The Ear-Cleaning 'Doctors'

Mar 21st, 2002, 21:43

Just got back from Goa, where we were approached many times by men pointing to our ears & waving their Doctor's licence.
My girlfriend stopped one time in Anjuna, where the guy said he was just going to look in her ear, & before she could stop him he'd poked something into her ear & produced a massive ball of wax, which quite obviously was not hers !
I was pretty pissed off, so we avoided these guys from then on, but we met a woman travelling who'd had it done & said she felt much better for it.

Anyone else tried it, & is it unique to Goa ?

Graham

indiamike · Mar 26th, 2002, 18:35

I have seen the "old ear cleaning" bit only in Goa. Have seen ear cleaners elsewhere but not using the routine they use there.

I personally haven't had it done but have been told that it is "refreshing".

I shared a guest house with two other guys from Germany who got duped into it and paid 500 rupees a piece for an ear cleaning. They said it was worth it, but I am sure that ear cleaner was laughing all the way home.

Mike

Mar 27th, 2002, 00:04

don't think so - another true story: one guy got approached but refused - but looked on; the other guy who got it done was highly excited that he could hear perfectly again - asked the "doctor" "how much?" the answer was "fifty" - and he put out 50 dollars instead of 50 rupees.

Midnite Toker · Mar 27th, 2002, 01:53

If you sit in the little park in the centre of Delhi's Connaught Circle, you'll be approached by plenty of ear cleaners.
There was one guy I saw on a few visits to Delhi who, despite my warning him of the dangers of putting pointy steel pins in people's ears, assured me it was safe and kept pestering me to try it.

His final line to me as I walked off:
"You must try it - it is better than having orgasm!"

So perhaps the woman Graham met in Goa knows something we don't...

indiamike · Mar 27th, 2002, 09:26

Quote:

Originally posted by Midnite Toker
His final line to me as I walked off:
"You must try it - it is better than having orgasm!"

If that was the case I would have been getting my ears cleaned once....errr...make that twice a day

Mike

-m2- · Oct 30th, 2002, 03:40

Guess I'm kind of bored waiting to get away (12 days and counting) so I'll contribute my 'ear wallah' tale.

I think this is a 'mostly in Goa' thing and it is not new. My first encounter with an ear wallah was in the 70's. On the beach (and I was probably stoned) and was approached by a guy with a half sheet of paper with a typed message about the wonders of ear cleaning and a no doubt bogus testimonial or two and said "just let me look in your ear' and before I could react, he fished out a little 'stone' and said I was in dire need of his services. He then put this little scalple thing in my ear -- I could feel it distictly against my eardrum -- before I could react. I then recall remaining very still while asking him to remove the instrument from my ear -- he was attempting to negotiate a cleaning all the while this thing was pressed against my (wax-covered) eardrum and it was scary and very very difficult to get him to back off.

I'm still regularly approached on the beach (even in relatively quiet Arambol, as these guys make a circuit of all the Goan beaches), and won't let them get within reaching distance as I NEVER, EVER want to experience the feeling of surgical steel next to my eardrum again unless it is by a degreed doctor in an appropriate setting.

mike

Architect · Nov 23rd, 2002, 14:09

There were few of these so called 'Ear Doctors' on the beaches here in Mumbai too. But havent seen them lately. Guess due to the generosity of the friends of Gerlinde and other like minded people they must have migrated to Goa - where the probablility of running into such philanthropic souls increases.

ayaytch · Jan 27th, 2004, 17:34

A friend and I ran into these ear cleaning guys on Colva and Anjuna Beach. Pretty much the same story happened, and after explaining that we were very lucky we had our ears cleaned before requiring extensive surgery they wanted to charge us Rs.750.

We refused time and time again until the price dropped down to Rs. 600 a piece. After still refusing to pay, the ear cleaner suggested that we take a stroll to the police and get them to sort out the situation. We agreed to this thinking that it was a total rip off. As soon as he realized that we were serious about the police the price promptly plummeted from Rs. 600 to, 500, 400, 300, 200, 100, 50 until they just strode away from us.

