Indians ?!!?!?!?!?? (school districts, college, places to live)

[tahiti]

i had one of the most facinating dinners a few years ago with 3 indian collegues. i learned more in that 2 hours than in my entire life about india, the people, culture, etc. these 3 gentlemen were so happy and willing to answer any and all of my questions. I hung on their every word.

but to answer your question - i work with A LOT of indians (i'm a minority being a white american female) and nearly all are kind and helpful. they seem truly happy to be here, which is nice to see.

[rickers]

I know that India gave the world two wonderful things;
Madras curry powder and chillums !

[LauraPetrie]

Originally Posted by 66nexus

The accent is awesome

I am not a big fan of that myself

[LauraPetrie]

Originally Posted by rileybear

I try to be tolerant and accepting of all cultures, so please do not take this in an offensive way, but how come it seems that some Indians do not wear deodorant, I have heard that it is not a custom of Indian culture, is that it?

THanks.

Offensive, this sounds funny to me .. . Maybe the Indians you know dont wear deo, but most of us here use them just as much as anyone of you . That reminds me, is it true that people here take a bath only if they feel like it and not everyday ?? Now, that sounds to me.. Dont mean to be offensive here, just curious..
Maybe you should gift your Indian friends a deodorant on their birthdays

[LauraPetrie]

Originally Posted by tahiti

i had one of the most facinating dinners a few years ago with 3 indian collegues. i learned more in that 2 hours than in my entire life about india, the people, culture, etc. these 3 gentlemen were so happy and willing to answer any and all of my questions. I hung on their every word.

but to answer your question - i work with A LOT of indians (i'm a minority being a white american female) and nearly all are kind and helpful. they seem truly happy to be here, which is nice to see.

You are so right Tahiti. I have seen that myself. Most americans, for a part ,have a very limited knowledge of India, Indians and its customs. When we explain it all to them, I have seen a lot of surprised 'I didnt know that !" looks and they are truly in awe then. If anyone here has any doubts on Indian customs or Indian people, I would be pleased to answer them for you

[LauraPetrie]

Originally Posted by Viralmd

I really believe that the attitudes you encounter reflect how educated and multi-cultural the people whom you meet are. Accepting other cultures for what they are, learning from all the others to whom one is exposed is something that is encouraged by some and discouraged by other, less worldly, individuals. Most people don't know that English is one of the official languages, among many, in India. And I could go on with lots of stereotypes. Again, reflecting how open others are to learning about other cultures. My experience with Indians here and in India has been nothing but positive.

You are so right. I have an american friend, and when I first met her , she was surprised at the fact that I could speak good English (though not in her cool accent ,which I do try by the way) . I wrote her a note once , and she was surprised that I could spell her name !!!!! She was amazed that I read English books , magazines and stuff as much as her(I have been reading them ever since I remember !!) and I love watching Bewitched . No, i dont need any subtitles for that..
So basically, she was not familiar with the fact that English is an official spoken language in India. It might not be our first language, but back there we learn as many as 5 languages and English is one of them .

[ahkeer]

Originally Posted by simmi

Offensive, this sounds funny to me .. . Maybe the Indians you know dont wear deo, but most of us here use them just as much as anyone of you . That reminds me, is it true that people here take a bath only if they feel like it and not everyday ?? Now, that sounds to me.. Dont mean to be offensive here, just curious..
Maybe you should gift your Indian friends a deodorant on their birthdays

Are you being sarcastic?....because that's a new one on me.
Now that you mention it...There is a guy (american) at my office who regularly smells bad.
I thought everyone bathed EVERY day.

BTW I love Indian food, and the way it smells.

[LauraPetrie]

[quote=ahkeer;1216682] Are you being sarcastic?....because that's a new one on me.
Now that you mention it...There is a guy (american) at my office who regularly smells bad.
I thought everyone bathed EVERY day.
QUOTE]

Nope, not being sarcastic.. was just clearing my doubts.. I really and truly heard that from someone American..

[mead]

Yeah I hope all American people bathe daily. I even know some people who bathe 2 times a day, which I think is a bit much.

A few people I know like to take a shower before they go to sleep, instead of in the morning but I can never do that. My hair always gets all messed up when I sleep.

I don't think they have Anti-persperant for sale in India. Thats the biggest problem, because it really just isn't available over there. You can buy the spray-on deoderant stuff, but I never really thought that stuff worked properly. If you really want to get rid of any and all smells you need both a deoderant and an anti-persperant combined in one.

Europeans are definitely worse than Indians though. Most Indians when they come to the USA will start using deoderant, but many Europeans I know refuse to wear it even after being over here for several years.

[LauraPetrie]

Anti perspirants are available in India now. Infact, they were available earlier too, but were limited to shops which would sell imported stuff. I guess many people didnt know that. Pray ,tell me why do Europeans refuse to wear deo????????
This is turning into a general hygeine thread..lol..