We stayed in India for more than three months, time enough to go all the way around. On the other hand, there are still many things that we haven’t seen which should be worth visiting. The problem with India is that it is so vast and the distances between places are so long and exhausting, but one thing is certain: India has some beautiful places to offer.
Traffic
There’s only one word to describe the traffic in India: crazy! Without exaggeration. First of all, on the roads only one rule counts: the survival of the fittest. Remember this when you drive a motorbike, because larger vehicles will drive you off the road. Worst of all are the buses because they seem to care about nothing or nobody. As someone once said to us: 'We have plenty of people walking around in India". That’s the reason trucks are more careful, they transport valuable merchandise. Secondly, the roads are filled with animals. Dogs are okay, they are generally smart enough to go off the road as you pass by. Goats and chickens on the other hand, are less smart so watch out for them. Also watch out for cows, especially for black cows in the middle of the night, trust us on this one. Thirdly, Indians are not courteous in traffic. They will do everything they can to go first even if that means they are causing a traffic jam. They even prefer to drive in the wrong direction, against traffic, than to drive around for 200 meters. Fourthly, the traffic rules are rarely followed, even when the police are standing in front of them; but they don’t care anyway. And finally they have an addiction to honking and driving with big lights in the night time.
Cuisine
If you want to eat cheap in India go for a meal. This means rice, dal and vegetables (mostly potatoes and cauliflower). You can also ask for side dishes with meat but you pay a lot for 4 pieces full of bones and fat. In most restaurants, you can also ask for other things. When you’re in a hurry, order a meal because other things can take easily half an hour, no matter how simple the food may be (yes, even an omelette can take that long). You can always ask for free drinking water (at own risk).
Indians
The people of India have not really a talkative culture. You can go to the store and the only thing the vendor will say to you is the price. They prefer to shake their heads. This means in most cases, yes. If you ask them for help and they can’t or don’t want, they will simply just look away and leave. “Picture?” This is probably the word you’ll hear the most during your stay in India. They love taking pictures of foreigners, but that doesn’t mean they’re going to talk to you. After taking a picture they will just turn around and leave…
We always got surrounded by many of locals during our breaks along the way, but still…no word.
Even though there behaviour was shocking for us, we never felt unsafe. So probably they are kind in their way.
Fortunately, there are some people who have made up for this by their hospitality and their helpfulness.
Language
If you think they speak English in India, you are wrong. Although English is the national language next to Hindu, there’s almost no one that speaks it. It does come in handy that many movie channels are in English. Also the road signs and the labels on merchandises are always written in English
Prices
Very easy in India is the fact that the maximum price is indicated on many products, such as drinks, cookies, etc. Because of this, they can’t cheat without you knowing. Monuments and temples charge tourists up to twenty times the price that an Indian has to pay. This dual-prizing was the reason we didn’t visit many attractions. We only made an exception for the Taj Mahal. Here we paid 750 rupees while an Indian has to pay only 20 rupees.
We can manage a little difference but this is just downright racism.
Hotels
We often had difficulties finding a hotel. This is because many hotels are only allowed to host Indians, as many hotels don’t have a permit for tourists. Moreover, in India a hotel often refers to a restaurant. Look for a guesthouse, lodge, resort, room or hostel.

Indian Rupees

More info on www.wijzijnweg.org