Recently, I visited Thailand. A land of smiles, as it is known, turned out to be exactly the one. But my surprise was something exploratory and cannot be found in the city guide books. I was in the Capital - Bangkok - and had some fraternity colleagues with me for a media trip. We were checking out the street fashion, food and what not. Thai people are supposedly a smiling lot and I got a proof of it instantly on the first day, as our unplanned excursion of city started in the early hours of the day, as we landed before other delegates who were expected to join us in the afternoon. So we made sure to use our time by checking out the town in our own possible way with no guidance at all. While my accomplices were checking out some stuff, from a distance a tuktuk driver smiled at me and nodded his head. He was asking through his body language whether I needed him i.e. the tuktuk service. I just smiled, shook my head in admission that I don’t really need so. But somehow, he came over and parked his colourful tuktuk right in front of us near the pavement we were in.
After having a brief photo session with the colourful tuktuk we hardly get to see in Indian roads… we three started a deliberation on whether to go somewhere on it to spend the time we had on our hands. One suggested about “Reclining Buddha” that is popular for its beliefs and is little far from the spot we were standing i.e. near Dusit Thani hotel. Starting the conversation, the young bloke started deliberating to take his services by picking up the word “Buddha”. Wat Po, the spot we would need to go to see it, was at a distance and he offered us a deal of 40 Baht for a return journey. Not matter what we knew the fact the deal could go either way: good, bad or ugly, with only choice on our hands to make it better good, less bad or nominally ugly. So we bargained for a returned trip in half the price he quoted. To our utmost surprise, he agreed!
But with a condition, he said. According to him, we would need to stop at 2-3 shops during each way for few moments and check out stuff. We replied in an affirmative. On our journey, the shops we stopped by were elite ones and that ensured that our will to buy went for a toss. They were pricey. After making excursions for two shops on our way to Wat Po, the driver became friendly and told us that each visit by us fetches him coupons from the shops which is exchanged for free gasoline. During our return, we had become experts in entering a shop and coming out with no qualms that we did not purchase anything. We had bargained for a deal that was mutually enticing. I had taken his name, his registration and mobile number in case I needed his service once again in the city. Now, I don’t want to share his identity because doing so on Internet might have negative repercussions on him. I want him to carry on smiling as he used to do with his own understanding of English language, which made sure that I speak to him with no articles, grammar, difficult words, in my sentences. That was like -- “I go Wat Po back 20 Baht I pay you. Ok!?”
The bargain factor with tuktuk might be known to many but was a completely new experience for me. In India, we do have taxis doing the same in Agra by making us visit cottage emporiums, etc. But the scenario is not to an extent where three wheelers are doing the same in a city. This is probably because Bangkok stands as a shoppers’ paradise and depend a lot on tourism whereas India does not. I learnt a good way to discount my travel. A taxi drive would have pinched me.
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