So, this morning, my doorbell buzzed. I looked through the peephole and saw two guys, maybe in their mid-twenties. Normally I wouldn’t answer, but I thought: Maybe they’re doing work on the building and they need to ask me something. Our cistern wasn’t working last week, and the elevators were out once. I’ve directed maintenance men before.
So I answered. They immediately started talking in rapid Spanish.
“Perdón,” I said, “pero todavía estoy aprendiendo español.” Sorry, but I’m still learning Spanish.
They slowed down and explained that they’d just gotten done cleaning the drains and gutters outside. It was a long process, they said, and they had to clear out mud and dirt. Perhaps I had a small “gratificación” I’d like to give them?
“Una gratificación?” I repeated. “Como una propina?” Like a tip? C’mon guys, just say it.
“Sí señorita.”
I pondered this. It’s plausible that men could come and clean the drains, and I wouldn’t know about it until now. People give tips to the trashmen, and I’ve given a tip to the folks who delivered my garrafón-holder. Plus, they got inside the house somehow, so Pablo must have let them in. Although that’s not necessarily a good sign.
“How often do you do this?” I asked, in Spanish.
“Every two months or so,” one said. “The lady upstairs gave us 100 pesos.” He unfolded a 100-peso note he had in his hand, and showed it to me.
“Momentito,” I said.
I figured this was just another custom I didn’t know about, and so I dug around in my purse and gave them 70 pesos.
About a 20 minutes later, when I was in the shower, I thought: What the hell did I just do? Those men could have stormed in here and robbed me. They could have done… other things. (I’ve seen too many episodes of SVU.) Plus, 100 pesos is a lot of money. That’s a taxi ride to La Cúspide from here. Or, like, 12 tacos de bistec at the stand around the corner from my house. I’m sure the vecinos wouldn’t have given 100 pesos to men they didn’t know. Although… I just gave them 70.
Feeling like I’d been scammed, I emailed my landlady to ask whether this was normal. She wrote back and said yes, people do clean the drains, and yes, they do ask for money. But I shouldn’t feel obligated to give them any. She also said she highly doubted that the neighbors gave these guys 100 pesos.
I feel kind of like an idiot now. Luckily it’s a cheap lesson to learn (70 pesos is about $5), but what if they had other motives, and I answered the door anyway?
So that’s it. I’m not answering the door anymore. Unless it’s Pablo.
Wow, you are going through all the crap I went through in my first year! Our landlady said 20 pesos is acceptable. It’s a bit of a scam, however, so yeah, you can also ignore them and not even answer the door.
Really? What happened to you? (And did you give them 70 pesos too?) 🙂 If you blogged about it, send me a link, I’d love to read. Might make me feel like less of a tonta.
No, I’m such a bee-otch. The first time it happened, I heard the commotion, went to the balcony and could see them cleaning the drain and they rang everybody’s doorbell.
They stopped cleaning once they realized no one was going to pay.
I didn’t give them any money (they asked, I walked back inside) and told Brendan about it, who asked our landlady about it, and she explained you can give money if you feel like it — she said 20 pesos — but it’s no obligation.
Sorry, but I consider drains to be a basic city service that’s paid via taxes, so I don’t give out my money. I also hate having to tip the mailman twice a year.
I’m sure they’ll show up around here in a couple of days. It’s probably the same two dudes.
what if the drains are not serviced by the city though, then what? you don´t “have” to tip anyone….not even the mailman…
Someone will clean the drains for money, somewhere. It’s part of the informal economy here. Also, I know you don’t “have” to tip anyone, but I would much rather err on the side of caution, especially with the mailman. We had tons of mail problems when we lived in Oak Cliff (in Dallas), and it was the WORST. If tipping would have solved that problem, I would have gladly have shelled out five or 10 bucks.