JCC Anyone travel to India before?

Why no consider Afghanistan?

 

Well, it's an oversimplified way of stating it. And I've enjoyed traveling there, some places have really nice facilities and others don't. As long as I have an idea what to expect, I will be mostly ok with it.

 

Indy, cover the heart.

 

Avoid Pankot Palace AT ALL COSTS.

 

I did the same after university. Worked in Beirut for a while then travelled on to India and volunteered there for 6 months. The whole journey took me through 26 different countries and took over a year. Awesome experience, hope yours is too. I made plenty of dumb mistakes while blundering eastward, so I hope maybe something below might help you in some way.

To try to pre-empt some of the inevitable criticism, this info is aimed at your circumstances - a volunteer spending half a year in India probably working with or around underprivileged folk and potentially away from beaten tourist trails.Things will be different for a tourist, things will be different for a native. Just as someone coming to London for six months to work with underprivileged people would need different info to someone coming as a tourist or a native londoner living here and commuting to the city each day.

Given that you'll be volunteering, it's likely you'll be living in pretty basic conditions where you won't be cosseted like folk in hotels or even backpacker guesthouses. Where I stayed while volunteering, for example, there was no electricity. This is unusual, but a possibility. You should definitely expect to bathe in cold water and potentially have your room invaded by wildlife

Etiquette:
Don't touch anyone with your left hand, it's considered (very) rude throughout India. Avoid touching people on the head, too, as well as touching people with your feet.
It's normal to eat with fingers, but with the right hand (the left is used in lieu of toilet paper throughout India). It's not normal to use fingers from a communal plate, though. Follow the lead of others - if they use cutlery, use cutlery, if they used bread to scoop up food, do likewise
Pointing with a finger is generally considered rude, ok to gesture with the whole hand, though.
'Yes' body language is a side to side head 'wiggle', not a nod
'No' body language varies, but is often a backward head tilt, sometimes accompanied by a slight 'tut' sound (as in the middle east)
Avoid showing anger, it's just not done
Gifts are given, and received, with both hands. If invited to someone's house for dinner etc. it's generally polite to bring (modest) gifts for the family (overgenerous gifts can make people feel uncomfortable - gifts should be commensurate with the means of the host)
If you plan to get drunk or take drugs, do so far away from your hosts/locals you have contact with. Preferably just avoid this altogether - you'll likely lose all credibility as a volunteer in their eyes.

Health:
Take malaria prevention medication. For comfort, I suggest a mosquito net and some repellent. It's not a huge risk, only 24 million cases a year in India, but given the seriousness of the disease and the ease of prevention it would be dumb not to. On a comfort level, mosquito bites are just unpleasant and largely unnecessary
Avoid drinking tap water, check the seals of bottled water, pack iodine water purifier in case of emergency. Do not let any politically correct idiot persuade you otherwise.
Take diarrhea medication with you. You'll probably need it sooner or later and if you do it's best to have it close by!
DO eat the food and enjoy it! I ate from street vendors, at people's homes, in restaurants, didn't avoid meat and had no problems whatsoever. (Although I got horribly sick in Syria). Salads can potentially be dodgy, but it's the water that's the real problem.
DO use the toilet! Just be aware that toilet paper won't be provided. If you're somewhere there are backpackers, there will be tp for sale. If you're away from the tourist track, you'll just have to deal with using your hand. You get used to it pretty quickly. Squatting is a much healthier way to poop than sitting and will improve your mobility too, so the hole-in-the-floor toilets will do you good!
Be ready to see some developing world health conditions like leprosy and rickets but understand that, malaria aside, there's not much you're at risk of yourself.

Weather:
Simply be aware of what to expect and be prepared. In Goa, I think you'll be looking at serious heat and humidity in Spring, Monsoon in Summer. The rainy season will probably come as a relief after all the heat, but be aware of any problems it may cause. Where I was there were road closures due to mudslides and the wildlife often decided to take shelter in my room. Without air con, getting sleep in the hot season will be challenging. Copy whatever strategies the locals use and stay hydrated - you'll lose a lot of sweat through the night. Dealing with the 11:00 - 15:00 heat can also get interesting - again, copy the strategies of the locals and stay hydrated. I have no idea of your current milieu, but if you're used to heat but not humidity, know that it makes a huge difference!

