C215 stencil art in New Delhi:

via Wooster

Filed under: india, inspiration, stencil · 0 Comments

Check out the Kranti and Rubina zap guns. They are awesomely loud and used to shoot sparks, but the flints are worn out. Also, these two wooden tops have sharp metal points which are now rusty.

Filed under: india, tronix, zapgun · 3 Comments

We saw this via reddit a few days ago and haven’t stopped laughing since.

At first, you see a highway, with lanes painted on it, and drivers are even attempting to stay in the lanes! Pretty tame for India you think.. no animals in the road, no randomly stopped vehicles, no one going the wrong way… and then….

Filed under: india, motorcycle, transportation, video · 3 Comments

We are back from India! Happy New Year’s to all!

Filed under: excursions, india, photos, TajMahal · 1 Comment

This video is from a Pizza Hut. Can you imagine what Zante’s would be like in India???

Via this Mefi post, which links to lots of other dancing pizza videos!

Filed under: bollywood, food, india, pizza, video · 0 Comments

Bob: I’m bored. What should we do?
Raj: Only one thing, of course.
Bob: What is that?
Raj: DANCE!!!!
Bob: Um, OK.
Raj: Posse!! Gather and bring me my boombox!! HYAH!!!

NOTE: Watching the entire video may cause you to mess up at whatever you are doing.

Filed under: beats, india, video, wtf??? · 1 Comment

Remember when everyone thought it would be a great idea for me to go stand in a long line at the Indian Counsulate in SF to get visas for the family? Um, well, it was not that great an idea. (via fark of all places…)

Filed under: excursions, india, wtf??? · 1 Comment

We just got back from a trip to New Delhi. Here is some medical advice that you might find useful:

• Before our trip, we went to the CPMC travel clinic and met with a travel nurse ($25 consultation fee for two of us). We got the vaccinations and prescriptions, which were expensive. Vaccinations are cheaper at the SF Department of Public Health Travel clinic, but it takes a while to get an appointment. CPMC has a 30% discount on vaccinations if you have insurance, even if your insurance doesn’t cover the vaccinations!
• We made sure we were current on the recommended vaccinations: Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, Rabies, Typhoid, Tetanus, and Polio. If you are going to rural areas, you might need more. Here are the CDC recommendations.
• We got Malarone for Malaria (very expensive). I don’t know why this was recommended for us. It was January, and we didn’t get any mosquito bites in New Delhi. We also didn’t use a Mosqui-Go plug-in electric vaporizer. I think I saw one mosquito while I was there, and Malaria was definitely not a concern in the New Delhi winter.
• We got a prescription for Cipro, in case we got a bacterial infection that causes traveler’s diarrhea. It’s smart to have this prescription filled before you go, and fortunately we didn’t need it. Those of you with tendonitis should note that Cipro has a minor risk of tendon ruptures in some people, and there is other medicine that you can take.
• Although we had medicine for a bacterial infection, we didn’t have anything for a viral infection. If you get sick and are vomiting, it may be a viral, not bacterial infection, and Cipro may not help. One of us had to deal with a short-lived but violent attack of viral gastroenteritis. Fortunately we were traveling with a doctor. Compazine will help deal with ‘intractable vomiting’ if you are sick and need to ride in a car or get on a plane. It is available from Indian pharmacies under the generic name Prochlorperazine. I would recommend asking your doctor/travel nurse about this before you go to India!
• Everyone tells you to drink only boiled water, but all the houses we went to had one of these Aquaguard water filters. I always drank filtered water and never got sick. I don’t know why guide books and travel clinics don’t tell you about these filters.
  
• Costco is the cheapest place in SF to get your prescriptions filled, and you don’t need to be a Costco member to use their pharmacy.

That’s all the advice I have.. maybe bob has some more!

Bob says:
- when traveling abroad, big cities often do not have the same malaria risk as rural areas. for example, if one were traveling to Bangkok and not leaving the city, malaria prophylaxis may not be necessary. It would certainly be advisable if one were to explore the surrounding areas.
- if your insurance plan does not cover the expense for your medications, consider filling just enough to get you there, and buying the rest when you arrive. Of course, you should be sure you have easy access to a reliable pharmacy at your destination.
-travel safely!

Filed under: excursions, india, medicine · 8 Comments

I’ve been listening to this ridiculous podcast called Learn Hindi From Bollywood Movies… I love it! The guy who does it, Arun Krishnan, does a great job. I LOLed several times!

John Lennon had once said that ‘all you need is love’. In this matter, love is indeed different from orange juice. For there is many a breakfast we have had without orange juice, but seldom have we been able to enjoy an egg that has not been fried under the steady gaze of a soulmate.

Filed under: education, hindi, india, podcasts · 1 Comment

I’m going to India soon, and I know a bit of Hindi, but I usually become frustrated when trying to remember a word in the middle of a conversation and switch to English. Years ago I learned a bunch of German conversation snippets that I still remember, so I’m going to try the same with Hindi. I’ll add more and get Hindi translations as soon as I can figure out unicode..

• Door Into Hindi
• More Hindi videos
• HiTrans transliterator
• Hindi Type Pad
  

Food:
Conversations with my mom often go like this:

• Would you like more sabji?
• No thanks!
• How about some more rice?
• No thanks, I’m full!
• Then how about one more spoonful of dal?
• ….
  

• A polite way to ask for boiled water..
• Where is the chai store? – चाय की दुकान कहाँ है?
• More chai please!
  

Buying things:

• How much does this cost? – यह कितने का है?
  

(इसका दाम क्या है?)

• Can I pay for things in dollars? – क्य मै डॉलर (dollar) मे सामान खरीद सख्ते हुँ?
  

(Advice from dad: only shop where they accept dollars)

• Can I pay in dollars? (instead of rupees) – क्य मै डॉलर मे पैसे दे सख्ते हुँ?
• How about I give you X rupees for it?
• Ok, we’ll settle on Y
• Is there an ATM near here? क्य कोई ATM (pronounced like ETM) पस मे है?
  

General:

• Can you repeat that?
• What time is it?
• Do you have a map of Delhi? – क्या आपके पास दिल्ली का नक़्शा है?
• I’m hot/cold/tired.
• Can I borrow a blanket?
• Are there any internet cafes near here? – क्य कोई internet cafe पस मे है?
  

Emergency:

• I am sick.
• I need a doctor.
• I need to get to a hospital.
  

Vocabulary:
नक़्शा = map
दाम = price

Filed under: all talk, excursions, hindi, india · 4 Comments

Vinay posted a bunch of pictures from Goa, including this picture of Pokemon Holi color! Total culture mashup!

Jess and I had a great Holi too! Check out the flickr holi tag for some amazing images!

Filed under: holi, india, photos · 0 Comments