BellaOnline Forums Travel and Culture Indian Culture Ten Indian Culture Tips for tourists

Are you planning a holiday in India? It would do you good to get acquainted with India�s queer cultural practices before landing on the sub continent. Here are some tips to guide you along and help you make the most of your Indian experience.

IndianCulture

Dear Preena -

I was talking about the "staring at strangers" concept in my race class I'm taking. Some people find it very rude - but others find it to be simple human curiosity. We are curious about things that are new to us!

Hi Lisa,

People are always curious but i guess there must be a limit especially when it's about other people. Indians are used to getting stared at and with more Indians getting educated this trend is expected to decline.

I had gone to India a few years back & a colleague of my husband's had come with us for business. Now he's a big American guy -- 6'5" but I was surprised at how uncomfortable he felt. He actually used the phrase: "I feel like a moving target!"

Well in India, the concept of "personal space" is not there -- simply because the general population is massive & everything is usually jam packed & crowded.

People watching is always fun, but staring is uncomfortable -- esp when men leer at women, now that's just plain creepy!

Hi Sadhana!

You are right about the absence of personal space in India. Just yesterday India recorded the 7 millionth birth! There is no place in India that is free of crowds. Indians don'd find that a cause of concern because they are simply used to lack of space. But I can imagine how terrified your American friend must have been:)

Staring is something the average Indian just can't do without. I agree its creepy and most disgraceful!

I wonder what it does to your view of the world to live in a crowd all the time, and not have space to have peace and quiet and rest.

India might be crowded but there are places to get away and enjoy a spot of peace and quiet and all who can afford these getaways do take them now and then. But majority of Indians just live a crowded life with totally no clue as to what lies in the whole world as such..

Well ironically, when most people from India come to visit here (US) --- they find life very quiet & even isolating. They find it very odd how you can live for years on a street or in an apt bldg without knowing all of your neighbors well. My cousin found it so odd that when I was living in my NYC apt for years, I had no clue who my neighbors were. She also couldnt believe I was living by myself in such a big city. The majority of girls in India live with their parents until marriage, then you go to your husband's family home.

They find it very strange how you just cant stop by a friend's house without first calling to arrange a time. Also, strange how you stop by someone's house & are not asked to stay for lunch or dinner.

They are shocked by public displays of affection & what is acceptably shown on tv here. Also, how inappropriately many dress here (esp women).

Best of all, they are surprised at how life in the US is so strictly based on time! Because in India, time is relative --- it's all based on Indian Standard Time :-)

very very true Sadhana...but now life in Indian metro cities has changed a lot. People who live in apartment complexes have no clue as to who lives next door...but every place is crowded. There is no escape from crowds here in India.

It is a culture shock for Indians who move abroad. After all we have a new definition for time in India, its Indian stretchable time (IST)