Marriage Tourism in Jaisalmer

Laura's had a few days to roam about town while I've been incapacitated, so now that I'm up and about she's been showing me her favorite spots and introducing me to some new friends she's made in town. We just had chai with her "chai guy." An older, front-tooth-missing gentleman who was very talkative and friendly. He's been collecting puzzle-games for years and is assembling a book of them. Mind games: laying out 3 matches in a triangle shape, he asks us to use just 3 more to create a total of 4 trianges of the same size. He entertained us with these while we drank his chai, pausing every once in awhile while he sold something from his shop to a passing customer.

Someone stopped in to pick up a package hidden behind the counter. A birthday present, Chai Guy explained. For a young girl from America whose father is Indian.

"Oh?" We enquired further. The mother was an American woman who met an Indian man here in Jaisalmer. They got married and she raises the girl in the States and sends money to him to help "boost quality of life," as Chai Guy put it.

"Very common here in Jaisalmer," he continued. "Many women come, marry men here. No hassle, no pressures. It's no problem."

It turns out we know the family in question. We overheard them at breakfast this morning at the new hotel we moved into. Small town.

I asked for more info and Chai Guy was more than happy to talk about it. He brought out some photo albums to show us pictures.

"Many women come visit here. Europe, America, Japan. Meet Jaisalmer men, especially on long camel safaris. Women here get very jealous, accuse the men of always sleeping around with foreign women. Sometimes accidents happen, women and men meet and have time together. It's best to be honest.

"So for us, easiest thing is to not marry. Women here want men to be their servants, do everything to please them. Sometimes if you work with tourists, women won't want you. Say, 'No, you are with foreign women.'" He shrugged. "What can we do? Best not to get married."

But some do. According to Chai Guy, 20% of men here marry foreign women who then send support money from abroad. Another 30% won't marry at all because, according to him, dealing with local women is too much of a hassle and it seems that they'd rather keep themselves available for foreign women looking for a little something-something on a nice long camel safari in the desert.

This isn't unique to Jaisalmer. He also said this happens in Jodhpur, the closest big tourist city. But given the relaxed atmosphere here, the small-town-ness that provides a low-stress and low-hassle environment (certainly compared with the other tourist cities we've been in) and Jaisalmer's unique position as a camel safari Mecca (giving the ladies and men plenty of long, romantic desert nights together) has created a marriage/"romance" tourist trade here that brings a steady flow of foreign money for those lucky enough to secure one of these "low-hassle relationships."

"They foreign women like Indian bananas," Chai Guy laughed and put up his hand to slap me a high-five.

I want to promote Laura as a wedding photographer around town so we can learn more about it. Don't know if we'll stay long enough, though.

---------------

To translate into Mainer: imagine women from away taking long lobster boat tours to find part-time husbands. Or guides into the deep woods, along the Appalaichan Trail. Nah, the lobster boat tour is funnier.

"Jeezums crow, Bert, just wait'll she gets a peek of my lobstah!"

"Dunno, Mahshal, she likely won't be too impressed."

"Why's that, Bert?"

"Well it ain't hahdly a one-poundah."