A Trip to Hawaii

Aloha!

We recently visited the islands of Hawaii and Kauai in the Hawaii state which is part of the USA.  Yes, you got it right, Hawaii refers both to an island as well as the entire conglomeration of islands that together form the state of Hawaii.  With a view to avoid confusion with the state which bears the same name and also because of its size, the Hawaii island is also referred to as the Big Island.  The capital of the state, Honolulu, is situated on the island of Oahu.

Two words that all visitors to Hawaii invariably learn, are Aloha and Mahalo.  Aloha is used both as Hi and Bye.  Mahalo is the Hawaiian for Thank You.  Hawaii describes itself as The Aloha State.

Our port of entry in the state of Hawaii was Kona which is located in the western part of the Big Island.  The Airport seems to be one of its kind with a big open-to-sky courtyard and pagoda like open structures surrounding it.

At Kona we stayed in an apartment with a fabulous view of the ocean from its balcony.  The complex was beautifully landscaped with numerous varieties of palm and plants bearing beautiful flowers.  The ocean lining one side of the apartment complex was rimmed by black lava rocks and huge waves kept crashing on these rocks.

Soon after checking into the apartment, we visited a beach where people were snorkeling to view fish and turtle and witnessed the beautiful sunset with the sun lighting up a streak of gold across the ocean as it appeared to sink in it.

Next day in the morning we visited was the National Historical Park of Hawaii.  A notice at the entrance of the park requested visitors to keep in mind that it was a sacred place.  It displayed various statues of the Hawaiian God who bears a fierce grimace with the upper row of teeth forming a continuum with the lower row.  The statues seem to have been carved from a single trunk of a palm tree each.  Same is the case with the boat displayed inside an A shaped thatched hut.  The beach is made of lava that seems to have frozen even as it was flowing.  Some of the rocks forming the beach look like the intertwined braids of hair that you find on some naga sadhus in India.  We saw some beautiful golden fish in the crystal clear waters of the beach and also a huge turtle.

We also visited the Kealakekua bay by boat and snorkeled near the Captain Cook Monument.  It was a thrilling experience.  I am myopic and was worried whether I would be able to get a clear view of the marine life.  I was delighted to find that masks with prescription (powered) glasses were available.  There was one that was close to my prescription and I picked it up.  Here we snorkeled in waters that were more than 100 feet deep to quite near the coast.  During the boat ride back we saw caves and tunnels in the lava stone shoreline that have perhaps been formed by the water beating down on the stones relentlessly.  Everyone was excited to find a house sitting right on top of one of the sea caves.

We visited the Kona downtown too.  The seashore reminded me of Marine Drive in Mumbai while some parts of the downtown reminded me vaguely of Lucknow.  There was an sprawling banyan tree close to the sidewalk that made me instinctively look for idols that might be placed at its foot. :) We had some flavored shaved ice and had dinner at an Indian Restaurant called Kamana Kitchens.

All this while we had been staying in the western part of the Big Island.  For subsequent sightseeing we moved base to the eastern part.

As we drove along the highway from our earlier location that runs along the periphery of the island, initially we found rocky terrain with some hardy vegetation.  However things changed rather dramatically as we approached the west-south part of the island.  This part receives heavy rains almost throughout the year and is covered with lush green trees, foliage and flower plants.

On our way we stopped over at the lookout at the valley of Waipio.  It also had an inscription stating it to be a sacred place.  At the bottom of the valley there was a huge stream carrying muddy water resulting from the Darby storm that seemed to be almost traveling with us.  It was pouring into the sea making the sea water near the shore muddy too. There was a long and steep trail leading down into the valley and to the foot of a huge waterfall.  Some of us went halfway down the trail.  We decided not to do the whole trail with a view to not hold up those in our group of 12 who could not do the trail.

