Large Doritos please!!

When you are a traveler, you are on vacation. You don't mind if the people try to rip you off a few bucks and don't notice a lot of the shady workings of people that you finally find out when you live in a certain place. Granted, not every country rips you off constantly but this is the developing world and one can see the reasons why poor people do these things. That being said though, it's draining.

One very simple example is to sit down at a restaurant and order food or drinks. While you are waiting and without asking, they will bring you a plate of something. This is usually peanuts or spring rolls. Since you are hungry and think that the restaurant is being generous (who charges for peanuts?) you start to dig in. With the spring rolls, you should know that that this will end up on the bill later but it's really hard to turn it down when you are starving and waiting for your meal. You wait for your food and wait for your food until you just can't resist the aroma, you mouth starts watering and you look at your watch and wonder what is taking so long until you crack and eat the goddamn spring roll. Bla-blam! You're food is magically ready right after that. Another example I encountered is just the lack of logic and/or stubborness, I couldn't figure it out. I went to a restaurant with a friend mid-day to get a few beers and something light to eat. It was a western restaurant but run by all Vietnamese women. The encounter went like this:

Me: "Yes, um, I'll have the small nachos."
Waitress: "Saw-ee, no have. Just big nacho."
Me: "But it says on the menu, small nachos." (The small costs 40,000 dong [$2.50] and the large costs twice that)
W: "Saw-ee, no have small nacho, just big nacho."

::slight pause to try and make sense of the situation::

Me: "So, you are telling me that yes, you have the large nachos but no, you don't have the small nachos"
W: "Uh-huh."
Me: "But that makes no sense"
W: "No have small nacho"
Me: "Ok, why don't make a large nacho, then put half of it on a plate for me then charge me for the small nachos."
W: "Cannot."
Me: "Listen, I've never been here before. I have no idea what the nachos are like. You could give me a 4th of the real portion and I wouldn't notice. I just want the fucking small nachos."
W: "Cannot"
Me: "Ok, bring me the large nachos."

I gave in just to see the results of my order. What do I get? A small cocktail plate of Cool Ranch Doritos with melted cheese over them. Since I haven't eaten Cool Ranch Doritos in quite some time, I happily scarfed them down and they were gone in 2 seconds. Another one of life's annoyances in developing countries.