I’m not afraid to say, India was the place I was the most nervous about coming to, and I very nearly didn’t come for fear of all the things that could happen.
Rape. Poverty. Violence. Pollution. Some of the words associated with India, mainly in the media.
Cultural. Spiritual. Humble. Vibrant. Alive. Some of the other words associated with India, mainly outside the media.
How do you know what to believe? You go and find out for yourself.
Sure – some incidents do occur along the way – but realistically, this can (and does) happen in almost every other country. And even despite those moments, visiting this country has been one of the most rewarding and enlightening experiences of my life.
‘There are two kinds of people in life: those who like India, and those who do not’
– Khalid Masood
So, the big question you need to ask yourself is – do you think India could be for you?
The way I see it, if you come to India, you have to come with a totally open mind, a blank canvas, and let this country paint its own picture for you. Don’t come here with pre-conceptions of what you’ve heard from other people, or expect it to be in any way what you may have seen in other cultures – because I can tell you – it is different in every way to anywhere else you will have been.
‘India has many customs and rituals that may seem bizarre to anyone not used to it’s distinctive culture. It is a strange combination of being a young nation as well as an ancient country’
– Hanadi Falki
Of course, everyone has their own opinion, but in my view…
If you aren’t open to new foods, cultures and ways of living, India is not for you.
Brits who travel with your own tea and biscuits… I’m looking at you.
India’s food is spicy. Not ‘unable to eat’ spicy, but full of flavour, fats and carbs, and can be quite overwhelming if you aren’t used to it. If you commit to the full India experience of eating street food and in local restaurants you’ll be eating things that you have no idea what they are, and you just have to go with it. Every single thing I tried was delicious, and while it didn’t happen to me, ‘Delhi Belly’ got it’s name for a reason!
The culture here is very different from Western culture, and this will probably be the biggest adjustment for most people. Expect to see men spitting in the street every few minutes, and relentlessly staring at you if you are a Western woman. The toilets are squat toilets with toilet paper replaced by a water spray or bucket, and food is quite often eaten with bare hands.
If you can’t handle dirt, noise or a little bit of chaos, India is not for you.
I’ll be frank, India is dirty. I joked with a friend the other day that walking around in India is akin to playing Mario Kart; but instead of dodging shells, you are constantly dodging stepping in various types of faeces. Here, cows and dogs roam the streets in full force, and there is rubbish pretty much everywhere due to the lack of infrastructure across the country – so those combined with the occasional open sewer and burning rubbish, the smell in the streets can be pretty pungent.
Pavements vary depending on the city you are in, a lot are crumbling or just non-existent, so you will find yourself walking in the road a lot with the bikes and tuk-tuks honking at you. The honking is totally normal here and doesn’t always mean they want you to move, it’s mainly a signal to make you aware they are there and are about to go around you.
‘In India you don’t drive on the left of the road, you drive on what is left of the road’
– Unknown
This may sound all very overwhelming, and even critical, but I aim to give an wholly honest, non-romanticised account of the places I’ve been, and I would never want to encourage someone to come to a place where they don’t feel comfortable and ultimately won’t enjoy their trip.
So after all that, why do I like India so much, and why should you?
If you want to be surprised and excited every day, India is for you.
Every day I step outside here, I never know what I’m going to find or what could happen next, and that really excites me. The challenge of haggling for a tuk-tuk, or getting lost a million times trying to find your bus can be exhausting, but it’s also always led me to interesting places and through that I’ve met some new people or tried some new thing. You do have to go with the flow here, because things don’t run on time and are hardly ever what you expect them to be – but that’s why its called an adventure!
If you can appreciate inner beauty, India is for you.
Of course India is beautiful. Intricately carved temples and palaces, gold and silk adorned women, and a World of colour everywhere you turn. The people are beautiful; the smiling, waving children playing with water balloons in the street, the devotion of every Hindu, Buddhist, Christian or otherwise on their knees in prayer to their many Gods, the curious and shy smiles of women in their sarees, arms and ankles jingling with bracelets as they walk by.
India is an overwhelmingly emotional place. Whether it be the noise and chaos of the city roads or walking barefoot through a temple as incense burns around you, India makes you feel, makes you think, and for me, has made me want to return again and again.
