CONFESSIONS OF A NRI SHOPAHOLIC

 One word that i detest the most now is- Shopaholic. Born an ardent shopaholic i loved to buy anything under the sun. Even if not buying, i loved to stay on for hours standing and staring at shop windows. The disease got worse once i came to Saudi Arabia- The Shopper's Paradise. Every NRI suffers from a particular syndrome- MULTIPLY BY INDIAN CURRENCY. This happens whenever a NRI goes shopping. We love to get our pay packets in Saudi Riyals and when it comes to buying things, our brains become instant calculators doing all arithmetic, usually multiplied by Indian rupee.


I always make it a point not to look at Indian vegetables in supermarkets here, for they are the killers of our monthly budgets...Last week end the inevitable happened again, we were herded to LuLu Hypermarket here. Happy to see all greeny green vegetables, vanity took over. Gone was the chant " Only Saudi vegetables", in came a new hyper interest to buy something 'New'. What bowled me over was the Indian Chat stall that was pulling me like a force towards it. If i went by my heart, i would have ended up shelling a fortune eating a Pani Puri. Dazzled by the look of something shiny, i walked forward. There it was! A marvel, loads and loads of onions! All shiny and inviting. I could not resist buying them that begged to be taken in my bags. Bought one kilo for 8 Saudi Riyals, and now it was the turn of banana pindi( banana stem). Carefully weighing it, temptation gave way and i picked one solid piece. Then came two sugarcanes, a tender coconut and fresh sundakkai. Happy with my buy, i put everything for a bill.

We came back home happy, blissful that the week end shopping was complete. Today morning, i opened the pindi bag to find it billed for 8 riyals- imagine one small piece of banana pindi that we get in Indian markets for Rs 2 or 3 was about Rs 100. The shock grew to remorse when i calculated the Indian currency for the onions- again Rs 100, sugarcane- Rs 120 per a hand long piece and tender coconut Rs 120 a single piece. I wonder if the tender coconut would ever taste sweet or the sugarcane sweeter. Leave alone vegetables, buying anything from grocery to consumables, i find expenses MULTIPLIED BY 12, funny, how our US counterparts do that when multiplying by 45 or 49. A dinner for two at a medium restaurant costs SAR 160 ( thats Rs 1840!) What i find better here is window shopping for jewels, just loitering around the gold souks here, occasionally buying too, as there is no making charges and no wastage on gold here. That is the only shopping that keeps me happy even if multiplied!!!