India Travel for First timers, Tips to reduce culture shock

The Indian destination of your dreams may be dotted with palaces, the Taj Mahal, elephants and saints in yoga postures. A de-bunking of the mythical India. To many, India is the land of spices, romance, hot summers and palaces. It is a land of many peoples, languages and cultures - one that promises to pack in an entire continent into a single country. However many seasoned travelers and travel guides fail to tell you what to expect on your first visit. It is, in two short words, sensory overload. From the time you land at any of the international airports in India, nothing really prepares you for the sights, sounds and smells you will encounter here. A sea of sights. On the ride to your hotel, you will see a swirl of colors in the clothes, the three wheeled auto-rickshaws, lorries, billboards and buildings even on the dreariest days of winter. Traffic. You will realize that there is no real demarcation between the freeways and the foot paths. People will often spill on to the road while your cab maneuvers through narrow streets. Occasionally you might even have cattle, elephants, camels or stray dogs (depending on which part of the country you are in) sharing road space with your vehicle. If you look touristy you are also bound to attract the curious eyes of people around you - privacy is a luxury here. On the flip side, you will never have trouble finding help when you need it. Sound horn, ok.

Now that is a phrase you will see painted behind every heavy vehicle you will see. A popular joke about buying a vehicle in India goes thus - the first thing one should test is the horn. Without it one would be severely handicapped when one needs to get people, cattle or other cars out of the way. Musicians, hawkers, fire crackers during festivals, lottery ticket sellers and so on will compete add to the background score as you move through the country. Roadside food stalls, jasmine flowers or fumes from vehicle exhaust pipes will give you the heady mix of aromas that people associate with India. It will take a while for you to get used to all these sensory inputs, which shouldn't be thought of as a pain, rather they add to the magical Indian experience that you will treasure for years to come.
Be prepared

The only way to enjoy your Indian holiday from the start is to firmly follow this Boy Scout motto.
Here are some tips to manage the initial culture shock:

Read well before your trip - Don't just stick to travelogues and guide books. Also seek out and read articles from local media, blogs and online discussion forums that describe life in India with all its eccentricities and incentives.

Carry earplugs - They will serve you well on trips when you are jet lagging and need to drown out sounds to sleep.

Among the most bothersome people you will encounter are touts and beggars - No matter how much they talk, plead or threaten, never give in. The best favor you can do yourself and them is to ignore these pleas. Handing out money to the poor who gather around cars at signals rarely benefits them. Most often, children who beg never get to spend the money they are given. If you're still keen to help, buying them a meal would be a better idea.

Always bargain with road side vendors - Except in shops that explicitly state so and in malls, prices are rarely set in stone. Always negotiate for a better deal.

Carry a hand sanitizer and wet wipes for emergencies. Also ask for mineral water at all restaurants.

No matter how hot you’re used to having your food, ask restaurant personnel to tone down the spices in your dishes. Chances are they will any way do so if you look foreign.

When greeting people try to fold your hands and say Namaste especially with people of the opposite sex.

India is the best place to be for a budget traveler but try and take domestic flights or travel by air conditioned classes in trains to get to far flung destinations.

Be aware that IST not only stands for Indian Standard Time but also for Indian Stretchable Time.

Kerala's Wayanad district brims with tourists

Located in North Kerala, 60 km east of Kozhikode, at an altitude ranging from 700 to 2,100 metres on the Western Ghats, Wayanad attracts a large number of domestic and foreign tourists.

"This year all the resorts and hotels in the district are fully reserved. Tourists are now looking for getting accommodation in home stays," Praveen P.P., the information officer at the District Tourism Promotion Council (DTPC), told IANS.



"In Wayanad, tourist arrival peaks during November to February. This year till December, the district recorded 20 percent increase in the arrivals," Praveen said.

Last financial year (2006-07), Wayanad received a total of 470,000 tourists, a large majority of which are domestic tourists.

"But the actual number far exceeds this as we don't have the statistics of those visiting the famous Thirunelli temple, which is considerable, and tourists coming to the Muthanga Wildlife Sanctuary," he said.

After the IT boom, Wayanad started attracting IT professionals from Bangalore. The district borders Karnataka and is only six hours by road to the metro.

"The district is now a favourite weekend tourist destination. Large numbers of IT professionals are flocking to the district," said K. Raveendran, owner of Pranavam Homestay at Pozhuthana near here.

Raveendran's facility is meant only for foreign tourists, who are interested in local culture and local cuisines.

"Reservation by tourists is made much in advance. Now, my Home stay is booked till February 20," says Raveendran.

According to DTPC, the district is witnessing a sharp increase in the rate of foreign tourist arrivals.

However, the resort owners disagree.

"Foreign tourist arrivals to Kerala dipped this year. This is reflected in Wayanad also. It may be due to the Chikungunya outbreak in the state. It gave us a bad image," said Vancheeswaran K.R., managing partner of Wynberg Resorts at Thrikkaipetta, 12 km from here.

Vancheeswaran is also the secretary of Wayanad Tourism Organisation.

"Tourism season starts in September. However, this year it got delayed and started in October as rains continued beyond the normal season. Now, the tourist arrivals have really picked up. My resort is fully booked till January 7," he said.

Vancheeswaran has 11 dwellings for tourists - two of them are treetop cottages.

"A good number of tourists are IT professionals, who come with their families. Although the season starts much earlier, we host corporate events during the February-March period," he added.

A video from You Tube featuring Wayand Wildlife......

Pushkar Camel Festival

What to Expect at the World's Largest Camel Fair.....

It's possible to buy a decent camel for around $500 in India, and there's no better place to make a selection than at the Pushkar camel festival.

