Road trip to Agra from Delhi (Bizarre Incidents)

Mr. S, our guide made a couple of wonderful (?) comments to Ms. L and Ms. G that shook my faith in common sense and etiquette.

1. When Mr. S met us for the first time and sat down in the car, he introduced himself and asked about our comfort so far. So far so good. Then he wanted to know if this was our first trip. It wasn't my first and I told him so. Ms. G had been to India once before but this was her first trip to Agra. Ms. L had already been thrice to Agra before but the last had been a long time back. Instead of asking when was the last time or keeping his mouth shut, Mr. S wanted to know if this was before he was born. Mr. S was in his late twenties and Ms. L had been to Agra in 1994 the last time. So, I guess that Mr. S had been born by then. But did the question deserve to be asked? What was he trying to imply? That he's very young or that she's too old!

2. The second incident happened when I was not around and I was told about it on our way back to Delhi from Agra by Ms. G. It so happened that while I had been buying the entry tickets to the Taj, Mr. S had asked Ms. G if she was on pension. I don't know what prompted him to make such necessary (?) inquiries. Of what benefit was this information to him? But all that it could have meant to Ms. G was that she looked old enough to be on pension. Ms. G is the Vice Chancellor of the University (Russian People's friendship University) and is not accustomed to people making such remarks. She is not as young as Mr. S but is still in good shape and is quite good looking and definitely not in the 'pension' age bracket.

I can not understand the reason why Mr. S could have made such irresponsible, unnecessary, and insulting remarks. I am sure that Ms. L and Ms. G would never be able to forget the Mr. S's immaturity. Nobody likes to be reminded of their age, especially women.

I am sure that if I see Mr. S again, he'll be at the receiving end of a barrage of questions and suggestions. Nothing that he should be looking forward to.

Is this how the official guides are prepared to receive tourists? Maybe the government and the citizens need to look into the proper education of these representatives of their country.