Steps Towards India: The Not-So-Glamourous To-Do List of a Backpacker

It wasn’t until I was walking into TSA that I realized I was actually going to India. Mentally, I knew I booked a ticket and made all necessary arrangements, but emotionally, it still felt too far-fetched to buy a one-way ticket from Louisiana to a remote region in South India to be a media volunteer for a non-profit, residential school.

As I write this in Paris, patiently awaiting my London to Bangalore flight tomorrow morning, slowly slipping into a sleep-deprived delirium, it still seems unreal. My dream to visit India and backpack Southeast Asia has nearly finally realized, and here are a few steps I took to prepare:

Vaccinations:

At this time, there are no required vaccinations to enter India as someone coming from America; however, there were plenty of recommended vaccinations to avoid a variety of intimidating diseases.

Before visiting your doctor or a travel clinic, I recommend checking the CDC’s website. Visit Travel’s Health page and click “Destinations”. Here, you can enter your destination(s) and see all required/recommended vaccines. This is an important first step before seeing a medical professional because you can prevent unnecessary costs and substances from entering your body.

While I chose to receive nearly all of my shots from Passport Health and am highly satisfied with their services, the first travel clinic told me it was mandatory to receive the yellow fever vaccine. This was ill-informed instruction. The yellow fever vaccine is only required if an individual is entering a country at risk for this disease or has been exposed to a person with yellow fever. The U.S. is not at risk, and I have not been exposed.

Without having consulted the CDC’s website and having a general idea of what I would need, I would have wasted a ton of money (around $150) and been subjected to an unnecessary, foreign substance.

Some recommended vaccines I didn’t have to get because I had already received them for other reasons in the past, but here are the principal shots I received specifically for my trip to South India and some other Southeast Asian countries:

This is not a comprehensive list and specific to my activities abroad. Please consult a trusted, medical professional before your travels.

Japanese Encephalitis, Cholera, Typhoid, and Hep A+B. I was also prescribed the antimalarial medication, Malarone.

Although rare, Japanese Encephalitis is a brain-swelling disease spread by mosquitos, and since I’m staying in a hot and humid environment — a perfect habitat for mosquitos, my nurse encouraged me to get the shot. To prevent malaria, which is also a mosquito-born illness, I was also prescribed Malarone. Some antimalarial medications can cause light-sensitivity, but Malerone does not. Warning: for people taking birth control, some antimalarial drugs can interfere with birth control’s efficacy. Be sure to consult your doctor for interactions.

Cholera is spread by contaminated food and water, and as someone who’s going to be hitting up street-food vendors, this was another important vaccine to get. The live vaccine I received was in liquid-form, and while far from appetizing, it wasn’t extremely hard to down. At worst, it tasted like an alka-seltzer. As for side-effects, the next day I did feel a bit queasy and tired. Maybe that’s coincidental or perhaps it was a consequence of being paired with the Japanese Encephalitis shot.

Typhoid and Hep A + B, typically spread by contaminated food and water, were also recommended.

Hot Tip: To potentially save a TON of money, check with your local government health unit for vaccines before receiving shots from a primary care office or travel clinic. The Hep A+B vaccine cost $10 at my health unit. At the travel clinic, it cost a whopping $150.

Visa:

Obtaining my Indian Visa was a breeze. You can find the application here. It only cost $40 for a year-long recreation visa (there’s also a 30-day visa available as well). While somewhat tedious to fill-out, it only took a few days to get processed and approved. To avoid any delays, I recommend submitting your visa application at least a month in advance of your journey.

Gear:

I’m carrying a black 42L Cotopaxi Allpa backpack that I had to run out and get the day before leaving because my 35 liter was too small. For a second carry-on, I chose the Mystery Ranch daypack which I’ll also use as my primary backpack when I’m exploring. For an approximately three-month backpacking trip, I’m really proud that I was able to minimize my luggage to this extent.

