The Indian Headshake

"Do you know how to get here?" I asked the rickshaw driver as I handed him the business card of the hotel before we committed to riding in his vehicle


He gently took the card from me and thoroughly read it. He looked back at me. He peered into my eyes, making strong eye contact, while his head tilted on his shoulders; his eyes floated up in his head and His lips turned up in a cryptic smile. He shook his head at me which seemed to indicate he unfortunately did not know the location, but the coy smile communicated that we were being no bother to him.

Taking his head shake as a sign I would have to find another rickshaw, I thanked him and began to turn away.

"80 Rupees!" he said to me, before I had even made one step away.

I looked at Jeff. Why would we go with this guy if he had no idea where we going?

_______

"Can I have some coffee, please?" Jeff asked our waiter. The same response demonstrated by our rickshaw driver was made by the waiter, a slight shake of the head, with an enigmatic smile.

A little upset, Jeff said thank you, and we got back to our conversation. Just moments later, our waiter brought the coffee.

After a few instances of getting a similar response to our various quieries, we quickly discovered that unlike in the states, where a head shake is a sign of disapproval or disagreement, here in India, it is the opposite.

So, it takes us just a few moments each time to process any answer. People will answer us with the words 'No Problem', but shake their head while saying it. It is really confusing.


-Zak