Imagine finding yourself, after more than 24 hours of travelling and waiting at airports, in what looks to your Western, polished-clean Scandinavian eyes like a... a... city slum. But not just any slum, but a slum where all the poverty stricken inhabitants have apparently swallowed some happy-pills, and are convinced that you are a celebrity of some sort, following you around bombing you with questions, and bothering the heck out of you in the most polite and pleasant manner possible.

On a closer look, the slum really isn't anything like any slum as you have pictured a slum to be in your mind - among the flimsy looking buildings, there stands a few shops here and there scattered as if they had just magically materialised directly from the most exclusive shopping districts in London or Paris. At each of the doors to these luxurious establishments stands a sentry in a uniform, put there, no doubt, to keep the poverty out. This is not how I pictured New Delhi.

Add to this picture the traffic - cars of all sizes, some larger vehicles, a few carriages pulled by oxen, rikshas that look like three wheeled motorcycles with a back seat and a flimsy roof. And of course, all the vehicles had side-mirrors sawed off, so that they would fit through smaller traffic openings in this... Chaos. In one word, that was the first impression. (Was that a monkey you saw scurrying for the shadows from the corner of your eye?)

There you stand, carrying a backpack, feeling particularly pale faced, inhaling the strange spicy scent in the air, overwhelmed by people offering to sell you things, asking you where you came from, and asking whether you needed a riksha - despite the fact that they had just seen you step out of a taxi. And there is your Hotel - one of those surreal, clean, beautiful buildings in the middle of the "slum".

This was the beginning of my month of backpacking in India. Oh boy. How on earth had I gotten myself in this mess? How would I survive a whole month?



A Little background

During my first semester in the university in Helsinki, I discovered a travelling club that has the habit of arranging one trip each year to some interesting destination in the world. The trip is always around New Year's, and having a bit of a vagabond in me, I made a decision: somehow I would find the money to spend every New Year's to come in some place I hadn't seen before. This I would continue until I run out of interesting places or out of years, which ever comes first...

So far I haven't regretted a single penny spent on carrying out this decision. As you may have guessed, my trip to India that inspired me to write this epinion was one of these New Year's trips. It was New Year's 98-99, and not only was it the longest trip I've taken time-wise, it was also my first time in Asia.

There were 27 of us that would arrive by air to New Delhi, spend a few days there, including New Year's. After that, (as this was a back-packing trip and you just can't go backpacking in a group of 27) we split into smaller groups, each of which would plan their travel routes and schedules separately.



Back to the story...

Stepping into the hotel was a relief - it was as if we had entered a different, tranquil world after the hectic overpoweringly surreal feeling outside. I think we were as exhausted from the trip from the airport to the hotel as we were from the flights. The culture shock that we thought we all had prepared for, hit us like a ton of bricks.

We were a medley crew, united by our love for travelling and adventure, but different in many other aspects. One of those differences was in how we regarded the almost inevitable fate of the Western tourist in India - with very high degree of certainty, during a month long vacation, you will catch something from the food, and get sick. Some faced this threat by engaging in a fierce war against bacteria - they would disinfect their hands before meals using some sort of a chemical they'd brought along, and carefully check out the restaurant before eating in it.

Then there were a few, including myself, who went in with a who-cares attitude - if I'm going to get sick, I'm sure not going to spend a minute worrying about it beforehand. Also, I sensed an opportunity to put my money...eh...health were my mouth is - as the subject of the dangers of modern, artificially sterile environments is kind of my pet peeve.

I'm sorry, I can't help myself, here comes the pet peeve rant:

My point is this: we, as humans have evolved in an environment full of bacteria - the body has always had something to fight against. If you take the bacteria away, your deprive your body of a necessary enemy, and force it into an unnatural situation - your body will then start to fight normal things like pollen or foodstuffs; you develop allergies. Also, your immune system will slack off, and when something particularly nasty does come along, and gets through your artificially created sterile cocoon, your body is pretty much helpless... Haven't you noticed that the people who are most bacteria-phobic are the ones most often sick?

Oh, And don't get me going on those criminally irresponsible, people-fooling "anti-bacterial" scam products...

Quite as expected, the one that was most afraid of getting sick, and most carefully scrubbed his hands before meals, got sick the first night we were there...