The Big Island has an active volcano on its south-eastern side.  This side receives conspicuous rains - over 100" each year - and has rainforests that are preserved with much care.  We went to the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park which features an active volcano.  The day we started for the park, the Darby storm was sweeping the island and on the way we saw dense clouds and light to heavy rains.  There was a warning for flash floods and we could see some swelling creeks close to overflowing on the road.  However we could safely make it to Park only to find it enveloped it in dense fog.  The Park museum closed almost as soon as we entered it. .  A fascinating display in the museum was Pele's hairs which looked like a bunch of golden hair.  Pele is one of the Hawaiian godesses.  Pele's hairs are formed when molten goblets of Basalt glass emerge from a volcano and are blown into fine long gold hued strands.  The famous lava tubes were closed because of the storm and flash flood warnings.  We did manage to get a peak into the rainforest that surrounds the entrance of the lava tubes.  It was enchanting.  We also saw the steam vents which had vapors smelling of sulfur emanating continuously.  The fog underscored the writing on one of the signposts near the vents that proclaimed Hawaii as a land of great spiritual significance.  Because of very low visibility we could not see the glow from the active volcano.  Later while ziplining our instructor and guide showed us a video of the volcano which he had filmed earlier from rather up close.  It was truly awe inspiring with red and orange glow dominating the visuals and red hot lava flowing out.  Upon further inquiry he told us that he had to go up a five mile trail to get close enough to the volcano to film the video.  Yes, that makes the total trip 10 miles.  The weather was inclement, we did not have enough time and many in our group were not fit or grownup enough to make it, and we let go of it.

On our way back from the Volcano Park, we stopped over at Rainbow falls.  The entrance was cordoned off with an yellow tape and a notice said that the park had been closed because of storm warning.  We saw people entering and so ventured to enter the area ourselves.  It is a powerful fall.  Though, the waters were muddy from the recent rains.  The mists rising from the bottom of the falls made a fascinating sight.  I watched the fall for some time and stood motionless.  The sight seemed capable of inducing a trance. We also climbed up to a scenic point level with the start of the fall.  The foliage and the flowers created a magnificent scene.

It was getting dark and an Internet search showed that the Indian Restaurant, Kamana, had a branch nearby. The dinner was good.

It was quite late in the night by the time we reached the locality where our house, rented through AirBnB was supposed to be.  As we were looking for the house a dog, kept close to the gate in one of the houses strained at it's chain and started barking loudly.  The erratic network signal added to the difficulty in locating the house.  We found the house just as we had started to despair.

The house was a big one, enough to accommodate our two groups of six each.  The architecture gave us the feel of a house in rural / semi-urban parts.

Next morning we visited was the Hawaii Tropical Botanical Garden.  It is a breathtakingly beautiful garden that seems to be a piece straight from the Garden of Eden.  It has a beach and a waterfall too.

Post lunch we went for ziplining.  At the company's office which was close to our rented house, we filled out liability waiver forms, had our weight checked.  Next we were introduced to our guides who helped us put on the saddle like gear.  A van took us to the first course.  It drove along bumpy and muddy narrow path through what seemed like a trail through an agricultural farm. Ziplining was great fun.  We started out with easier training courses graduating to the final one overlooking a waterfall far below.  In between the courses, the operators served us local fruits including chopped and peeled pieces of sugarcane.

This concluded our tour of the Big Island.  We drove back to the airport and returned the car.  Two short flights were to take us to our next destination, the island of Kauai.  The first flight took us to Honolulu.  The Darby storm had been keeping threateningly close to us, brushing past us at times but never hurling itself directly on us. The next flight was delayed.  After we boarded the plane, the pilot found some problem with the craft which he attributed to the incessant rains.  We were shifted to another plane and we were late by a few hours when we landed at Lihue airport in Kauai.  We were apprehensive whether the car rental fellows will still be there as it was 11:30 pm when we reached the exit at the airport.  It seems that good luck had been keeping close to us like the Darby, and we could catch the departing car rental fellow almost by the tip of his tail.

By the time we reached the rental apartment and settled down, we were into the wee hours.  We got up quite late in the morning next day.

In Kauai our first destination was the Waimea Canyon State Park.  On our way we saw a roadside eatery that had a very attractive display of fruits.  We stopped over there and had some fruits, duly peeled and chopped by the vendor after we selected the items.  We also had coconut water and the owner scraped the coconut meat out for $1 apiece.

The Waimea Canyon is nicknamed the Grand Canyon of the Pacific.  When we reached it, the sky was cloudy.  The zigzag patterns of sunshine and shade added a layer of magic to the canyon below us.  It was a grand view indeed.