Wildlife:
Not sure about Goa, but find out. Where I was, shaking out towels, clothes, shoes, bedding etc was necessary - particularly after rain - to stop things getting scorpion-y. Cobras were something to be aware of, but I only saw one in my whole time there - they generally get the hell away from people. Monkeys can be a problem if you let them. They're pretty smart and will remember you. If you panic/give them food/run away from them they will remember this and pester you. If you stand your ground, pick something up and look like you're going to throw it at them, they'll generally go look for an easier target and not bother you again. The stray dogs where I was were pretty well-behaved. There was a jaguar attack on a local nearby, but this was very rare and I saw no evidence of any.
I think there's some pretty serious jungle going on in Goa (unless you're by the coast, in which case there's some serious stoned hippies) so it's worth getting an idea of the local fauna and how to avoid getting bitten/stung/trampled by it! Don't be alarmed - the risks of anything worse than a bee sting are ridiculously low - it's just one of those things where developing some basic habits can potentially prevent discomfort.

Crime (scams):
Crime is not really an issue. Look out for scams, though. Three wheelers will rip you off if they can - know what price to pay and don't get a taxi from immediately outside an airport or station. There's a lot of poverty, and the begging can be quite persistent if you're in a place where tourists go. I always found it was best to be polite but firm. If it's clear you're not going to part with money folks generally move on to someone else. It's best to avoid buying anything from anyone who approaches you, and to figure out what the going price is before paying for anything. It's normal to pay a little more than the locals, but not extortionately so. Always agree a price upfront if you're buying a service, otherwise you may find the bill for your haircut or taxi ride is twice what you'd pay in Paris or Tokyo. If you're away from the tourist/backpacker trail, this generally isn't a problem.

Dress
I'm assuming you're a guy, given that you're on a SW message board, so I've not put anything dress-related under etiquette, but use common sense. If other people aren't baring a lot of skin, it's probably not a good idea to. Stuff that dries out quickly is always ideal. You'll be glad of it in the rainy season, but it also makes laundry far easier. Bear in mind that you'll probably have to handwash clothes in cold water given that you're volunteering.
If you're teaching English, I would advise wearing collared shirts and generally looking reasonably smart. You may not be seen as credible otherwise.
Oh, and for the love of God don't buy and wear a bunch of random ethnic stuff. Imagine someone wearing a top hat with a golf sweater, a kilt and a pair of sneakers. That's exactly the kind of bizarre and incongruent mix you see some western tourists (esp. backpackers trying to be cool and native) wearing in India.

Transport:
Indians drive like Indians. It's just something you have to deal with - road traffic accidents are far more common than in the West. As with pretty much the whole of the East, there's a lot of enthusiastic honking of horns. Best to just see it as part of the music of life and - if you hire a vehicle - join in the fun! If you ever travel north into the mountains, expect to be terrified!
Public transport can be a funny one. Train and bus stations can be pretty bewildering and asking for information can actually make things worse! I never really figured it out, but it seems that folks don't like to appear unhelpful by saying 'I don't know'. Look out for any kind of subjunctive mood in the answer 'I think maybe/perhaps' 'It must be' etc. It seems to be the polite way of saying 'I really don't know'. From experience, if you follow this advice and end up on the wrong bus with the wrong ticket, you won't be thrown off or even informed when your ticket is checked, you'll just end up hundreds of miles away from where you planned to be! I'm slightly embarrassed to say that this happened to me more than once. In fact, more than twice

Language:
English is pretty much a lingua Franca throughout the subcontinent. With thousands of dialects, people from different areas will often speak English to one another. Not everyone will speak English, however. Given that you're volunteering, you may well be around some pretty deprived folk who would be less likely to speak English. It's a great idea to make an effort to learn at least something of the local dialect/s even if everyone you encounter speaks English.

