty, so I paid ticket price.. I doubt these outfits will make it out of the house in New Zealand, but they're light and comfortable, so my summer pyjamas are about to get very glam. 

Thrre was only one incident of negotiation. I wanted a white top, 750 rupees but the one they had on display was a bit grubby. "We have a clean one out the back," they said, and then they took my money. The clean one never appeared, and the grubby one went straight back in the bag.

A bit miffed we asked for the money back or a discount, the seller said "one minute!" and dashed off, presumably to find the same top at another stall. meanwhile they had my money AND change! 1050 rupeesI was getting a bit nervous and after a while demanded that the money come back into my hand to be handed over again should this 'clean shirt' ever materialise". It never did so we walked away only to finally start negotiating over the price 600 rupees, 500 I said,  so we got the price down from 750 rupees to 500, about NZ$15 down to NZ$10. Stoked because I really wanted that top!!