I, and another member of our group purposefully did not even wash our hands before dinner - we figured that it's better to let our immune systems adapt slowly in the comparably hygienic hotel environment we were staying at the first couple of nights, instead of waiting for that big whopper to take us on unprepared. (Apparently our tactic worked, either that, or we were just damn lucky - we were the only two people from the group of 27 that didn't get sick during that month.)

I ended up setting out from New Delphi on the first of January in a group of seven experienced travellers, all wonderful people. I won't even try to write a complete account of our travels, adventures and experiences there, as that would take a book's worth of writing - I'll concentrate more on advice for people that might be thinking of a similar trip, only using my experiences to spice things up.


Travelling in India

If you think the traffic in New Delhi is dangerous, you... well, you're right, but you haven't really seen dangerous before you've rented a "Sumo" to take you out of the city. And no, I'm not talking about a Japanese wrestler, but a sort of a large jeep-like car that you see quite a lot in India - seven people and a driver fit in ok - I can tell from experience.

We rented a Sumo and a driver to take us first to Nainital, a beautiful small mountain village, and from there to Corbett, a beautiful national park and the home to 50 tigers. After haggling for an hour or so, we got the Sumo and the driver for four days (completely at our disposal) for a very nice price of $210.

I can honestly say that the drive to Nainital was some of the scariest experiences of my life - true to the local custom, the vehicle had no side mirrors. And seatbelts? What are seatbelts?

Our driver spoke very little English, and would have made a great rally driver - his way of passing cars... you'd have to see it to believe it. For the first hour of the trip, everyone was deathly quiet (waiting for the crash any minute), until someone relieved the tension with a comment "Hey, this is just like straight from a video game!". Nervous laughter ensued. After a couple of hours, we were beyond caring, growing accustomed to the looming threat of death in a fiery car crash, and trusting our lives to what we hoped was a very skilled driver (instead of an insane one). The task of "not caring" was not made any easier by the sight of a toppled bus, and a few car wrecks by the side of the road along the way. At one point we saw a truck by the road that had ran against a large tree, and it had two holes in the windshield, which kind of made me miss those seat-belts.

But little did we know - the real fear didn't hit us until we got to the narrow mountain roads... I'll leave the rest to your imagination. Suffice to say, that since then, I am completely numb to any sensation of fear travelling in a car.

If you do have nerves of steel, and don't mind maybe dying a bit, Sumo rental is a great way to travel.


Trains

Trains, despite the occasional news you hear of train wrecks in India, are the safest way to travel. Train stations can be an interesting experience - the first time we went to a train station, the already surreal feel that the culture shock had left us with was amplified by the "announcement-sound" that was used to signal an upcoming announcement: It was the Microsoft Windows closing sound. We found the fact quite disorienting, but hilarious.

There are people walking around the station with a large canister shouting out "chai" - they sell tea, and I recommend trying it. Its made in milk - no water, and tastes quite good.

Travelling by train can be fun too. If you have a bit of an adventurer in you, like we did, you'll get a kick out of travelling in the regular second class coaches. They are completely fine, though far from luxurious. And besides the cheap prices, they offer a good way of meeting local people.

With all the attention you get when walking the city streets, you might think that more locals is the last thing you'd like to meet. However, the people that come up to you always try to sell something - and if they invite you over, they always seem to have an ulterior motive, nothing sinister, just some business they want get from you. (This is by no means meant as a judgmental comment - when you see the poverty, it is more than understandable that people trying to scrape a living to support their families do try to get money from foreigners)

The people you meet accidentally in trains are often quite happy to talk with you sharing ideas and insights to the culture and life in India. The regular people I met this way left me with a warm, positive picture of Indian people.

If you dare, you should also order a meal during a trip - I found the food quite good for train food (spicy, just like I like it), and besides, it's worth it just to see the faces on your travelling companions who swear that you're going to get really sick from that... :-)

Of course, it's probably a lot less amusing if they turn out to be right. But hey, no pain no gain - right?

What you need to take with you when travelling in second class - if you intend to sleep - is a sleeping bag, few small locks, and a light chain. You use the locks and the chain to close up your backpack, and chain it under the seat. I didn't see thieves during the trip, but better to be safe than sorry.

