Full Indian

Jen and I have created a phrase, 'Full Indian' to describe when travelers adopt behaviors that are typically Indian. This includes simple things such as drinking chai with the Indian amount of milk and sugar. However, it is more than just wearing clothes bought in India, it is wearing a full selwar suit, dupatta, and all the typical accessories of bangles and Bindi dots. Likewise, eating spicy Indian food is not 'Full Indian,' unless you eat it at an establishment or home for locals and you eat it with your hand. Taking bucket showers, throwing rubbish out the window, and blowing snot rockets without Kleenex is also 'Full Indian.' And then, something I didn't expect to adopt, but now find liberating, is replacing toilet paper with water. After four months in India I have started to accept a new norm. I am even temporarily horrified when I see a tourist with bare shoulders and I am surprised by fixes prices.