Pawan General Store

Our shop is right on Sanganr Road here in Jaipur. It is a busy stretch of pavement and there is always something going on outside with the traffic and the pedestrians. Because of where we are, we get a lot of people stopping their scooters or cars for a minute to grab something quick on their way somewhere. We have the usual things you would expect to find in a general store. The shelves are filled with glass jars of snacks, bottles of cooking oil, and various cleaning supplies. It can get a bit dusty with all the vehicles passing by so close to the entrance, so we are constantly cleaning the jars and the wooden counter. We don't have a lot of extra room inside, so every inch of the wall is used for hanging things or stacking boxes. The light inside is a bit dim towards the back of the store, but we know exactly where everything is kept. Sometimes we have to climb a small plastic ladder to reach the items on the very top shelf. The days are long, starting early when the first buses go by and ending when the street lights have been on for a long time. We talk to a lot of commuters who are on their way home after work. It is a lot of counting change and bagging up items in a hurry. We don't really do anything special, just keep the shelves full and wait for the next person to walk through the door. It is a simple life and we are used to the noise and the constant movement.