‘Waking up in India is like waking up to life itself’
– Reymond Page
So you’ve decided India could be for you… What next?
Decide where to go in India
When I visited India, I began in the South and moved North. Realistically you can do this any way you want, but this direction started me off with quieter, calmer cities, allowing me to adjust to the culture before getting to the busy Northern areas.
Tamil Nadu – In this area you can fly into either Madurai or Chennai, both popular cities heavily influenced by Tamil culture, and visit some of the incredible temples. I visited Meenakshi Temple in Madurai and can safely say it was one of the most impressive temples I saw throughout all of India. Other places which are popular are Pondicherry on the coast, and Coimbatore.
Kerala – Described as one of the greenest areas in India, this state houses a plethora of national parks, hiking opportunities and more. Kochi is the most well know city to visit, but if you want something with a bit less hustle and bustle, try Varkala for it’s spectacular coastline, Alleppey for it’s Venice-like canals that you can cruise through at a leisurely pace, or the rolling cardamom hills near Munnar.
Karnataka – Leaving behind the green and venturing into more built up cities such as Bangalore, this is the closest I felt to London in a long time. Sparkling clean metro systems, modern bars and restaurants with millennials swarming in and out, and more shops than you can shake a stick at. If it all feels a bit to much, head to somewhere like Mysore, where there is a beautiful palace and temples still to see. However my ‘must not miss’ city in this state is Hampi. A 14th-century city that at that time was the second-largest city in the world after Beijing, and today is one of the best preserved sites I’ve ever seen. Make sure to climb Matanga Hill to watch the sunrise creep over the city, and then either spend a day or two leisurely walking around the many temples and monuments, or hire a tuk-tuk to take you around.
Goa & Maharashtra – Two key states, both very different in their styles and what they offer. The first is Goa, where you’ll find plenty of tourists, but depending on the experience you want, there’s something for everyone. Anjuna, Agonda or Palolem are the tourist hotspots here, or if you prefer something a little quieter, Varca beach in Benaulim or Kakolem beach are the ones you want. The best area I found was something in the middle and more of a hippy area – Ashvem beach in Morjim.
Another key area, housed in the state of Maharashtra, is the heaving city of Mumbai, where you can explore old colonial style buildings and cafes in the Colaba area, and take a day ferry over to Elephanta Island to visit the ancient caves dedicated to Shiva. If you’re keen to avoid the cities, take a train to visit more ancient caves in Ellora or Ajanta, or climb the ‘stairs to heaven’ to reach the summit of Kalsubai.
Rajasthan – This was probably my favourite state in India, due to all the colourful cities with their incredible architecture. You can start your circuit in Udaipur ‘the city of lakes’, and either take a boat out on the lake or hire a scooter to explore the temples and botanical gardens surrounding the area. Next up is Jaisalmer, my ‘must not miss’ city in this state, nicknamed ‘the golden city’ for all of its yellow sandstone buildings, intricately carved into temples and fort walls. A highlight of this area for me was being able to stay overnight in the Great Indian Desert, sleeping under the stars in complete silence surrounded by camels and sand dunes. Jodphur’s ‘blue city’ is next up on the colour chart – take some time to explore the famous blue corridor, sunset from the Mehreen Ka fort and the beautiful Mandore Gardens just outside the city.
A quick stop in Pushkar is an option if you want to do some market shopping – it’s small but packs a punch! The last stop is the infamous ‘pink city’ of Jaipur, which was painted this colour in 1876 for the Prince of Wales’ visit. Things not to miss here are the Hawa Mahal, City Palace and Amber Fort.
Uttar Pradesh – this is the last state I visited, with the exception of Delhi, which stands alone as its own state. An obvious ‘must-not-miss’ is the Taj Mahal in Agra – get there early for sunrise if you can!
My last stop in India and another ‘must see’ city was Varanasi. This is a holy city for many Indians, where you can witness funeral ceremonies including the ritual cremations by the riverside, morning and evening ‘Aarti‘ prayers, and the sunrise coming up over the holy river Ganges. This city can be incredibly crowded and overwhelming, but has a spiritualism like nowhere else I visited, and is definitely worth a day or two to explore.
How you want to travel around India
So now you’ve made a plan about where you want to visit in India… how will you get there? One of the things I loved about India is how easy it was to get around, so long as you know what you’re doing..!