When travelling by any means, and especially by train, make sure that your itinerary is lenient - it's better to allow yourself to make changes along the way. The trains are always late, so prepare for that. The most important thing is your attitude - don't take things so seriously, relax, and smell the flowers. (The city smells will do, I guess, if flowers aren't available)


Busses and coaches

Busses can be a nice way to travel locally, they are especially good for getting from the beaches of Goa to some of the inland towns. They are ridiculously cheap - a 20 minute trip in Goa cost me about ten cents.

Also, you tend to see a lot of local colour in the busses - it's really an experience that a Westener like me would be willing to pay a little more for to experience...

We took a trip by coach only once during the trip, as we were going from Goa to Mumbai (previously named Bombay). It was a bumpy ride really, and sleeping was pretty difficult as we had to hold on to the beds in order to avoid falling to the floor. I recommend using trains over coaches - it's much more comfortable.


Flying

At least one of the groups that travelled in India took one flight to traverse a longer distance. Although fast, flying is more expensive than a train ride, and you experience a lot less. Recommended only if you are in a hurry - and you should never be in a hurry in a trip like this one.



The Food & Drinks

As the cow is a holy animal in Hindu faith, so you won't be getting any veal steaks here. Also, there is a significant number of muslims in India, which is why you won't be seeing pork either. Restaurants generally have chicken and lamb dishes, and an extensive selection of vegetarian foods.

Regrettably, most restaurants that have any experience of Western tourists tend to automatically take away the hot spices from the food - so what you are left with is something that has only the herbal spices. Not good. In my opinion, it's better to find a place where a pale face is an oddity.

I'd like to note that I am not a vegetarian - I like a good bloody steak just as much as the next guy. However, I soon grew tired of the meat dishes in India - the selection was not that good, and most of the dishes were very similar. When I tried the vegetarian dishes I was positively surprised - the selection was brilliant, and the food was terrific. If I had known this, I would have switched earlier. An added plus was that the vegetarian dishes were half the price of meat dishes!

As to the drinks, don't expect to find alcoholic beverages in restaurants - restaurants are only allowed to serve alcohol if they have a hotel attached. But if you do really crave for that beer, try asking if they have "special tea"...
You may get a tall glass of "Kingfisher", a local rather watery beer, the glass discretely wrapped in a napkin. I thought this was absolutely precious! :-)

I don't think we saw a glass of wine during the whole trip, so you may want to pass on that idea. Whereas beer goes, the best you can find is "Kings" beer, which is fuller in taste than the "Kingfisher".

Whereas food and drink goes, Goa is different from the rest of India - much more liberal. You have better selection of alcoholic beverages there, and you can find some great fishfood.

There is one noteworthy restaurant which you should not pass on - if, like just about any tourist coming to India, you visit Agra (the city with Taj Mahal), do yourself a favour and eat at "Zorba the Budha". It's a vegetarian place, but don't let that put you off, you sworn meat eaters! You've never tasted vegetarian food as good as this! If all vegetarian food was of this quality, I wouldn't touch meat. One of the travel guide books we had along with us called Zorba the Buddha "the best restaurant in India". It may very well be the best restaurant I've ever been to. None of our group actually liked Agra - it was too commercial, and the people were like sharks hunting us down trying to sell us something. Still, we desided to stay there a day longer than we had planned - not for the Taj Mahal, but for the restaurant...



Accomodation

Don't reserve anything in advance! You'll just end up paying more than you have to. You'll always find room, there's always a hotel willing to take you in.

If you want to get about 10% off the price of a hotel room, tell your taxi driver to take you to some location that you've looked up from the map - something that is within a walking distance from the hotel. Stay firm, and say that you are going meet some friends there (or some other convinient lie), then pay the driver, watch him drive off, and walk to the Hotel.

If you arrive at a hotel or a hostel in a cab, the cabdriver will get his cut - about 10%, and it will be added to your room price. That's the way the cookie crumbles. You can save by being smart.

(The same applies for shopping - the driver that takes you to a store will get a percentage. That's why they are always so eager to take you shopping - just stay firm, and you'll get to where you want to go.)

I have to admit that I don't remember the exact prices of acommondation, but I do remember that it was very cheap. Even for a student like me. Then again, we didn't really mind staying in rather primitive rooms - the cheapest place didn't have running hot water (not that uncommon), and no lights in the bathroom. Also, we had our own little pet - a rat :-). I think that night cost something like $2 a night for a double.

If you like though, you can pretty much live like a prince with rates that would still be on the cheap side by western standards. Mumbay might be an exeption - it's the most expencive place in India.