Later we visited the white sand beach named Poipu beach.  It has a tiny island a little away from the main beach and a sand spit that serves as a walkway between the main beach and the island.  As one walks along waves come in from either side and collide at the walkway swaying you and causing a splash that is huge at times.  The island has warnings displayed not to approach any monk seals that may be resting there.  A little while after we reached the island a seal did turn up and lay down at the edge of the island.  My daughter-in-law got a little too close to it for a photograph.  This seemed to so upset and alarm the seal that it stood up to its full height and bared its teeth.  However it went supine again as my daughter-in-law withdrew after hearing our shouts.  Soon enough it rolled back into the sea and swam away.  Only minutes later another seal scrambled up on the main beach and lay there.  We crossed over to the main beach and joined the spectators who stood at a respectful distance away from the animal.  We enjoyed our stopover at the beach.

Later on we visited the Spouting Horn, a stone formation on the seashore through which the waves emerge into a pretty high spout with a roar.  It reminded me of La Bufadora in Mexico of which it seemed to be a mini version.  Another fascinating scene at this spot was that of several hens and roosters perching high on a tree at the shore overlooking the spouting horn.

I forgot to mention earlier that on Kauai, and to a lesser extent on Hawaii, you find lot of free roaming hens and roosters.  This comes as a surprise as your are unlikely to find wild animals roaming the streets or sidewalks elsewhere in USA (birds and squirrels excepted, of course.)  Legend has it that a poultry farmers had let loose his birds many years ago to spare them from drowning to death because of a huge storm.  These free roaming birds are stated to be their descendants.

We also learnt about the "flower code" from a vendor selling jewelry made from shells.  He said that if a lady wears a flower on her left ear, it means she is engaged or married.  On the right ear it says, "I am available."  If placed in the middle on the front side, it denotes that though married, she is looking for an "upgrade" :))  And, finally, if placed at the back of the head it says, "Follow me!"

The last spot that we visited was Kee beach and Kalalau trail.  It seems to be a hugely popular spot as parking was a big problem and it took lot of time to find a proper slot.  Many vehicles parked alongside the road had a ticket slapped on the windshield.  The Kee beach is a reef enclosed lagoon with still waters suitable for even non-swimmers to enjoy snorkeling or just getting their feet wet.  The Kalalau trail is a rather difficult and risky one to be attempted by only the fit and strong.  We met many on their way back with mud all over their shoes and legs.  They advised us strongly not to go beyond a certain point which affords you a good view.  We stood at the vista point catching the nice breeze and a view of the mountain tops engulfed in floating clouds.  There we acted like wise men who learn from others' experiences and returned to the base.  From here we drove back to Lihue airport and finally caught a flight to LA.  The flight left at 9 pm and reached Los Angeles in early morning and we had to remind ourselves that the two time zones are 3 hours apart.  Another flight took us back to Oakland.

The memories of Hawaii, a land of beaches, mountains and valleys and exotic flora and fauna and volcanoes, remain etched on our minds.

Mahalo, dear reader, for making it to the very end of this rather lengthy blog.

This Will Come To India Too.

This is to share my recent experience of domestic air travel in USA.  These airlines have wonderful ways of enhancing their revenue even as they offer cheap tickets to gullible customers.  Had Vijay Mallya known of these, he wouldn't have failed so miserably or fled with so little (:)).  But then first class passengers or charter holders have no reason or occasion for getting exposed to these tricks.

The first flight was a Hawaiian Airlines flight from Oakland in California to Kona on the Big Island in Hawaii.  The female staff were all wearing a flower in their hair as is customary in Hawaii and male crew were dressed in shirts with floral prints.  This made the crew look like the tourists rather than the passengers.  During initial welcome and informative announcements it was conveyed that complimentary meal was to be served during the course of the flight.  The flight duration was a little over 5 hours.

Shortly after the take off an announcement was made that snacks will be available for purchase.  My two grandsons proclaimed that they were very hungry and that we must buy them some snacks.  So we bought them some snacks and drinks at a rather stiff price.  Then even before they could finish their snacks another announcement was made that complimentary snacks and drinks will be served and were promptly served indeed!

By the time we finished the snacks and the drink, the cabin had become very cold.  Several passengers were seen retrieving their jackets and putting them on.  We had brought none as the weather in Hawaii was foretold to be rather warm.  After a few minutes the kids started complaining that it was too cold.  I approached the hostess, informed her that the temperature was too low for comfort and inquired if she could give us some blankets.  She promptly replied that blankets were available for purchase at $10 each.  Even though we were loathe to add to our baggage, we bought two.  The kids wrapped themselves and felt cozy and nice.  Less than an hour thereafter the cabin temperature returned to a comfortable level.  My elder grandson removed the blanket and remarked, "Oh, they can make a lot of money by just turning up the cooling for an hour!"