Booking a train – This took me a while to crack to be honest.. the trains themselves are incredibly straightforward, but booking them is a whole other story.
First off, you have the option to book online or in person; if you choose in person, you need to find the reservations office in any station, which is usually in a separate building. Fight your way to the front of the queue and grab a slip of paper from the person behind the counter. You will need to know the train number you want (which you can find online or on the Ixigo / IRCTC app), your departure and arrival station, and the class you want to travel in. Fill in the slip of paper (you’ll need to bring your own pen as they won’t give you this), then go with this and your passport to the counter. People tend to push in, so make sure you stand your ground! You’ll need to pay in exact cash and you’ll be given physical train tickets for your journey.
Option two is to book on one of the train apps – the two I used were Ixigo and IRCTC. The downside with these is you need an Indian mobile number and address to register to use these. If you can get an Indian SIM card (try to get this at the airport) it’s definitely useful to have the text updates, but if you don’t have either then use a friends’ details, or the ones of your hostel/hotel. Once registered you can book at your leisure for the train and class you want. One thing to look out for is the classes of trains, whether or not they have A/C, and if they are sold out or not. If it says AVL in green you’re good to go, but if it says WL and then a number it means you would be on the waitlist and that’s your number in the queue. Some waitlist tickets you can travel on (but you won’t have a seat or will have to move around temporarily unoccupied ones), and some your can’t. One way around this is to look for TATKAL tickets, which are extra tickets the train company issues once all the normal ones have sold out. These are usually a bit more expensive but will guarantee you a seat at least.
Travelling by train – This part I really enjoyed, and in my opinion is the best way to experience true Indian life first hand. The carriage classes vary depending on level of comfort you want to be in – first, second and third class all can have A/C and comfortable seating. Sleeper was the class I travelled in the most, which gives you high, medium or low padded bunk style seats. These can be folded away if you want to sit, or brought out when you want to lie down. Remember to take off your shoes when you climb up and put them under the bottom bunk.
People are generally super friendly here and will share food or help you navigate the system. No A/C but all the windows are open so you get a great breeze, which can drop at night so remember to bring a jumper, or book second class sleeper that gives you sheets for your bed. You can get pretty much any food you want either from the vendors on the train or at the longer station stops – you’ll see people getting off the train to buy food, or buying it through the windows. The only downside I found on the trains are the toilets, which aren’t great – if you can wait then definitely do, or if not, bring your own toilet roll and hand sanitiser! All of the above classes will accept the train ticket on your phone as long as it shows your seat number.
Booking a bus – When trains are an option, take them. When they aren’t, India has a plethora of buses all over the country, in varying levels of luxury. There are two ways to book a bus that I found – one is the very user-friendly RedBus app, which lets you see pictures of the inside of the bus you are travelling on, but for some reason wouldn’t accept international cards for payment, so if you can find someone with an Indian credit card at your hotel/hostel, this is great. Otherwise, use Abhibus website (the app store wouldn’t let me download their app), which is essentially the same system and accepts international cards. It will show you every bus possible, from the cheap local buses to the more expensive sleepers. If you book a cheap local bus, you’ll get a normal seat – I’d recommend booking near a window so you have the breeze and no-one bumping into you in the aisle. If you book a sleeper you have the options of double or single berth, lower or upper floor, front or back. After trying all of these I’d recommend single berth if you are alone, and upper floor in the middle. Lower berth tends to have lots of people walking by which can be annoying if you want to sleep, and if you book the front or back of the bus you’ll be in for the bumpiest ride of your life! Tickets can be shown on your phone and try to put your accurate contact number in as quite often the bus manager will call you to find you or update you on the bus timing when they are close.
Travelling by bus – As with everything in India, there is a bus etiquette, and a system to ensure you have a smooth journey. On the local buses it’s pretty straightforward – large luggage goes under the bus, or above your head in the rack of some of the smaller ones. Lesson I learned quickly was – it will always fit in the rack. I don’t know how, but they always make it work. On sleeper buses its the same, and if they try to ask for money for putting it in the hold say no, it doesn’t cost extra. Keep an eye on your bag when they are putting it in as they can manhandle them sometimes and things can get damaged. Also make sure you put the waterproof cover on your bag as the dust really gets everywhere on the older buses.
