Saturday, March 14, 2009

So you want to lick the cup?

I was eating ice cream in front of the Pelourinho elevator in Salvador one day during Carnaval. There's a little ice cream shop conveniently located there.

I was just finishing up my cup and I was just about to take the last bite when one of the street kids came up to me and asked me for a bite of ice cream. I think he wanted the last one.

I felt slightly bad like I usually do when it involves kids but I said no like the hardened bastard I've become over 10 months of urban survival. I ate the last bite, walked over to the trash and threw the cup away like any person would.

The kid comes up behind me and reaches into the shallow trash can (shallow only because it's half filled with trash) and pulls out my cup and spoon, then proceeds to lick the cup of ice cream liquid until it's got pretty much nothing left in it.

I watched all of it. I was genuinely surprised. I think I even chuckled, but I also felt bad too. The kid did not look that hungry or malnutritioned. I mean we're not talking about those kids you see on tv from africa.

I don't know what my conclusion is on this one. I told some foreigners this story and they thought the kid was probably just trying to make me feel sorry for him to give him money or buy him another one. That didn't work though, because I've turned into an unemotional bastard. (some people will argue that I was one before I started traveling :) )

1 Comments:

Blogger ben said...

haha, I hope you will not be that "traveling Jim" when you return...people who are less fortunate can always use some help from people like us. Kids don't choose to be poor so I always have more sympathy for them. I do hope when they grow up, they will help other kids who were just like them.

April 2, 2009 at 1:42 PM  

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