Each seat had a monitor and a menu of programs to watch.  However there were no earphones / headphones provided in the seat pockets.  Even before we could inquire about the missing earphones, a hostess came down the aisle announcing that earphones were for sale and passengers could take the purchased item with them as a souvenir!  Most passengers seemed to be experienced ones and were carrying their own earphones.  I decided against buying one and spent time playing Sudoku instead of watching a movie.  Even Sudoku was part of the premium section.  But, thankfully, no payment was demanded for the game.

I may add that most passengers had only a handbag and another small bag or laptop bag only.  Each checked-in baggage had to be paid for at $25 a piece and conform to size and weight specifications.

We flew Air Delta on our return.  We tried a web check-in to save time at the airport.  The check-in went through and generated six random seat numbers for our group of six (with a single PNR) with no two seats next to each other!  The option for choosing a different seat said that it could be done at a cost of $20 per person.  We decided to wait and pay only at the counter if required.  When we reached the airport, the self check-in kiosk showed that the seats had been reallocated and we were seated in two groups of three each, one behind the other and we got the new boarding passes.  Those with small kids who might have panicked at the prospect of a child sitting away from them may have ended paying up in multiples of $20.

Our own airlines in India must find these practices inspirational and be getting ready to adapt them.  They already have dynamic pricing for fare.  So, beware!

Do we still need religions?

Early in my career I had the opportunity to undergo a training in Behavioral Science.  It was a fascinating new subject and one of the many insights that it provided was the difference between needs and wants.  Needs are universal but their manifestation as a wanted thing is influenced by the culture one is raised in.  It is best illustrated through an example.  Nourishment is a fundamental need.  But what food items does one want to satisfy this need differ widely.  One person may want a dosa, another rice with curried fish, yet another may want parotha with lots of butter and so on.  It is not uncommon to find that two persons may find each other's wants disgusting though these are in satisfaction of a common need.

What has been said above would suggest that there must be a basic need behind divergent religions followed by the humankind and that all of these serve to satisfy that same universal need.  And, as in the case of food, though followers of one religion may feel repelled or unsettled by another religion, it will do well to remind ourselves that each of the religions caters to the exactly same human need.

Apparently all our biological needs are in common with the whole of animal kingdom.  However religion seems to be the manifestation of a need that only humans have.  What exactly is this need?  Is this an emotional need or an intellectual one or a need that arises from the combination of emotional and intellectual faculties?  It is certainly not physical in the biological sense.

Many feel that it is an emotional need for security - need for an element of certainty in the very uncertain human existence.  As children we get a feeling of security from our parents.  As we grow up we realize that they too are frail human beings like us.  And so we think up of an entity that is truly omnipotent and omniscient. Thus, it can be said that it is the emotional need for security through a protector that makes us create an omnipotent and compassionate God or a multiplicity of gods.  Well defined and strictly enforced social practices through a commonly subscribed religious code too add to a sense of security by eliminating uncertainties.  Each society passes on these beliefs and social codes to each successive generation.  And thus a particular religion becomes what the members of this society want for satisfying their need for security.

This view of origin of religions also explains why most people become increasingly more religious when confronted with adversities and calamities.  This viewpoint is also borne out by studies that suggest that atheism blossoms in affluent societies where most people feel economically secure.  Such societies have reduced the uncertainties and insecurities in human existence to the bare minimum.  Click here to read a related article.  (However, some of the oil rich Arab countries seem to be an exception to this observation.)

Religion and God could also be a response to the strictly intellectual need to find out how the world came about and the causes for the goings on around us.  This is a strictly human need as no other species has been endowed with the kind of intelligence that we have.  Intellect subscribes to a cause and effect model and hence asks questions beginning with why and who.  It also inquires into the nature of things and asks questions beginning with what.  This suggests that the theories like Karma, and the postulate of an universal consciousness as the original cause are all the responses generated by the earliest intellectuals to this need to know.  It need not be gainsaid that these are merely enlightened guesses in the absence of a methodology to find the answers to the bewildering questions posed by the universe to our limited intellect.