Since I’m a Media Volunteer, I’m bringing a lot of camera gear. I have a Canon Rebel Eos that I’ve had since I was 17, and two lenses. My primary lens is 18–55 mm, and for long-distance shots, I’ll be using a 75–300 mm. I’m also taking along my Sunpak collapsible tripod, which is able to fit in my backpack despite being rather large, and I just bought the Wireless Go 2 microphone. For storing audio and images, I’m using the 1TB SanDisk Extreme hard drive.

Wireless Go II and Canon Rebel Eos

Hot Tip: Defintely bring these three things on your trip to India/Southeast Asia:

1. Surge Protector: For 28% of Indian households in 2022, the power went out daily for up to two hours on average. 2% of Indian households reported they experienced power outages for up to 12 to 24 hours daily. 70% of India’s electricity is generated by coal, and there’s a problem with supply and demand. While the average Indian consumes less energy on average than the average American, India’s booming population is putting pressure on the coal reserves and other energy sources. In short, get a surge protector to protect your equipment.
   

2. Filtered Water Bottle: Around 40 million liters of wastewater seeps into rivers and other water bodies–making around 70% of India’s surface water unsafe for consumption. The World Bank estimates 21% of communicable diseases are linked to dangerous water and 163 million Indians need access to safe drinking water. Everyday, 500 kids under 5 die from diarrhea in India.

In the US, it’s extremely safe to just turn on the tap and start drinking, but in India that’s not the case. Luckily, the school I’m visiting has a filtered water system, but most places do not, and the local water sources are well known to be contaminated–causing a variety of illnesses.

To avoid this, I invested in the Grayl Ultra Press filtered water bottle — filtering out 99.9% of bacteria. It holds 16.9 ounces and is fairly light, which is a huge plus since my backpack will be pretty full.

Grayl Ultrapress

Clothing:

The clothing protocol for the school requires that I wear loose, conservative clothing. Even off campus, modesty is really important to adhere to in order to avoid unwanted attention. Unless it’s in beachy, touristy areas (and still, that’s even risky), India is rather conservative in terms of attire, so I tried to pack accordingly.

I packed five basic t-shirts, a few tank topics, a couple pairs loose-fitting pants, a jumpsuit, two shorts, and two kurtas (for those that don’t know what a kurta, I’ll explain).

I’m also bringing two button-up, long-sleeved shirts and a scarf just to have extra material to cover up with if necessary.

For shoes, I’m packing a pair of sandals, flip flops, and tennis shoes.

Yes, yes, yes, I realize this is super light for 3 months, but if I need something, I’ll get it when I’m over there. But the real stars of my clothing packing list are my kurtas.

Kurta

Kurtas are traditional Indian attire and have been popularized in other South Asia countries such as Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Afghanistan. The word has roots in Urdu and Sanskrit, and in Persian, it means collarless shirt. It has an ancient history, inspired by the tunics worn by the nomadic people group, the Yuezhi.

They brought over the tunics during the 2nd century, and they became popular in the Gupta Empire which encompassed most of the Indian subcontinent from the early 4th to 6th centuries. Persia is also thought to have had an influence on the kurta.

The kurta is a unique piece of clothing worn by all classes in India. It’s a collarless, loose shirt with long straight sleeves. Many have side-slits. As time has gone on, the kurta has adapted to the preferences of various regions and now comes in many different styles.

While many Indians choose to wear Western clothing, the kurta is extremely popular and a symbol of pride and identity. In fact, during the independence movement in India, British-made clothing was often rejected, many burning articles of western clothing and opting to wear kurtas.

India will be full of twists-and turns, surprising discoveries, and unforeseeable (and seeable) challenges. While it hasn’t been exactly fun preparing to leave, I know all the discomfort I’ve felt will be worth it. I’m so eager to get hands-on experience doing photography and videography, learn from the kids while on campus, absorb Indian culture, and then continue my travels across India and Southeast Asia. Hopefully, my experience will help guide you on your own adventures abroad.

Safe travels, my friends.