TRAVELED TO INDIA & HATED IT! What went wrong?

[@mooniebo2752]

south has way more education and progressive values. the north there are rarely women on the street in public life so women who are there especially unaccompanied by a man are 'uncovered' and fair game. north can be racist. I was denied entrance to hotels and restaurants like we were in Jim Crow south. my experience: lived in India for almost a year and traveled entire perimeter as a black woman. mostly solo travel.

[@apoorvjoshi2383]

are you from India?

[@romanlillie]

Honestly i enjoyed my time in the North and the South but i understand what you're saying.

[@iraisraelofficial]

Very cool!

[@romanlillie]

so glad you liked it!

[@webabhi]

India is a very diverse country however I don't know why foreigners are only interested in Golden Triangle in India which is Delhi, Agra and Jaipur? These places have forts, palaces and monuments. There are three types of foreigners visiting Golden Triangle: 1) Those who spend money, they stay in fancy hotels and go to forts, palaces and monuments with smart English speaking tour guides. They have a good experience in India. 2) Budget travellers, they stay in good hostels and take public transportation and see the monuments. They say India is doable and rewarding. 3) Cheapskates, they choose bad hotels costing US$ 10 a night, their only exposure to Indian food is cheap street food. They go shopping in street markets and hustle with street vendors for bad quality products. Then they refuse to see monuments because they have entry fees. These are the foreigners shouting India Sucks and India is Disgusting. In the Himalayan region you have following regions, Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Nepal, Sikkim, Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh. Kashmir is so different from Sikkim and exploring only Kashmir and Sikkim will take you 10 days. So I think the diversity of India needs to be appreciated.

[@apoorvjoshi2383]

I do apologize for any uncomfort you ladies had to bear while your stay in India. There is a massive case of culture shock when it comes to India, and it grows worse once you move north to south or vice versa. I will not go into which side is better, i have lived at both places, and trust me, both have their own pros and cons. Even though the general density of educated populace grows when you go south, high education density does not automatically equals to decent humans. similarly low education rate does not automatically equals to criminal. Yes there are trends, but it is not always the case. Either way i strayed from my point, what i meant was both sides has its pros and cons..but the main problem that unites us to this day..is obsession with the west. We all are trying to preserve our culture but that addiction to western standards is slowly polluting a lot of places in India, specially the obsession with white skin. It is only recently that people, specially women have started accepted brown and black as their own identity that they can wear proudly. Until a few years ago, whitening creams were a massive trend, they still are, but at least now more women are aware of it. Sadly, for the older generation, these changes in norms is proving difficult to adopt. Specially the generation, who were of ill fortune, had less money or education growing up and have a very little idea of whats happening outside of their own little bubble that they have known as their whole life. Dark skin exists over entire India, but it gets significantly lighter as you move north. So you ll see a higher concentration of dark skin down south and less up north. Now since India is so massive, and a lot of our population cannot afford a cross country travel, most underprivileged folks form the north/south haven't been around the country, let alone outside the nation. As a result, they have a very skewed notion of skin colors. And there comes a prejudice associated with it. I wish it was not like this, and we were aware of the spectrum of color we indians ourself boast. We out of all should have been foremost in accepting all colours as beautiful..but sadly it isn't. Not to mention, as the lady herself mentioned, a black woman with dreadlocks or bald head is sure to attract attention..as neither of them are even heard of in majority of India. Dreadlocks may still pass as braids at a first glance as braids are very common but women in India do not shave their heads traditionally, at least i have never met or seen any such case. A few cultures may do it, or for certain ceremonies, but bald head is considered normal only on a middle aged man or above. even young boys are only clean-shaved when there are some religious ceremonies(that can range from celebratory to mourning..i shall not go too deep into it)...so yes it would definitely garner unwanted attraction. All these reasons apparently just..came crashing down all of a sudden making you uncomfortable. Once again i do apologize, and if there is anyone out there, who is vary of visiting India due to multitude of reasons..all i would suggest is, kindly preplan everything..prebook everything...unless you have friends here in local, which you should try to find through trusted channels, it would be very helpful. We indians know how to move around with little to no planning, but for a guest it would be overwhelming. Take sometime to research, the temperatures vary as India is not temperate throughout the land, the cultures massively vary, the geography changes every few hours of travel...and it is not easy even for us Indians to take in all the sensations at once. I do hope that you enjoy whenever you plan your next trip to India and you will leave with a new and better perspective of my country.