Further, it also appears that these early intellectual elites must have thought that the future generations of intellectuals will not rest content with their explanations and definitely make further efforts to know the ultimate answers.  They must also have thought that this will be a waste of intellect and time because human intellect could see only that far and no further.  And thus it must have been with a view to dissuade the coming generations from wasting their talent on useless pursuits that they attributed their thoughts and words to an ultimate authority, the God, and firmly propounded the finality of what they had said. They made a contrary view punishable to dissuade further inquiries.  But the forbidden fruit is sweet indeed.  While at this point, it may also be added that the Day of Judgement and Heaven and Hell must have been propounded by these intellectuals to dissuade the hoi-polloi from indulging their animal passions and losing the productivity required to keep the human society together and ensure its progress.

As we know, this attempt to quell further inquiries failed to deter the pioneer intellectuals' increasingly capable successors who adopted the scientific inquiry method to find the answers that human intellect craved for.

This curious group made rapid strides, developed tools for their inquiries and came out with verifiable answers to many of the queries bothering the human intellect.  They also proved their ancestors wrong in several cases.

Could this impudence of the unstoppable inquirer be at the root of antagonism between science and religion?

Now science and economic progress have reached a stage where they can cater to the emotional need for security as well as the intellectual need to know.  Yes, it is true that there still are unanswered questions.  To wit, nature of human consciousness, the evolution versus intelligent design debate and so on.  But these can be assigned to secular philosophy instead of competing and dogmatic religions.

And so the big question is, is there still a need for religion? If yes, why? Do you think that giving up religion will make the world too monotonous and colorless?

The bigger question is that though a (superior) alternative is available how to ensure that people want it instead of antiquated religious beliefs?  Isn't this somewhat like asking how to draw people towards a healthy diet that they don't want for reasons of liking?

Phished, well, almost, in the US of A!!

It was the afternoon of Friday.  I was at home with my wife and the two grandsons.  My son and daughter-in-law were away to work.  We had had lunch and were having a chat with the kids when the landline phone rang.  My younger grandson, 7 years old, picked up the phone and responded.  Then he handed over the phone to me saying that it was probably for his mom.  When I responded, the caller on the other side announced that he was calling from the immigration department of the government of USA and gave me his name and id number.  He asked whether Mrs. Upadhyaya was available.  Thinking that he wanted to talk to my daughter-in-law, I told him that she was away to her office.  He inquired who I was and I gave him my name and relationship to the intended recipient.  He asked me to spell out my first name and I did that.  He then announced that this was about serious issues with the recent immigration checks of my wife and me.  I asked him about the issue and he informed that even though requested to do so, we had failed to submit form I-94 even after so many days of entering the USA.

Now this fellow was speaking in an impeccable American accent and there were appropriate background noises too suggesting that he was in an office.  He had identified himself with all the details and was addressing me as Sir as they normally do when interacting with a citizen (/visitor.) Though, the tone and tenor was quite officious. So this had me rattled.  I could recall that a certain form, other than the customs declaration form was earlier being obtained from visitors but it had been discontinued year before last.  And it was form I-94.  However being rattled, I thought it must have been some other form.  I told him that no one had asked me to submit any form.  He said that a notice had been sent out too.  I protested saying that I had not received any notice.  He then read out an address in the Eastern part of USA and asked me to confirm that this was my address.  I said that there has been some mistake and that I was in the city of Cupertino in California.  Even in that rattled state I avoided giving him the street address.  Then he expressed surprise and added that after my file was opened for this violation another serious criminal matter related to my id has come up and they are in the process of getting an arrest warrant issued for me.  When I expressed my astonishment, he said that he was not able to make out what I said and asked about the languages that I speak.  When told that I spoke Hindi and English, he asked me to wait while he handed over the call to an interpreter.

