Two international students and I decided to go to Kappad beach on a
free Sunday afternoon. According to google.maps the driving distance
was about 25 – 30 kilometres. Since two of the students went to the
beach before, they knew that the best way to get there was to take
the Riksha service. A familiar driver was called and asked to be
there within half an hour. He even arrived earlier and we explained
him our plan. Apparently, it was cheaper to take the same Riksha back
home from the beach and to pay the driver for the hours he had to
wait. This was so because the Rikshas from Calicut would charge both
ways, your way to the campus and their way back to Calicut. This
would be in total more expensive than paying the driver to wait for
three or four hours at the beach.
Upon departure the price was set to
700 Rupees and the journey started. It was a slow and uncomfortable
ride, with three men sitting in one Riksha that is not as wide as
other Rikshas. In addition, the Indian road has more bumps and humps
than an off road racing track. The lack of a proper suspension in a
Riksha screams for a roller coaster experience even at slow driving
speed. Considering the loudness of the open engine one might
understand why drivers jokingly refer to their Riksha as 'Indian
helicopter'. One hour later three of us finally landed at the famous
Kappad beach. The euphoria might be similar to how Vasca Da Gama
felt, when he set foot on the same place in May 1498. He was captain
of the first European ship that was to sail around Africa reaching
India.
Indeed, the beach was a great place to spend several hours. We stayed
until the sunset and when it became dark, we finally decided to go
home. Having completely forgotten about the driver, we were looking
for him on the parking lot. It took some time until he approached me
while the other two students were on their way. I had a mild feeling
of doubt whether or not he had already left. However, I reminded
myself that we had not paid the ride to the beach yet. When I saw the
driver he seemed to be in a hurry and mentioned the time. He did not
seem to be angry, rather anxious to go home for dinner. I felt a bit
sorry for having made him wait longer than negotiated. However, we
told him from the beginning that we wanted to see the sunset. Anyway,
finally we were driving back to the campus and when we had to pay,
the driver demanded 100 Rupees more than agreed before. This was only
fair and everyone got their steak for the day. 