On sleepers, shoes always go in the corridor floor, and depending on the level of bus you booked with, you can have A/C, power sockets, a blanket, pillow, snacks and water. It usually tells you this when you are selecting your bus online but bring a jumper or blanket with you in case as these aren’t always accurate and you can have a very cold and uncomfortable journey if you aren’t prepared.
All buses will make a series of stops on both day and night journeys, usually two or three on longer journeys. One of these will be a short stop of about 10 minutes to use the restrooms and grab a chai, the other will be around 20 minutes and you can use the restaurant to eat a quick meal. These are served in record time and are usually cheap and good quality, just make sure you keep either the bus or the driver in your line of sight, although they tend to do a check that everyone is there before they leave and will sound the musical horn a few times as a warning.
The one thing I found about the buses is that while they are usually on time, the pick up locations are a bit strange – sometimes you’ll find yourself getting picked up in the middle of nowhere, or the bus is down the road from where you expected it, or in my case, my pick up point was a slip road exit in the middle of a motorway! The stops aren’t signposted so just trust you are in the right place, track the bus from the website or app, and call or text the bus manager if you aren’t sure.
Booking and travelling by car, bike, or tuk tuk – When you can’t travel by either of the above, sometimes you have to bite the bullet and get a privatised option. Bikes and tuk tuks are usually in the city centre and can be booked through Ola or Uber. Tuk tuks can also be flagged in the street, but make sure to negotiate, and if you are in a city like Mumbai, ask them to put the meter on. Some tuk tuks will take you quite a distance, sometimes between cities if you make it worth their while. If not, you can book a private taxi through your hotel or hostel which is a more comfortable way to travel. You’ll need to negotiate the price beforehand, and don’t expect a seatbelt as these usually aren’t working.
Flying – This is the option a lot of people use to get between larger cities because it’s fast and still relatively cheap, but if you are wanting to see the real India and have time to travel slowly then I’d recommend not doing this and using one of the above methods.
What food to look out for in India
As you’d expect, India absolutely masters the curry dishes, but as you travel between different regions, you’ll see how different areas interpret these dishes depending on their culture and religion. Some areas you won’t see pork, other areas beef, and some holy cities are ‘dry’ cities with no alcohol.
These are some of the dishes I’d recommend to anyone visiting India…
- Dosa – usually eaten for breakfast, this is a thin crispy pancake made from rice and lentils, stuffed with a filling of your choice, and served with usually two different sauces, one sambar and one chutney.
- Idli – another breakfast classic, this time a soft and fluffy steamed cake made from lentils and rice, so porous it soaks up the sambar and chutney beautifully.
- Uttapam – my favourite breakfast dish, essentially a savoury fluffy pancake filled with vegetables, spices and herbs.
- Vada – a savoury doughnut made from Urad Dal, super spongey and delicious.
- Pav Bhaji – a thick vegetable curry served with a soft milk bread roll – a brilliant snack to fill you up.
- Puri – a puffed bread that can be eaten as sweet or savoury, usually for breakfast.
- Bhelpuri – a type of chaat made with puffed rice, crunchy vegetables and tangy tamarind – the perfect refreshing snack.
- Samosa Chaat – the classic savoury snack in India, consisting of Chole (chickpea curry), crushed samosa, onion, various chutneys and spices, yoghurt and bombay mix or Sev to top.
- Papdi Chaat – similar structure to the above but with miniature crisy discs ‘Puris’ and loads more yoghurt and pomegranate – my favourite kind of chaat.
- Pani Puri – a small crispy hollowed out Puri ball, filled with potatoes, chickpeas and onions, that you then fill with a spiced water, either coriander or masala infused, and eat quickly in one mouthful. An amazing refreshing snack but make sure of the origin of the water as this is not a cooked dish so you need to ensure the water is filtered.
- Chicken 65 – a spicy, deep fried chicken dish, usually eaten as a snack or starter.
- Paneer or chicken butter masala – the dish I probably saw most in India, varying from creamy in the South to warm and spicy in the North, but always a 10/10 dish.
- Masala Papad – your classic poppadom, but topped with spices and tomatoes.
