Border crossing

The crossing at Sonauli from India to Nepal. The Nepalese wanted US dollars for a visa and with no banks around I had to go to private money changer. Although legal, I really don't want to calculate how much I paid for a twenty and five ones. I know it was horribly expensive; let's ignore the details. It turns out the two-month rule is being enforced - if on a visa in India and you leave India, you have to be gone for two months before you can enter the country again. And the arrangements with a lower-level representative from the Indian immigration office turned out to involve a clandestine meeting and 4600 Indian Rupees ($100 USD) when I wanted to return into India. Somehow, sneaking back across the border on a bribe doesn't seem the best way to spend a Tuesday; and, I'm pretty sure it violates both a couple of Buddhist precepts and some of those Right things, like Right Action, Right Speech, Right Intention... Oh, well, Nepal is a nice place, so I think I see a little of it. Besides, I now have an expensive two-week visa!

P.S. I heard from a fellow traveler today that multiple of their friends have been thwarted by the same visa rule. Alas, alack...