The next time we ran into one, we thought we'd see if he could pull out the same amount of wax. He did manage to pull out a fair amount of wax, WAY more than could have possibly accumulated in 2 days but less than the first time.

Are these guys for real? Was the wax he pulled out really mine? Is it a trick similar to when people pull coins out of your ear?

We asked Vino at BOB'S SEAFOOD REST. AND BAR shack on Colva beach (this was a paid advertisement

) and he seemed to think that the ear cleaners were for real, but they should only be charging Rs.5.

Interested to hear whether or not you guys think its a trick or for real. Thanks.

mdchachi · Jan 27th, 2004, 21:12

You answered the question yourself... there's no way they could pull out a bunch of wax if your ears were just cleaned two days before. It's probably both -- real and a trick. They'll pull out any wax that was there and a gob of other people's wax besides. Yuck.

jpvs · Feb 13th, 2004, 19:33

Ever gone to a DEGREE'd ENT Doctor (thats Ear Nose Throat Specialist) and got your ears cleaned, you would be amazed at the amount of gob that come out when he squirts that warm liquid into your ear with that huge syringe..

In my book, the feeling is right up there with the oragasm, body massage, scratching your unmentionable parts etc.

mroering · Mar 6th, 2005, 22:07

I just got back from my first visit to Delhi. At Connaught place, I was also suddenly approached by ear cleaners, showing me a Dutch text in a little booklet, supposedly written by a 'happy' Dutch costumer telling me how good this ear cleaner ('oorpeuteraar' in Dutch) is... Before I knew it, he was already poking in my ear with a cotton stick after which he said "dirty! I can clean! Sit in grass and I just take a look!".
About the payment he said, afterwards you pay what you like if I do a good job. Well, I thought I give it a try...

You wouldn't believe the dirt that came out of my ears! Well, I still don't!!! I do believe there CAN be a lot of dirt in the ears, but I sleep with ear plugs a lot of times and sometimes they get dirty as well (time to throw them away then!). The color of that dirt is different!!! They must have some trick with some wax they take from under their sleeves or out of a pocket or something, but that brown, dirty wax-like shit they showed me was NOT coming out of MY ears!!!

DON'T DO THIS, and even if it does happen to you, don't give them more than a 100 Rupies for it (some try to go for 250 or even for 800 rupies)!!! Believe me, in India 100 rupies (about US$ 2,-) is a lot of money!!! For some people a half day's work!!! I think that even 50 Rupies should be far enough! If they really give you any trouble, just say "shall we straighten this out at the police station?" and they will let it go...

What people will do just to get money.......

RastaAdmi · Mar 10th, 2005, 19:37

i have had mine done in connaught place a couple of times. it is real man - real wax coming out of your lug hole. it is fairly impressive the amount that comes out although i think that the improved hearing is something to do with the way they cover your ear with their hand afterwards and change the air pressure. think i paid 80 rps - if you told an indian person you paid 80rps they would probably piss themselves!

poorstudent · Mar 12th, 2005, 22:05

one got me in a little tibetan neighborhood in delhi. this was the first time I had ever seen one so I did not know what he was doing. before I knew it he got one ear. I was deaf in it for a couple of minutes, but then it popped, and I could hear better out of that ear than the other for the rest of the day. it was kind of funny though because I had no idea what was going on.

shere · Mar 13th, 2005, 00:35

80RS is a lot of money. You can hire women to weed your farmland in Haryana for 75RS for the whole day.

So I would not pay them more that 15/20 RS.

davey · Mar 13th, 2005, 06:03

SOAP IN YOU EARS...Thats the latest cry from them, then a quick lunge towards your ears with a 6inch long implement. I found that turning to them quickly before the little buggers could get too close and say," theres no soap in my ear mate" and point at them sharply they backed right off. Remember nothing smaller than you elbow in there, not some tout with a 6inch long darning needle and a mde up card telling you he's a ear cleaning specialist (made in India).

