Dos & Don'ts…

Craig sent a list of Lonely Planet hints… probably not a good idea to  dress like these women , Mum (above)

Avoid tight clothes and keep shoulders and knees covered. Outside Goa, this applies to swimming, too.  Not the boys though. funny that LP didn't mention this is a girl thing only?

Public kissing, cuddling or holding hands is not condoned. Cheryl take note!

Be humble and dress modestly at holy places.

Remove shoes before entering people's homes and holy sites.

Always ask before photographing people or holy places.

That head wobble? It can mean 'yes', 'maybe' or 'I have no idea'. Best to just go with the flow.

Men can wear loose cotton shirts or T-shirts and baggy Pants. In the big cities and Metros like Delhi, Mumbai, Banglore, Pune, etc you can wear shorts also. However, women should dress conservatively. Short tops, short skirts / shorts, etc should be avoided. You can wear cotton shirts or T-shirts, with cotton trousers or ankle length skirts. Make sure that the clothes are not too tight or body revealing. These clothes can be easily purchased from the Indian markets at a reasonable price. If you want to try Indian clothing, then, men can wear "kurta pyjama" and women can try "salwar-kameez". Winters (October to February) in India are quite cold, especially North India. So, pack some woolen clothes with you. Also, pack some warm innerwear, Last but not the least, while visiting places of worship (temples, gurudwara or mausoleum), you should be fully clothed. Also, don't forget to remove your footwear before entering any religious place.

Shalwar kameez

(also spelled salwar kameez or shalwar qameez) is a traditional dress worn by both women and men in South Asia and Central Asia. Shalwar or salwar are loose pajama-like trousers. The legs are wide at the top, and narrow at the ankle. The kameez is a long shirt or tunic. The side seams (known as the chaak), left open below the waist-line, give the wearer greater freedom of movement. It is notably known for being the national dress of Pakistan ..

Shalwar are gathered at the waist and held up by a drawstring or an elastic band. The pants can be wide and baggy or more narrow, and even made of fabric cut on the bias.The kameez is usually cut straight and flat

Kurta

A traditional cotton Chikan embroidery kurta with wooden cuff-links-style buttons

Dupatta

When women wear the salwar kameez, they usually wear a long scarf or shawl called a dupatta around the head or neck.

PHOTOS thanks to  http://chaipilgrimage.com/2011/11/ and www.scienceofhinduism.blogspot.com

What does it cost?

http://www.all-about-india.com/Money-in-india.html

a cup of Chai (tea) or coffee for around 5 rupees on the street or 20 in a cafe.

budget hotel double room for about 200 rupees and a single for 100… with a communal shower and toilet

budget hotel double room for about 400 rupees and a single for 200… with a shower and toilet

a 15 minute rickshaw ride for about 60 rupees if you bargain hard.

At around 80-100 rupees a Thali ;Translated from Hindi as "Plate", (rice, namm, pickle)

What's a kiwi dollar worth in rupees...

1 New Zealand Dollar = 44.91926 Indian Rupee

10.00 NZD                    = 449.19      INR

http://themoneyconverter.com/NZD/INR.aspx

What does bakeesh mean?

Funnily enough when I google ‘bakeesh slang’…the top of the google page one list is my blog. Yay!

But when I google ‘bakeesh bribe’ I get this…

Transparency International’s 10 most corrupt countries in the world

http://www.travelpod.com/blog/2009/11/21/transparency-internationals-10-most-corrupt-countries-in-the-world/

and isn’t it great? India is not on it!!!  So I will assume it mean bribe or tip.

Middle finger to you – I-ran… Uoozbeckistan….somalia….Myanmar…. Afghanistan….Sudan…Haiti….I-raq…Chad….Turkmenistan (where the feck is that Ed?)

What I know about India now….

*St. Thomas arrived in Kerala from Israel in 52 A.D

*Saint Thomas died in India , in Chennai on The Mount , on the 21^st December in the year 72.

*The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel in the film is actually Ravla Khempur, located in Khempur, about an hour outside of Udaipur.

*Indian elephants have smaller ears than African elephants

*Maharajas’ Express is the newest luxury train of Indian Railways ..the cheapest rate per day is$US800

*The kama sutra was written in India

*Mumbai is about to get The Aquaria Grande project -skyscrapers that have pools instead of regular balconies

*The living root bridges are built by the ancient War-Khasi people of the Cherrapunjee region in India.

*The Musalman Daily”, daily newspaper published from Chennai in India and handwritten

*India is officially called the Republic of India

*Bull surfing in Kerala

*India is the world's most populous democracy.

*India's official national sport is field hockey not cricket

*The staple foods are wheat (predominantly in the north), rice (especially in the south and the east), and lentils

*Festival of colour

*Kama Sutra

*Goat Dragging or Buzkashi the Afghan sport played in India

*St thomas visited and died in india

*Cochin is a Portuguese enclave full of left footed fish eating Mickey Do's

*The Kama Sutra Temples Of Khajuraho

*Baba people

*Ancient Haridwar (the "Gateway to God")

*Dharamshala ,Amritsar It’s the spiritual capital of the Sikhs

*Bodhgaya where Buddha became enlightened under a Bodhi tree

*Rishikesh, the birthplace of yoga

*Jallikatti-Bull taming

*The game Kabaddi

* ‘Slumdog millionaire’ is a famous movie

* ‘The best exotic marigold hotel’ is another movie

*They hold cows sacred

*Their religion is Hindu

*The Ganges river is a major river

*Women wear Saris

*Women paint henna on their hands

*Goodness gracious me’ a telly programme

*Taj Mahal was  a memorial to a maharajah’s  wife

*Bollywood is a type of Indian film

*Ghandi was a famous leader

*Curry is made in India

*India excels at Cricket 

I forgot all about tea….

India is one of the largest tea producers in the world, though over 70% of the tea is consumed within India itself. A number of renowned teas, such as Darjeeling, also grow exclusively in India. Throughout Southern India tea houses are very common. Tea is boiled very hot with milk and sugar. When you order a cup of tea the tea maker (often men) will pour you out a cup in a long stream. This is done to not only cool the tea but also to give it a nice frothy texture. Chai from India is a spiced milk tea that has become increasingly popular throughout the world. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YuiA3sCkrn0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYoQoE64-dc&feature=related

Kama Sutra

The Kama Sutra  is an ancient Indian Hindu text widely considered to be the standard work on human sexual behavior in Sanskrit literature written by Vātsyāyana. A portion of the work consists of practical advice on sexual intercourse. It is largely in prose, with many inserted anustubh poetry verses. "Kāma" which is one of the three goals of Hindu life, means sensual or sexual pleasure, and "sūtra" literally means a thread or line that holds things together, and more metaphorically refers to an aphorism (or line, rule, formula), or a collection of such aphorisms in the form of a manual.

What I didn't know…

      ·         India is officially called the Republic of India (Bhārat Gaṇarājya)

·         The name India is derived from Indus, which originates from the Old Persian word Hindu.

·         India is the world's most populous democracy.

·         India's official national sport is field hockey not cricket

·         The staple foods are wheat (predominantly in the north),[288] rice (especially in the south and the east), and lentils not butter chicken

I want to go to the parade on the 26^th jan Craig

What I know about india…..

‘Slumdog millionaire’

‘The best exotic marigold hotel’

Sacred cows

Hindu

Ganges river

Saris

Henna

‘Goodness gracious me’

Taj Mahal

Bollywood

Ghandi

Curry

cricket