The tale of my two Orients
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I've been chasing watches and searching for my personal grail watch for the short time that I’ve been into automatics—and for the longer time that I've been wanting to exchange my smartwatch/fitness tracker for a 'real' watch. This journey has included some great decisions and some not-so-smart ones. However, my constant review and re-review of my choices ultimately helped me acquire my Orients.
Orient Number 1: An Expensive Journey to My Wrist
I'm a sucker for 'limited edition' watches, which originates from my need to have something different from the usual. I had been stalking limited edition Seiko releases for some time and failed to acquire my grail, the SPB509J1 (I will wait for a used one sometime in the future, or maybe not). But cutting to the chase: I realized that Orient watches offer over-the-top value for money and look awesome. So, I set about searching for that special Mako or Bambino and came across various sellers and grey-market players in India.
Orient number 1 Orient Sports Automatic AA0823L39B 75th Anniversary Kamasu
Price on the Portal: AED 1,420.25 (with a discount), inclusive of a 95 AED shipping cost.
Seller: Monawatch (Really over-the-top customer obsession from these guys!)
Duties Paid:
Customs: ₹4,364
Duty IGST: ₹7,925
Advancement Charge (FedEx handling charges): ₹800
Total Tax/GST/Duties Outflow: ₹13,233
Plus a crazy convenience fee of around ₹200 for "Convenience fee"
I hope this helps folks who are looking to quickly procure interesting pieces from abroad. A special mention goes to Burhan from Monawatch, who helped me choose FedEx as a delivery partner and then went totally above and beyond to support me in real-time on WhatsApp when the watch got stuck at customs due to a stupid paperwork issue. Monawatch supported and assured me that they were constantly available to help throughout the ordeal, and they actually went above and beyond to assure me. They helped me reach the right individual at FedEx India and stood by me all the way to resolve it via email in just a few hours. Well, they've earned a customer for life now. I can vouch for them anytime.
Orient Number 2: The Dress Watch
I wanted a nice dress watch since all I have are diver watches (really nice watches, these divers).
During my internet research—supported by AI, of course—I came across a trusted individual on Reddit. He helped me procure an Orient RA-AK0801AS, and within a week, the watch was on my wrist. Thanks to u/Carryon0458 for your help! He runs an Instagram page called 'thewatchreserve.in' that features a great collection of watches at mouth-watering prices!
Price: ₹27,000 (All-inclusive!)
Images attached for both watches. Open to questions, comments, love, and hate!
