“Few things are more ridiculous than the spectacle of a “budget traveler” losing his temper at a rickshaw driver over $0.10, while negotiating a ride to a bar where he’ll blow $10 on beer.”
–Rolf Potts, Vagabonding (2003)
Ironic that a website of Rolf Potts would quote a book by Rolf Potts but posted by someone else. Speaking of which, where is out travel guru? It’s been a while..
I recently read quite a debate about whether tourists should tip “excessively” to people like rickshaw drivers and street vendors.
I was shocked to read that people actually were against it. The kind of tipping I’m talking about is 10 cents: sure it’s not much money, but it’s a 400% tip on a 2 cent samosa…
Personally, I say “tip away”, even if it means the prices are inflated by a whopping 8 cents for the next tourist who comes along.
I agree, Eric - people get funny about the tipping thing. A friend of mine was horrified in Cambodia last year to watch one of her companions lecture a waiter about how they couldn’t afford to tip him, because they were “only poor students”. She actually used the sentence, “In our country, we’re poor too…”
As a former waiter who had to live on the tips provided, I always tip well unless the serivce has been AWFUL. Then they get a lecture as to the vagaries of service work instead. Anyone who wouldn’t throw their server or tuk-tuk driver or whatever a few pennies (and as Rolf said, the amount might be a dime…) while on vacation is obscene. They wouldn’t dining with me again. I hope that Eva’s friend made up for the miserly ways of her dining companion.
August 1st, 2007 at 9:41 am
Ironic that a website of Rolf Potts would quote a book by Rolf Potts but posted by someone else. Speaking of which, where is out travel guru? It’s been a while..
August 1st, 2007 at 4:36 pm
Hi Brian, he’s on the road right now…so I’m filling in the space!
August 1st, 2007 at 8:47 pm
I recently read quite a debate about whether tourists should tip “excessively” to people like rickshaw drivers and street vendors.
I was shocked to read that people actually were against it. The kind of tipping I’m talking about is 10 cents: sure it’s not much money, but it’s a 400% tip on a 2 cent samosa…
Personally, I say “tip away”, even if it means the prices are inflated by a whopping 8 cents for the next tourist who comes along.
August 2nd, 2007 at 4:14 am
I agree, Eric - people get funny about the tipping thing. A friend of mine was horrified in Cambodia last year to watch one of her companions lecture a waiter about how they couldn’t afford to tip him, because they were “only poor students”. She actually used the sentence, “In our country, we’re poor too…”
August 3rd, 2007 at 7:48 am
As a former waiter who had to live on the tips provided, I always tip well unless the serivce has been AWFUL. Then they get a lecture as to the vagaries of service work instead. Anyone who wouldn’t throw their server or tuk-tuk driver or whatever a few pennies (and as Rolf said, the amount might be a dime…) while on vacation is obscene. They wouldn’t dining with me again. I hope that Eva’s friend made up for the miserly ways of her dining companion.