Indians refer to a fair or festival as a ‘mela’. However, the words more likely to be at the forefront of a westerner’s mind are mayhem and madness. A perfect example of this is the world’s largest camel fair, held every year in Pushkar during the Hindu lunar month of Kartika (which usually falls sometime in November).



The population of Pushkar is normally a relatively tiny 15,000 people. However this explodes to over 200,000 people and 50,000 camels during the festival. At this time, the camels and their owners arrive from all directions and take up residence in makeshift tents in the neighbouring desert. They’re accompanied by the many visiting Indian families who camp out indiscriminately in the open at the edge of the town.

The Legend of Pushkar
Pushkar is an idyllic town in the middle of India's Rajasthan desert. It's full of whitewashed buildings, and is surrounded by hills on three sides and sand dunes on the other. The main feature of Pushkar is its lake. According to Hindu legend, it was made from a lotus flower dropped by Lord Brahma, the Creator, when looking for a place to perform a holy ritual on a full moon night.

Pilgrims who bathe in the lake’s waters believe they will be absolved of their sins. The four days between Kartika Shukla Ekadashi (the eleventh day of Kartika) and Kartika Purnima (the Kartika full moon) are viewed as being the most auspicious. Those who bathe on the day of the full moon are said to receive special blessings. Most of the camel action takes place over the 5 days leading up to the official start of the camel fair on Kartika Shukla Ekadashi, after which time the focus shifts to heightened religious celebrations.



Arriving in Pushkar
Arrival in Pushkar is either by taxi or heaving, dilapidated local bus from Ajmer – 11 kilometres away through the hills. Eager luggage-wallahs immediately assail disembarking tourists and quickly load their bags on to hand drawn carts, which they proceed to pull through the mazes of dusty winding streets to a motley assortment of hotels. Meanwhile, luggage owners follow behind in a daze, absorbed by the sight around them.

The streets are lined with mobile chai (tea) vendors, and hawkers selling everything from clothes and jewellery to decorative items and handicrafts. Everywhere is a dazzling display of brightly coloured turbans, scarves and sarees worn by the Indian people for the festive occasion. One can’t help but be mesmerised.

What to See at the Camel Festival
The scene of the camel fair is just as striking. The sand dunes appeared infested with camels as far as the eyes can see. These camels are dressed up, paraded, entered into beauty contests, raced, and of course traded. Some camels even have their hair shaved into patterns to help them stand out from the rest. Along with these peculiar and amusing activities, the crowds are entertained well into each evening by an array of musicians, magicians, dancers, acrobats, snake charmers and carousel rides. Anyone game enough to get close to the centre of these activities runs the risk of being suddenly pulled into the fanfare, encouraged by the frenzied clapping, singing and musical melodies of the other participants.

The Pushkar camel fair provides a fascinating insight into Indian culture and way of life, and will leave a deep imprint in your memory. It’s likely that you’ll return to you hotel room feeling quite overwhelmed but captivated by what you’ve seen and experienced. As you lay on your bed, in the distance you may be able to faintly hear chanting and the ringing of bells that accompany the ancient religious ceremonies, and you’ll know that you’re in the midst of something very special.

Accomodation on Indian Railways

Most people find themselves becoming confused during the planning phase of their journey, as they attempt to make sense of the 4 or 5 different classes of accommodation available on long distance trains in India. This includes the general seated compartment, sleeper class, 3 tier air conditioned sleeper (3AC), 2 tier air conditioned sleeper (2AC), and 1st class air conditioned sleeper (1AC). Before booking your ticket, it's recommended that you give honest thought to your travelling and privacy requirements.



Many visitors feel compelled to travel sleeper class so that they can come into close contact with their idea of the 'real India'. The majority of India's large middle class population travels in sleeper class, and you'll encounter people from all walks of life. Keep in mind though that while a day spent in sleeper class can be entertaining, longer journeys can take their toll as a result of the constant heat, noise and dirt. If you don’t like being woken at 6am, then sleeper class isn’t for you.

The air conditioned carriages are much cleaner and more restful, however they distinctly lack the spirited nature of sleeper class. Their upper class occupants can be less than stimulating, although the relatively high standard of these people’s personal habits shouldn’t be under rated on long distance journeys. Since comfort levels are higher in the air conditioned compartments, passengers find less need to interact with eachother to distract themselves from their journey. There's also less interaction with the outside world, including food vendors at stations, as windows are sealed with tinted glass and are unable to be opened.

A good option that balances comfort and cost is 3AC. Carriages are laid out in the same manner as sleeper class, with 6 berths per compartment, but you get the added benefit of air conditioning. In 2AC, you'll also get privacy curtains and more room, with only 4 berths in each compartment. 1AC offers compartments for two, with lockable doors, for a cost comparable to that of flying.

For those wanting some extra personal space, but without the extravagance of 1AC, a side berth in one of the other classes is recommended. These berths are located outside each compartment, along the aisle. However, if you're taller than around 175cm you might yourself a bit cramped, as these berths are enclosed on both ends and are shorter than the ones inside the compartments. Where possible, it’s also advisable to book an upper berth. You won't have to share it with anyone, whereas the lower berths act as seats for everyone during the day.



Travel in the general seated compartment is best avoided on long journeys. This is the only carriage on the train where reservations aren't requried. Most seats are simply wooden benches, although plastic padded benches may be found on some trains. It's in this compartment that any visions you may have of people hanging out the doors of Indian trains will become a reality, as overcrowding is taken to new levels.

There's no doubt that each type of compartment offers a certain, unique type of experience. If you choose the right level of accomodation to suit your requirements, its likely that you'll have an enchanting trip on a railway system that's so essential to Indian life.