Stuff to take:
A torch (flashlight). You'll probably have electricity, but power cuts can happen and monsoon rains can disrupt power supply. Absolute dark (no street lights, nothing except whatever moonlight there is) can be unnerving if you're not used to it, particularly if you're caught out and about. My flashlight battery died while I was walking back home one night. Luckily there was a thunderstorm providing intermittent light, but it took a long time to walk about a third of a mile up a mountain!
A quality multi tool type thing. My leatherman was an absolute godsend on many, many occasions.
Some US$
The malaria prevention meds and iodine mentioned under health above as well as a very basic first aid kit - I always carry plasters, painkillers, gauze, bandages and disinfectant when traveling anywhere. May seem melodramatic, but it can't hurt to carry a note of your blood type and any allergies in your wallet. That's not bad advice for general day-to-day life. A medic friend of mine has his blood type tattooed on his forearm.
A guide book of some sort - Lonely Planet or similar. Never take those things as 'gospel' - I've found some pretty misleading stuff in some of them - but they are definitely helpful
Contact details for your embassy. Almost certainly won't need it, but if you do lose your passport or encounter some kind of serious problem it's good to be prepared.

 

So, this isn't about India specifically, but I have a question.

Everything has been taken care of, except for my airplane ticket and visa. I just tried to buy my round-trip airplane ticket, which is a little over $18000, after having finally saved up enough money and since I'll be going in just a little over a month.

Typed up everything right, using my Visa Debit Card that's linked to my checking account, that I've used many many times before. And... the website keeps saying my bank is denying authorization. But I can check my account online right now, and I know I have over $19,000.

Why is it doing this to me??

 

Debit cards tend to have a limit on the size of transactions. IIRC, it's usually in the low thousands. Can't you just use a credit card and pay the balance? Though I guess you might not have one with a high limit.

 

It's pretty easy to get an overly-generous line of credit. It usually comes with a predatory interest rate, but if you're paying it off before that comes due it's a non-issue.

 

Yeah, Visa raised my limit without even telling me.

 

I have two credit cards right now, one has a limit of $1800 and the other has a limit of $1500. Wish it was possible to use two cards to pay for something. I'm going to try calling my bank on Monday, I need to get the airplane ticket asap so I can get my visa.

 

(I have never traveled to India but I have traveled out of my country): Since you're going to call your bank anyway, it's probably a good idea to let them know you're going out of the country and when -- that would help ensure that they don't raise any flags on your account while you're in India. Another thing you may want to research is what your access to ATM/Banks will be while you're there and what ATMS will accept your card; and how often you can use credit/debit cards (you may need to bring/carry a lot of cash with you). I ran into this problem in (believe it or not) Japan: a lot of places still only took cash, and I could only find one bank chain that would take my ATM card.

 

bro you payed $18,000 for the plane ticket?

I flew LAX > JFK > Amsterdam > Mumbai and it cost me a little over a grand. This was four years ago, but I don't think things have been marked up that much. Last I checked you could get an around the world ticket for like $10,000 which is cheaper and would give you way more flexibility. You might want to check that out.

Also, this is a good thing to figure out before you get there. I mean the credit card stuff. My debit card was put on hold after my first purchase abroad and I didn't have a solid phone plan so that was some good fun. Better to figure it out before hand!

 

Has anyone here that has been to India ran out of toilet paper?

 

good question beezel.

 

Ghost -- PM me your flight details and I'll get you a cheap-ass flight on decent airlines. Just let me know how much you can spend.

 

i think he meant 1800 guys.

 

i think he meant 18000000

 

Yeah I meant $1,800

 

Something something $14,000

 

Supposed to get my passport back, with visa, by Fed Ex tomorrow morning! Got my travel insurance, and my immunizations. Just need to call my bank and Verizon sometime this week to activate international service.

Now all I really need to do is get luggage and clothes. Any suggestions for what to wear? It's supposed to be very hot and humid, but the travel clinic doctors said to cover as much skin as possible. And I'm not sure if I'll have access to a washing machine for my clothes. What to bring?

I'm leaving this Friday, lucky 13.

 

I'll be back in 5 weeks