The British are staying out of this

So, Indian history is often incomplete, for example missing the last 65+ years. You can imagine the first thing many Indians bring up on meeting Germans, while I busy myself trying not to burst out with "Don't mention the war" in the manner of John Cleese. I have instead settled on "I'm staying out of this one" (like Switzerland)

A more awkward example, unfortunately directed at some German tourists too young to really understand, contains the following moments

"You are from Germany"
"German, You hate Jews?"
"Blonde Hair, you Aryans, light skin"
"Hitler, He's Germany leader... Good man, likes aryans"
Not even touching this one!

Loan words

As an English speaker with not a word of the Dravidian languages, I don't even try to follow local conversations. However, Indian languages borrow what they need, and often this comes from English. If anyone has been following the news (and inserting random sounds for Kannada) you can imagine the following otherwise unusual conversations -

deli dejani ginahu suga sabinar "gang rape" sabar kehu. Suchinea "gang rape" kari kaludi me bragee.

Other loan words and phrases seem to be "very strict" and "qualification". Yes I can imagine neither of these concepts existed before. (Very strict was in fact the norm)

Reasoning

It strikes me that India will have a problem reducing road deaths at a very basic level. After some thought the basic prerequisite for all safety measures is fear. Fear of death or serious injury, or perhaps failing all else the police. Rational reasoning can only go so far to convincing people to take precautions. Unfortunately, Indians don't seem to have this fear

'Fixing' things

Most Indian historical sites will display a notice informing people of the statutory protection for historical buildings in India. Damaging the sites is punishable, 'fixing' them however does not seem to be. How many beautiful rock-cut caves and temples are partially cemented over to make steps. Or where the stones crack, someone has helpfully filled it with bits of off-colour cement which I doubt adds a single structural benefit to the 1000 ton building. The sites cannot be damaged but railings and lighting can be added... in fact this kind of thing is included under the banner of 'tourist development'. How I longed to have seen the renovated temple in the forest in its 'overgrown' state...

Doubt, part 2

I have been obsessed with litter, its that nagging ever present problem in India. And then it struck me - what if it isn't a problem after all. Litter is visible, its bad to look at. Is that the real nature of the problem. Unless it is causing specific pollutants to be released into sensitive areas - why not?

Notes for pedants:
yes small animals can get stuck in certain waste items
some animals may swallow waste items believing them to be food
etc...

Turbo 10000

Who fancies an SNK 10000, or a Turbo 10000, or a Marden 5000 or whatever it is. I'm not sure where these large numbers come from, but the beer names don't inspire confidence. The quality isn't great as you can imagine. I have heard some people say the beer isn't cheap, but they clearly haven't read the label. For about Rs95 - Rs130 (GBP 1.50 ish) you get a 650ml bottle of 8% beer. That's about 4 regular strength 330ml bottles...

So the question is who is to blame for India's drinking problem, well lets see they seem to rate whiskey quite highly... oh dear. The lack of a drinking culture is often exaggerated. Sure some Indians walk into a bar, and leave 30 minutes later barely able to walk. There is also the problem of a quick beer where you are expected to drink as fast as you can. But I have also seen Indians drinking to celebrate a gathering (albeit quickly) or chatting over a drink, in Puduchery nobody has even drunkenly harassed me. (so far). I haven't got a picture yet but there is almost always a uniformed 'guard' outside a bar. I thought this was just to let you know that you were doing something seedy. Leave civilised society at this point. But here some of the guards are smarter...a new parallel is apparent... the uniform looks almost military. British officers clubs? (Or French as the case may be)

There is a worrying trend in the advertising, one of the interpretations of a whiskey called "royal challenge". Other adverts confirm that the message is 'are you man enough to drink this'. I prefer to be told that drinking beer will get me friends and get me laid. I suppose the marketing for a sophisticated tipple is common.

Doubt

Am I becoming inane? It would help if blogger had a vote but I don't trust small sample sizes

My neighbour's food is tastier

While we may associate India with Indian food, Indians seem quite keen on Chinese food. More expensive restaurants are keen to advertise their selection of 'Chinese' dishes. In fact this was the first boast of the chef I met in Krishnagiri. Bulk food shops have a wide selection of noodles, hey I don't know maybe there is some tradition of noodles in India. Of course I have also had an Indian explain that Manchurian is an Indian style... the food is kind of a hybrid. I feel I'm not quite getting the cultural experience when I fall back to my usual protein staple (egg fried rice with extra egg) - the standard condiment seems to be tomato ketchup.