Recommended places to visit

India is such a large country that in a month you can only see a fraction of it. The high points of our trip were the following:


Nainital

A beautiful mountain village, in a small valley high up in the mountains. The village is built around a small central lake, so you can relax on a boat ride inhaling the fresh mountain air. Climbing up a bit (or taking a lift up), you can see the peaks of the Himalayas in the horizon. If you visit Nainital, be sure to go to the Corbett National Park that is fairly close by. You can get near Nainital by train, but the rest of the way, the mountain roads, you have to travel by bus or by car. (We had the Sumo...)


The Corbett National Park

I will never forget the short time we spent there for as long as I live. You are not allowed to bring meat to the camp in the middle of the park, as you don't want to attract predators. (The camp does have armed guards, so you can sleep feeling pretty safe - besides, this was just after our "Sumo" drive, so I wasn't about to let my sleep be disturbed by a couple of tigers or snakes... I had had my fear dosage for the whole India trip.)

If you go there, you must take the elephant ride - I was sure that it was just some sort of a take-the-money-off-the-dumb-tourists-scheme, where we'd sit on an elephant while it walked in a ring for a few minutes, so I didn't expect much. Boy was I wrong! We went right into the wilderness, for a two hour trip. It is impossible to convey in words the beauty of the nature there, the sheer numbers and variety of animals we saw in their natural environments, the humbling feeling that came over all of us... Suffice to say that on the same elephant I was on, there was a family with two kids - about six years old, I'd say. During the whole trip, they sat there quietly(!) as mesmerized as the adults were.

We were also allowed to take walks outside the camp (They said it was fairly safe at daytime, as the tigers hunt at night, but they would not guarantee our safety). There was a pre-determined route to a sight-seeing tower, and the view from there was... magnificent.

It was so magnificent in fact, that the morning of the day we were supposed to leave, we woke up early to walk there again. We began to doubt the wisdom of that decision about half way there (walking along a path surrounded by tall grass), as we spotted what looked like the fresh footprints of a tiger going across the path... We sort of turned back in a hurry, especially since the morning mist made us (quite correctly, as we later found out) think that maybe tigers might hunt a bit later into the morning in a fog like this... there's that fear-factor again - well, what's a life without taking a few chances?


Agra

The restaurant... oh, and Taj Mahal was pretty nice too.


Goa

We stayed in Goa for the last week - we visited several beaches, and had a great time in this paradise on earth. Goa distinctly differs from the rest of India - it has a more Western feel to it, there's less poverty, and you get pestered less by salesmen. The sea-food was a great addition to my self-imposed vegetarian diet.


Final impressions

India is a land of contrasts - unimaginable poverty and great riches occupy the same streets. I don't think that there was one traveller among us who didn't end up being overwhelmed, and shedding a tear in secret (or in the open) at some point for some particularly heartbreaking scene - we felt helpless at the face of the poverty and anguish. I think it got a lot of us thinking - for example, when we oppose so vehemently the child labour in India, are we going about it the right way?

Although a child loosing his or her childhood to work is a horrible thing, but have you ever thought what would happen to the children now working if they were laid off? I'm sure you'd like to imagine that they'd go to school, and have a normal, happy childhood, but I've seen children begging in the gutter - a sight that really makes you think. I don't have the solutions, I merely have a more complete grasp of the problem after this trip.

I also think I gained a little insight into the Indian mindset, the cultural ideas that differ so sharply from what I'm used to in Finland.

In India, I experienced things and saw beauty I never expected - those are memories that will last me a lifetime. India left me with a longing that has not gone away - this was certainly not my last trip to that beautiful land of contrasts.

As I sat on the beaches of Goa, in the last week of my trip, I felt content - I felt like I was privileged, that I had experienced something more than a mere holiday. I had experienced something to tell my grandkids about, and a bunch of new stories to drive my friends to the edge of boredom with.

I also felt more relaxed than I had in years - I was completely free of stress. I fell in love with India, in all it's wonders and shortcomings, in all it's poverty and riches.

I recommend India for everyone with a little sense of adventure in them - all you need to remember is to bring along an open mind and a humble desire to experience and understand what you see. If you have that, then you are in for a trip of a lifetime!


Recommended: Yes

Best Suited For: Students
Best Time to Travel Here: Dec - Feb