Mar 21st, 2002, 21:43	#1
gc1972 Posts: n/a	The Ear-Cleaning 'Doctors' Just got back from Goa, where we were approached many times by men pointing to our ears & waving their Doctor's licence. My girlfriend stopped one time in Anjuna, where the guy said he was just going to look in her ear, & before she could stop him he'd poked something into her ear & produced a massive ball of wax, which quite obviously was not hers ! I was pretty pissed off, so we avoided these guys from then on, but we met a woman travelling who'd had it done & said she felt much better for it. Anyone else tried it, & is it unique to Goa ? Graham

Mar 27th, 2002, 00:04	#3
Gerlinde Posts: n/a	laughing?? don't think so - another true story: one guy got approached but refused - but looked on; the other guy who got it done was highly excited that he could hear perfectly again - asked the "doctor" "how much?" the answer was "fifty" - and he put out 50 dollars instead of 50 rupees.

Mar 27th, 2002, 01:53	#4
Midnite Toker absconding member Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: Vienna, Austria Posts: 509	re: Ear Cleaners If you sit in the little park in the centre of Delhi's Connaught Circle, you'll be approached by plenty of ear cleaners. There was one guy I saw on a few visits to Delhi who, despite my warning him of the dangers of putting pointy steel pins in people's ears, assured me it was safe and kept pestering me to try it. His final line to me as I walked off: "You must try it - it is better than having orgasm!" So perhaps the woman Graham met in Goa knows something we don't...

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Mar 26th, 2002, 18:35	#2
indiamike Retired Admin Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: New Joisey for now Posts: 1,759	I have seen the "old ear cleaning" bit only in Goa. Have seen ear cleaners elsewhere but not using the routine they use there. I personally haven't had it done but have been told that it is "refreshing". I shared a guest house with two other guys from Germany who got duped into it and paid 500 rupees a piece for an ear cleaning. They said it was worth it, but I am sure that ear cleaner was laughing all the way home. Mike

Oct 30th, 2002, 03:40	#6
-m2- . Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: . Posts: 1,575	Guess I'm kind of bored waiting to get away (12 days and counting) so I'll contribute my 'ear wallah' tale. I think this is a 'mostly in Goa' thing and it is not new. My first encounter with an ear wallah was in the 70's. On the beach (and I was probably stoned) and was approached by a guy with a half sheet of paper with a typed message about the wonders of ear cleaning and a no doubt bogus testimonial or two and said "just let me look in your ear' and before I could react, he fished out a little 'stone' and said I was in dire need of his services. He then put this little scalple thing in my ear -- I could feel it distictly against my eardrum -- before I could react. I then recall remaining very still while asking him to remove the instrument from my ear -- he was attempting to negotiate a cleaning all the while this thing was pressed against my (wax-covered) eardrum and it was scary and very very difficult to get him to back off. I'm still regularly approached on the beach (even in relatively quiet Arambol, as these guys make a circuit of all the Goan beaches), and won't let them get within reaching distance as I NEVER, EVER want to experience the feeling of surgical steel next to my eardrum again unless it is by a degreed doctor in an appropriate setting. mike

Nov 23rd, 2002, 14:09	#7
Architect Account Closed Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Mumbai Posts: 38	There were few of these so called 'Ear Doctors' on the beaches here in Mumbai too. But havent seen them lately. Guess due to the generosity of the friends of Gerlinde and other like minded people they must have migrated to Goa - where the probablility of running into such philanthropic souls increases.

Jan 27th, 2004, 17:34	#8
ayaytch Member Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Johannesburg, RSA Posts: 4	A friend and I ran into these ear cleaning guys on Colva and Anjuna Beach. Pretty much the same story happened, and after explaining that we were very lucky we had our ears cleaned before requiring extensive surgery they wanted to charge us Rs.750. We refused time and time again until the price dropped down to Rs. 600 a piece. After still refusing to pay, the ear cleaner suggested that we take a stroll to the police and get them to sort out the situation. We agreed to this thinking that it was a total rip off. As soon as he realized that we were serious about the police the price promptly plummeted from Rs. 600 to, 500, 400, 300, 200, 100, 50 until they just strode away from us. The next time we ran into one, we thought we'd see if he could pull out the same amount of wax. He did manage to pull out a fair amount of wax, WAY more than could have possibly accumulated in 2 days but less than the first time. Are these guys for real? Was the wax he pulled out really mine? Is it a trick similar to when people pull coins out of your ear? We asked Vino at BOB'S SEAFOOD REST. AND BAR shack on Colva beach (this was a paid advertisement ) and he seemed to think that the ear cleaners were for real, but they should only be charging Rs.5. Interested to hear whether or not you guys think its a trick or for real. Thanks.

