Bangladesh 101

Mama: Uncle (mother's brother)

Mami: Aunty (mother's brother's wife)

Dada: Not baby language, but grandfather (father's father)

Nana: Not baby language, but grandfather (mother's father)

Gusto: Not Italian for "flavor" or "taste", but Bangla for "meat"

Corolla: Bitter melon or bitter gourd; a vegetable obviously bitter and (to me) not tasty at all

Toyota Corolla: A vehicle commonly seen on Bangladeshi streets; not bitter

"Tumi sao": Bangladeshi expression meaning "You go ahead"; misunderstood in German as "dumme Sau"

Hotel: In Bangla used to refer to a place to stay the night, but also to a place to eat [Why don't they just say restaurant?]

Riba: According to my cousin Mamun, the Bangladeshi expression for "river"

Modern Talking: In Germany referred to as a bad example for "Music Made In Germany", in Bangladesh referred to as a good example for "Music Made In Germany"

Blah blah blah

"Torko" is fun - 95% of the time it is not. "Torko" basically is a bengali habit that you mostly have to deal with, when you are out shopping. Why? Because it is all about the money!

To understand this, I have to explain "Torko" to you. "Torko" is the unnecessary discussion, a waste of time. For example, I went to buy a dress shirt for work. It fit perfectly, except that my hands wouldn't fit without unbuttoning the sleeves. What was the salesman's comment? They will stretch after I wash the shirt. And what would have been the comment if everything was too loose? Right – that they will shrink after washing it and therefore will fit perfectly anyhow.

“Torko” can be annoying, like arguing over and over, when you know you are right; when you have bought something and go to buy it again and the price all of a sudden has risen. And then the salesman explains to you, that the price has always been that high, that you are wrong and maybe even laughs at you. “This stupid boy really thinks that people sell this for 150 Taka, haha. Come on, it’s 210 Taka. Everybody knows it!”

And “Torko” can be annoying when dealing with Rickshaws. I at least take the Rickshaw once a day, from Gulshan-1 to Gulshan-2 through residential area. In the morning and in the evenings, during rush hour, prices all of a sudden rise. Not because there is more traffic, because people need to go to office and back home quickly. So then of course the least Rickshaw Wallahs are willing to go for the regular price.

But “Torko” can be fun – 5% of the time. I went to buy a bag and a backpack the other day. Mostly, when you have a store specialized on selling bags, you have at least three of four more around it. So competition is high. I checked every store for the price of the things I liked and found out the lowest prices. Then this one salesman wanted to sell me his bags desperately and offered the lowest price, like the others. We argued, although I knew no one else was willing to go lower – “Torko”. I paid him 5 Taka less, which is only five cents, but the arguing and reaching that agreement was fun, when the total charge was 15.500 Taka. At least I can enjoy “Torko” every now and then...

Fun Fact: Bangladeshis like "Torko".

If Walt Disney only knew...

Fun Fact: Bangladeshis don't care about copyrights. Well, let me think about it... they don't. For example if you go to "Nil Kheth", a book market near Elephant Road, and want buy any English textbook for university, you can do so for about 4 - 5 Euros. "The Godfather", "Harry Potter" or "The Da Vinci Code" are priced at about 1,10 Euros. Of course they lack in quality, but they fullfil their purpose.

The same goes for CDs and DVDs - wanna hear the latest music or watch the Oscar awarded movies? No problem. That is why you might hear a bunch of teenagers sitting in their car in Gulshan and bumping their heads to Trillville and Lil Jon ("WHUAT? - OOKAAY!"). And that is how I was able to complete my collection of Modern Talking CDs.

<3

After Kentucky Fried Chicken openend their first restaurants, you soon saw "Kentucky" all over the place, sometimes even spelled "Kentaky". I might consider buying my toothbrush at "Kentaky General Store" next time, but as of now, I'll have an ice cream with brownie at KFC.

Fun Fact: Bangladeshis don't care about expiry dates

Where is the mistake?