- Thali – these change a lot between the South and North, and also inland and coastal. In essence this is a large plate full of small bowls of various vegetable curries and chutneys, usually accompanied by a poppadom and some rice. In Goa, you’ll see fish thali, served with breaded Kingfish that is not to be missed. In some places you’ll be lucky enough to get free refills of anything on your plate, for no extra cost.
- Goan sausage curry – rich, warming, smoky and tangy, this was one of the best dishes I ate in India (I know, I say that a lot). Chorizo style sausage is dry fried with onions and tomatoes and should be consumed by the kilo, repeatedly.
- Goan Xacutti – another fantastic Goan dish, consisting of a meat or vegetable slow cooked with coconut to form a rich and beautiful curry.
- Momos – typically a Tibetan / Nepalese dish, you can find these around India as a classic street food snack – a dumpling either steamed or fried with a filling of vegetable or chicken.
- Biryani – a mixed rice dish originating among the Muslims of the Indian subcontinent as a variety of Persian pilaf. Made with Indian spices, rice, and usually some type of meat and sometimes eggs and potatoes. My favourite – slow cooked mutton.
- Kheema Berry Pulav – Very similar to the above but served with dried berries in the mix that brings a whole new dimension of tangy flavour.
- Lachha Paratha – a flaky, fluffy, crispy flatbread dripping with butter that can be eaten alone or dipped into any curry – just divine.
- Tandoor Butter Roti – a thin flatbread perfect for eating with curry, toasted inside a tandoor oven and then covered with butter or ghee.
- Dal Baati Churma – a Rajasthani dish made up of Dal (lentil curry), Baati (baked dough dumplings) and Churma (a sweet mix of semolina, jaggery, coconut and other ingredients) – a unique and amazing mix of textures and flavours combined on one plate.
- Khidchi – an Indian childhood dish and comfort in a bowl – this is my recipe of choice for India (check the shop recipes tab for more info!) – a sort of lentil and rice risotto saturated with ghee, garlic and cumin.
- Indian Desserts – from Gulab Jamun (fried doughballs liberally coated in syrup) to Ras Malai (rice sponge cake soaked in sweet cardamom-infused milk), Indian desserts are for the sweet-toothed, but always fantastic. My favourite was the Doda Burfi Treacle Tart, rich with burnt milk and caramel flavours.
- Paan – this is a strange but interesting sweet snack that can be found in the North of India, originating from Varanasi, known there as ‘Baranasi Paan’.
A variety of candied fruits and petals are combined with spices, jellies, and crunchy sweets, and wrapped in a betel leaf. This is designed to be eaten in one go and chewed for as long as possible to give a slight buzz from the naturally stimulating leaf. You can also find versions of this containing tobacco which are stronger and should ideally be spat out after chewing.
- Indian drinks – Chai is the obvious one here, which people drink from morning to night. If you get it served to you in a terracotta cup you will pay more but can keep the cup! However you also have a range of fresh juices and lassis everywhere you go. Mango lassi is the most popular in the right season, although my favourite was pomegranate. For juices, you can pretty much get anything you want, but try Chikku juice if you see it – its a brown fruit that looks like a potato but tastes like a toffee apple – delicious! Lemon soda is also pretty much everywhere – you can choose from sweet, salty, masala or plain.
How to prepare yourself for the culture in India
Nb. Thé culture varies greatly from region to region in India and everything below should be taken with a pinch of salt – this is just my experience and not a generalisation of all Indian people.
Eating and drinking – As in most cultures, there is a sort of ritual when it comes to food and drink consumption in India. In traditional restaurants, food is almost always eaten with the hands, and so a hand washing sink is never far for you to wash up before and after your meal. You’ll see water on the table, and occasionally one cup. If you watch Indians drink water, you’ll see their mouths never touch the bottle or cup, and so a lot of the time the same bottle or cup is used by multiple people. This however is quite frequently tap water, so I’d recommend avoiding, and instead asking for ‘pani (water) bottle chilled’, and you’ll get a bottle of mineral water for next to nothing.