Next one Rakesh Patel came online and after properly introducing himself, he asked me in Hindi which Indian Language would I prefer.  I said Hindi and he said that my voice was breaking up and inquired if I had a cell phone.  This must have been the first step towards the identity theft.  My son had given me a prepaid connection, and I gave him the number.  Then he asked me to wait for a call on the cell phone which materialized pretty soon.  After repeating the charge of non-submission of form I-94, he said that my identity had been misused for withdrawing money from an account in Bank of America and that the money was remitted to Pakistan presumably for terrorist activities.  Then he gave me a Muslim and a Christian name and asked me if I knew any or both of them (I forget the names but would refer to them as Khan and John in later paragraphs.)  He said that the Muslim person was a Pakistani and had used my identity to perpetrate the crime.  Then he asked if I could explain how could the fraudster get my identification details?  I politely told him that the question was directed at the wrong person and they should be asking the perpetrator of the fraud.  He asked me if I had an USA id.  This gave rise to some suspicion in my mind.  How could they be leveling this charge unless they knew about what id I had?  If they were from Immigration department they should know my passport number and my nationality.  But being under psychological pressure I didn't question him and played along.  He asked me what ids I had.  I responded I had my passport.  Then he asked if I had an US driving license to which I replied in the negative.  This slightly added to the suspicion.

Next, the purported Mr Patel said that there was some legal procedure to be completed and that he would be handing me back to the immigration officer.  He also counselled me to be polite them as they were the officers handling my case.

The earlier fellow came online and announced his name and id number once again.  He next informed me that the next part of the conversation will be recorded and whatever I said could be used against me in a court of law.  He advised me to be truthful.  The questions went like this.  Did I know Khan and John?  How could they get hold of my id? Did I ever use my id to open a bank account in USA? Did I have an account with Bank of America or any other bank in America?  What ids did I have with me?  The last question startled me.  For if he asked me about my passport details, I must decline as this was a sensitive information.  How could I do so without offending him?  Also when I told him that I had no bank accounts in USA, he had asked me to hold the line while he consulted his senior.  I could hear him saying, "He does not have any bank accounts in America."  I could not make out the response of the other person.

Luckily he did not ask any details of passport or Indian driving license and spared me the torment of evading the question.  He instead informed me that a warrant had already been issued in my name: well, things do move fast in USA!  He said that it being a Friday I had very little time to pay a bond amount of USD 1978 and avoid an arrest.  He said that I will have to come over and sign the bond and deposit the amount.  Then he added that the bond amount was refundable and if I was found not guilty it would be refunded.  Next he asked if I knew the immigration office closest to my residence.  When I replied in the negative he said further details will be provided by the interpreter.

Mr Patel duly came online, identified himself, and painted a very bleak picture before me.  He said that unless I could post the bond within two hours, I may have to spend time in prison and this would put paid to any further visits by me to USA.  The suspicion in my mind was gradually turning into a certainty.  I requested Patel to advise me the address so I could call my son to drive down to the address and post the bail.  He said it was an extremely serious matter and no third person should associate with it.  He said that if my son's name figured in the proceedings he could lose his job too.  Now I said, a little boldly, "I have heard about the great justice system in USA.  How could my son lose his job if the crime has been supposedly committed by me and not him?"  He said there was no time to explain and asked me if I had the bail amount at hand in cash.  Now the hardened suspicion was turning into a certainty.  I told him that I did not have a single dollar and that my son would have to drive me to the address given by him and there was no other option.  Patel asked me in a surprised tone that how could I possibly be here and not have even USD 1000 in cash?  Surprise! He did not say 1978!  Probably he could also sense the change in my tone by now.  So he said, "OK, in that case I will hand you back to the immigration officer.  Please talk here."  And the call got disconnected.  And it was only now after disconnection that I noticed that the call was from an Unknown Number!

But dear reader, the biggest surprise was yet to come.

My two grandsons had been watching me and listening to my part of the conversation with great attention and concern.  The elder one had also started video recording the call without my noticing it and he showed me the video later on.  After I put down the phone, my elder grandson said, "Dadu, you should not have told them which city you are in."  When I said that I thought they were government officials, he said, "In that case you should have checked back."  I asked him how and this is what he said, "You should have challenged him to give you your passport number and date of birth to prove that he was from the immigration department and declined to tell your name or city till he had proved his identity!"  This came from an 11 year old!  When I asked him how did this occur to him, he deprecatingly said that he had seen something similar in a TV serial here.  Later my son also told me that all government communications are in the form of letters delivered by USPS and never through a telephone call.  Citizens, of course, could call a department in case of need.  And if at all there were to be a call from a department, it would never be from an unknown number.

My grandson also showed me the video clip where he had succeeded in capturing the sound from the other side too because of high volume and his proximity to me.  He next advised me to call 911 (Police) and inform them this of this attempt to perpetrate a fraud.  We chose not to do that.