[@romanlillie]

Yes, i hope to help prepare people for the cultural differences so they can enjoy visiting India. There's a lot to appreciate and enjoy.

[@TruthSerum101]

@18:33 I hear that repeated ad nauseum, but there is quite a diverse representation of Black Americans in movies and on television.

[@romanlillie]

We love diverse representation.

[@qamp749]

The stares according to my research, they do that to everyone even white people so dont think its because your black, your just different.

[@romanlillie]

very true. it's a cultural difference that can result in many people from many regions getting stares.

[@monarnyc]

Want to visit India but thinking will do a tour. Never did a tour, traveled solo but India is a whole nother story.

[@romanlillie]

haha yes, solo travel in India can be a lot. But it's also really fun if you're prepared. But a tour is a great way to go, especially for a first visit.

[@christinelamb1167]

It's nice to see you again, Roman! It's been quite a while. India is definitely not for everybody! When I went, I didn't really have any issues, but I was with a tour group the majority of the time. I do have to say, on the occasions I was with only 1 or 2 of my fellow travelers, I felt a bit more on guard. I never really went walking around on my own, so I can imagine it would probably be different. I did get a lot of stares, for sure, even when I was with my group. I loved my trip to India, but I'm not sure I would want to try to navigate India on my own!

[@romanlillie]

Thank you! And yes a tour is a great way to go. Especially for a first visit.

[@webabhi]

India is for everybody, If you like warm vacation you can visit Kerala. Munnar, Thekkady, Kochi, Alleppy and Varkala. This itself is a 10 day trip. Kashmir: Srinagar, Gulmarg, Sonamarg and Pahalgam. Gulmarg is a ski resort in India. This also is a 10 day trip. You will also see how different Kerala is from Kashmir. Golden Triangle is not for everyone. If you are spending money on monuments and tour guides then it is good. If you are not spending money on monuments and tour guides then it is bad.

[@bettyconfettii]

Good to see your uploading again! I was suppose to go May 6 th but I keep hearing that r@pe is so bad I had to reschedule for fall

[@romanlillie]

Oh no. I hope you can go and have a wonderful time!

[@lornaearl2572]

Roman I love your positive attitude! I moved to India when I was 17, and while I can't say I completely understand your feelings and experience as an African American woman (I am white), I definitely get what your friends said about the stares and lack of boundaries. What I can say is that when you understand India and Indian culture, navigating situations becomes a lot easier. It just takes time! And research, research, research.

[@romanlillie]

Thank you so much! And yes, it's really important to understand cultural differences when visiting or living in a foreign country. I love India, but it's hard for some people.

[@bjjack5760]

Good to see you back

[@PradeepRaajkumar1981]

Please visit South India Dear

[@romanlillie]

Yes! I love South India. Varkala is so beautiful!!!

[@tuttoja10]

Beautiful ladies , wish you all the best in your travels

[@romanlillie]

Thank you!

[@sbkpilot1]

India has a caste system, darker skin is considered inferior and white skin is considered the most elite. Unfortunate and perhaps shocking in this day and age but this ideology still persists in India. However, to be fair, this is way worse in China.

[@romanlillie]

yes, I did a video where i interviewed a guy about the caste system in India. It's hard to understand.

[@klamentyne5991]

What does China have anything to do with this??

[@mercury-pc5qc]

@@klamentyne5991 Because colorism exists all throught Asia. Unfortunately, it's still prevalent here whether it's South or East Asia.