Étiquette – For me this was the hardest cultural different to adapt to. People here are more direct, they won’t hesitate to shout at you even if it’s for nothing in particular, but it’s not meant in an aggressive way, it’s just a method of communication. This also applies to pushing past you when they want to get somewhere, or pushing into a queue. It’s easier if you just accept that queues don’t exist, the same as personal space..! However, the biggest adjustment for me was the spitting. You might see signs saying ‘no spitting’ when you first arrive, and you’ll think to yourself ‘why would it need to say that? Who’s spitting here?’ Oh boy, you’re in for a wild ride. Here, people chew tobacco, betel nuts, or pan masala powder, which they then spit into the street with excessive force. If you’re really lucky, you’ll hear a lot of throat and nose clearing too, and this is one of the most common noises you’ll hear in India, predominantly from men.
Religion – It goes without saying that India is a very religious country. Keep this is mind when you visit and respect their holy areas by covering your knees, shoulders and chest. You will also need to remove your shoes – there are shoe check in areas in some temples where you will need to pay a small fee, and sometimes the same for bags and electronics. Be conscious of where you take pictures and remember these are holy areas. In many temples, elders or young children will try to put paint on your forehead, or wrap string around your wrist as part of a blessing. If you want to do this, expect to make a donation, as this is almost never free. If you don’t want this, say no firmly and walk away.
The male / female divide – This was a big one for me (and most Western people I imagine) to get my head around. In some places my Asian male friend was asked what we would be eating, as a man he is the ‘decision maker’, but then I was presented with the bill… as the Western ‘rich white tourist’. In the majority of places you will be stared at by men for what feels like hours. It is rare that men will try to touch you or make inappropriate comments but sadly it does happen.. the best way I found to combat this was; cover up with loose clothing, fix them with a steely stare, and don’t smile or engage unless you want something. Sometimes if they try to talk to you its not always in an aggressive or sexual way, its just curiosity or intrigue. I had a man follow me for what felt like hours trying to hand feed me something – it’s an odd feeling but if you are on your guard and firm with them then there should be no issues. Ladies, if you do feel nervous going out and about on your own – bring a personal alarm for emergencies, or you can buy pepper spray when you arrive. The main issue I found was talking with Indian men in what felt to me as a ‘friendly’ manner, but for them was something much more, and suddenly they are asking if you want to engage with them in something much more than talking… just keep this in mind, and if they do suggest something inappropriate, feel free to react the same way you would elsewhere!
A friend once explained it as this to me – due to the past centuries of female infanticide in India (spurred on mainly by the dowry costs that come with having a daughter), there are far more men than women in India, which is one of the reasons you’ll see many men holding hands when you look around, and another reason why men are so forward there. She also explained that if you’ve ever seen a Bollywood movie – you’ll see the guy chase after the girl, girl will run away and say no, then the guy will grab the girl and convince her to say yes, and she will. Obviously this would be shocking and reprimanded in many other parts of the World, but here this is a contributing factor to some men’s education on women.
Tourists – I always wondered what it felt like to be famous – and now I know! I have never in any country been asked for as many selfies as I have in India. As we Western tourist you are ‘exotic’, and therefore are asked to pose with grandmothers, families, holding babies, all sorts of things. You will have chairs brought for you while Indians are made to stand. Obviously you are swarmed by tuk-tuk drivers or shop owners trying to sell you things, and everything comes with a ‘tourist tax’ – you will rarely, if ever, get the same price as the locals. The only sad thing I found, is you get lied to a lot – ‘the temple is closed, let me take you to a market’, or ‘the bus stop is 4km away, I will take you for cheap price’, when in fact the temple is open and the bus stop is a 5 minute walk. Just nod and continue doing what you had planned, or go and ask someone either of authority (e.g. conductor in a train station) or a local shop owner who is indifferent and will likely give you a truthful answer.
Shopping – Haggle, haggle, haggle. And then haggle some more. If you can’t get the price to something you think is reasonable, then make a note of the name of the shop and leave. Most often, you can find exactly the same thing around the corner for cheaper. Get a sari, absolutely. And always remember – nothing is free – there’s almost always a catch!
So that’s it – all the things that may make you say ‘wow, that sounds intense’, but nonetheless the crazy things about India you come to enjoy.
Navigating through India can be incredibly difficult, because its a World we aren’t used to in the West – but this is just it – we just aren’t used to it.
Like the majority of things, when people don’t know something, they assume the worst, and this is what people assume about India.
Hopefully with the help of the above, you’ll familiarise yourself with this fantastic country, and then you’ll learn to love it – just as much as I do.