Jan 27th, 2004, 21:12	#9
mdchachi newbie-wallah Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: MI - USA Posts: 150	You answered the question yourself... there's no way they could pull out a bunch of wax if your ears were just cleaned two days before. It's probably both -- real and a trick. They'll pull out any wax that was there and a gob of other people's wax besides. Yuck.

Feb 13th, 2004, 19:33	#10
jpvs Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: India Posts: 87	Ever gone to a DEGREE'd ENT Doctor (thats Ear Nose Throat Specialist) and got your ears cleaned, you would be amazed at the amount of gob that come out when he squirts that warm liquid into your ear with that huge syringe.. In my book, the feeling is right up there with the oragasm, body massage, scratching your unmentionable parts etc.

Mar 6th, 2005, 22:07	#11
mroering Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Amsterdam Posts: 2	I just got back from my first visit to Delhi. At Connaught place, I was also suddenly approached by ear cleaners, showing me a Dutch text in a little booklet, supposedly written by a 'happy' Dutch costumer telling me how good this ear cleaner ('oorpeuteraar' in Dutch) is... Before I knew it, he was already poking in my ear with a cotton stick after which he said "dirty! I can clean! Sit in grass and I just take a look!". About the payment he said, afterwards you pay what you like if I do a good job. Well, I thought I give it a try... You wouldn't believe the dirt that came out of my ears! Well, I still don't!!! I do believe there CAN be a lot of dirt in the ears, but I sleep with ear plugs a lot of times and sometimes they get dirty as well (time to throw them away then!). The color of that dirt is different!!! They must have some trick with some wax they take from under their sleeves or out of a pocket or something, but that brown, dirty wax-like shit they showed me was NOT coming out of MY ears!!! DON'T DO THIS, and even if it does happen to you, don't give them more than a 100 Rupies for it (some try to go for 250 or even for 800 rupies)!!! Believe me, in India 100 rupies (about US$ 2,-) is a lot of money!!! For some people a half day's work!!! I think that even 50 Rupies should be far enough! If they really give you any trouble, just say "shall we straighten this out at the police station?" and they will let it go... What people will do just to get money.......

Mar 10th, 2005, 19:37	#12
RastaAdmi Rastaaaa Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Country NSW Posts: 17	i have had mine done in connaught place a couple of times. it is real man - real wax coming out of your lug hole. it is fairly impressive the amount that comes out although i think that the improved hearing is something to do with the way they cover your ear with their hand afterwards and change the air pressure. think i paid 80 rps - if you told an indian person you paid 80rps they would probably piss themselves!

Mar 12th, 2005, 22:05	#13
poorstudent a bored little man Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: united states Posts: 7	one got me in a little tibetan neighborhood in delhi. this was the first time I had ever seen one so I did not know what he was doing. before I knew it he got one ear. I was deaf in it for a couple of minutes, but then it popped, and I could hear better out of that ear than the other for the rest of the day. it was kind of funny though because I had no idea what was going on.

Mar 13th, 2005, 00:35	#14
shere Maha Guru Member Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: England Posts: 1,199	80RS is a lot of money. You can hire women to weed your farmland in Haryana for 75RS for the whole day. So I would not pay them more that 15/20 RS.

Mar 13th, 2005, 06:03	#15
davey Grumpy Old fart Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Australia (Buderim) Posts: 536	SOAP IN YOU EARS...Thats the latest cry from them, then a quick lunge towards your ears with a 6inch long implement. I found that turning to them quickly before the little buggers could get too close and say," theres no soap in my ear mate" and point at them sharply they backed right off. Remember nothing smaller than you elbow in there, not some tout with a 6inch long darning needle and a mde up card telling you he's a ear cleaning specialist (made in India).