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Spend till you drop


On a recent trip to India, I analyzed the spending of a Nepali middle-income family to that of India. The result was satisfying – my experience was stress free and my spending power elevated.

I had never paid for food while traveling to an Indian city Siliguri close by to my maternal house in Birtamod, Jhapa. Being the youngest has its own advantages. However, this time during a sumptuous lunch in a famous restaurant that specializes in fish, prawn and chicken curry my husband ushered me to pay the bill. We were five of us dining that fateful day. I paid 640 Indian rupees equivalent to 1000 Nepali rupees. My money floated gaily to the counter and I could not stop grinning, as the amount was excessively less. This experience did not stop here, I shopped until I dropped and my wallet withstood the entire spending spree. What is wrong with India I thought?

Back to reality. One of my friends and I decided to have a light lunch in Nanglo’s Chinese room last week. Our order was simple – two wanton soups and one boneless chicken chilli no drink please. We received our soups in a side dish bowl that had 3 pieces of wanton each with probably 5ml of soup in it. Both of us gazed at the portion size but said nothing at first with continued low outbursts on the portion size. Our final bill amount was a whopping 800 rupees. I paid the amount with a look that spilled ‘are you kidding us’ all over my face. I collected my change and we walked out discreetly. This obviously will not be the last time I pay outrageous amounts in a Kathmandu restaurant. 

My spending power has hit the bottom again as a 1000 rupee note seems like a mere change in the cash counters of any grocer or restaurants in Kathmandu. I am dreading the masala shopping for this bhai tika and I know it will definitely put a big hole in my wallet (because last year it did). Nevertheless, no matter how bad it turns out, I will make the purchase. I have heard many times that diamonds are worth how much a buyer can pay for but it looks like the basic commodities have now started displaying price tags depending on how much the Nepali consumers can pay. 

This generation of mine is a hard working bunch of people. Some of us slog six days a week; we are amongst the highest taxpayers comparatively with zero tax return and ever-increasing commodities prices. How are we then to save for our future? How long before we become independent and build our own nest? 

Every morning I wake up with a determination to work toward my future and every night I go to bed with this distant dream running away further and further.


http://www.ekantipur.com/the-kathmandu-post/2012/11/10/free-the-words/spend-till-you-drop/241636.html 

 pic credit: https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=little+food+portion+pics&view=detailv2&&id=B4BF97892EA593154AA46E3A4B5B1CACB9316BB3&selectedIndex=39&ccid=Cq88yvSf&simid=608024635621640194&thid=OIP.M0aaf3ccaf49f7b14490368fe04b21826H0&ajaxhist=0

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