Loud and colorful!
When you live in a big city, it is often noisy. Above all, the cars make noise. But in India it is much louder again, as loud as you might not even be able to imagine. It honks and rumbles and stinks and smokes, just (almost) everywhere. But not only cars move on the streets, there are also the famous rickshaws. These are bicycle taxis that you can sit in and the rickshaw driver takes the guest to their desired destination. The roads are very different from ours, they often have large holes and it’s not that easy to drive here. The traffic rules in India are not that strict either. Whoever honks louder has right of way seems to be the rule here. And you should think twice about whether you really want to cross the street at a green pedestrian light.
Cows don’t know any traffic rules!
And it’s not just cars that frolic on the streets of India, goats and cows, cats and dogs also like to get lost there. Every year India also has many people to complain about who are victims of road accidents. By the way, half of them are pedestrians who weren’t fast enough. There are traffic rules, but traffic users tend to treat them as advice. Cows, sheep, goats and camels cannot read the rules, let alone adhere to them. Very few cars are roadworthy, and that often applies to public transport as well. It is not uncommon for a bus on which the brake does not work properly. Spare parts are expensive. So you let the bus go until it stops.
Oh holy cow!
In India the cows are sacred and are allowed to do just about anything. Cows are usually animals that don’t appreciate hectic pace. In India you will also like to see one or the other cow standing on the street somewhere. Cars will then drive around them carefully, nobody would think of driving away a cow.
Living in India
India is a very poor country and people often have to live on less than one euro a day. That is very little. That is why they cannot build houses that are as stable as we can. Half of the people have to get by without electricity. Something like simply turning on the light or listening to music on the radio or even turning on the television rarely works in India. So the children go out on the street and play there.
Stink
India has very many, very big cities. 17 million people live in Delhi and even more in Mumbai, even 20 million. That is almost five times as many people as in Berlin. And imagine if Berliners would just dump all of their rubbish on the street. There would be no garbage disposal and of course no garbage cans. So that there is less rubbish, people simply set fire to the rubbish. Some of the garbage also burns, but the greater part does not burn like all the plastic waste that now exists in India. As long as you only set organic waste on fire, that’s not so bad, but now there is a smell in many corners and the fumes from burning plastic waste are also harmful.
Water supply
The wastewater is mostly discharged unfiltered into the rivers and the water from it is drunk again or used for the preparation of meals. The result is the spread of bacteria from which people then become ill. Diarrheal diseases are common in India, but after a while the locals are better protected than the tourists, who are not yet familiar with the novel bacteria.
Disease and filth
There are not toilets everywhere in India. Many schools don’t even have a single toilet. In 2012 there was a state order that a toilet had to be installed at every Indian school – certainly a sensible project – we do not know how far these plans have progressed. So many people just sit on the side of the road and do their business there. This is bad because it is not only unsanitary and smells unpleasant, but also dangerous because it can spread diseases again.
Eating in India
Indian cuisine tradition
As a country located in Asia according to recipesinthebox, India is a very large country with many different landscapes, different people and religions. The food in India is as diverse as the country. Depending on where you live, you cook. But common to all Indian cuisine are the spices for which India has been known for thousands of years. Which spice is used depends on the region and the season. Since many Indians are self-sufficient and cannot buy strawberries in winter, as is the case with us, most people depend on what nature produces in each case. Sounds reasonable, doesn’t it?
Religion and food
The religions also shape the eating behavior of people in India. Immigrants came to India time and again, bringing their own culture and influencing the cuisine. Not to forget the English, who, after many years of colonial rule in India, simultaneously established and promoted tea culture in India. Many Hindus are vegetarians, although there are also Hindus in the cities who now eat meat. But the Muslim influence can also be felt in Indian food.
Men first
When it comes to eating, by the way, the men eat first and then the women. Women then have to eat what is left. Here you can see that women are often less valued than men.
From North to south
The dishes in North India are different from those in South India. While in the north, for example, flatbreads, including fried ones, are often served, vegetables are also often fried and pickled and rice and legumes are very popular, the south Indian cuisine is a lot lower in fat. Here the dishes are often steamed or fried. However, rice is very important in both regions. Rice pancakes or cooked rice bars are very popular.
