They say business has not picked up since the August 25 blast because the number of tourists has fallen a bit.

A bunch of boys selling binoculars at the other end of the promenade have the same complaint. Uncomfortable about speaking about the blasts, the boys are cagey about giving their names.

"We were not here and do not want to get into any kind of trouble," says Bunty Gupta, revealing his name hesitantly.

For a moment, the boys let down their guard and say with absolute candour that the first thing they did on hearing the blast was -- run.

"We couldn't think of doing anything else."

Meanwhile, Pankaj Singh and Feroze Akhtar, the balloon sellers, continue their vigil on the parapet, waiting for the tourist buses to arrive.

Business is dull but they are confident it will look up by the end of the year. The notion of trying their luck at any other tourist site in the city strikes them as nothing short of being spectacularly bizarre.

"We will never leave the Gateway," they say. "There is no place anywhere like this."