'Elbowing can be handy'

Lonely Planet's customised guides for Indian travellers say as much about Indians as they do about the places they visit

When Lonely Planet made up its mind to bring out travel guides customised for the Indian traveller, it had very good reason to do so. Middle-class Indians, newly enriched by economic liberalisation, have eagerly embraced the Foreign Holiday. In 2010, for example, 12.99 million Indians travelled abroad, according to the Ministry of Home Affairs’ Bureau of Immigration. And by 2020, no less than 50 million Indians will travel out of the country every year, estimates the United Nations World Tourism Organisation.

As the world’s largest travel guide publisher, it made perfect sense for Lonely Planet to, for the first time ever, come up with books tailored for a country-specific traveller. After extensive research, which began in 2009, into the needs, likes, interests and, most important, habits of the Indian traveller, Lonely Planet is out with Lonely Planet for the Indian Traveller, a series of 10 travel guides, to Singapore, Thailand, Hong Kong, Dubai, Bhutan, China, Great Britain, London, France and Italy.

Now, the thing is, these guides do more than tell us about these popular destinations. They also hold a mirror up to us Indian travellers. And the image we see in it is far from flattering.

For one, we come across as people who believe in travelling in large groups, quite unlike the archetypal traveller (and consumer) of the Lonely Planet guides. Then, we are loud, compulsive shoppers who also love the sound of the word “free”.

Right at the beginning of the guide to London, marked “Top Choice”, is a tempting segment titled “London for Free”. Inside is a quick list of museums, like the British Museum, the National Gallery and the Victoria & Albert Museum, that will not charge a penny to allow us to view their treasured collections. Also listed are parks and iconic buildings, like Westminster Abbey and St Paul’s Cathedral, that can be visited without having to dig into the wallet.

This is still handy information. What takes the cake, however, is the checklist of dos and don’ts in the first few pages of some of the guides. Sample this. The guide to France advises, “Don’t talk or laugh loudly in museums and public places; also explain to your children about being quiet in such places.” The one to London tells us, “Saying ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ are considered good manners.” And, “don’t jump queues”. And, “Do not offer unsolicited opinions”.
 

DESI TRAVELLER: DOS AND DON’TS

When in London…

• Do be polite to anyone you speak to. Saying ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ are considered good manners.
• Don’t block the escalator; always stand in a single file to the right.
• Do not jump queues; if you do, you’ll be sure to elicit strong reactions from those around you.
• Do not crowd around ticket counters.
• Do not bargain in department stores; you can try your luck in the markets though – but politely.
• Do not offer unsolicited opinions.
• Do not speak loudly in public.

When in France…

• Don’t talk or laugh loudly in museums and public places; also explain to your children about being quiet in such places.
• Don’t try on clothes without asking the salesperson first. Do also ask the salesperson for your size before rummaging through the neatly stocked piles of clothes.

The guide to China, however, offers no such lessons in basic etiquette. That is a relief. Could it be that when in China, we are better behaved? That myth is busted the moment you turn to the section on “Local Life and Etiquette”. It emerges that we share more with China than a border. The subsection on “Public Behaviour” says: “At train stations and bus stops expect a fairly high level of noise and crowding. Spitting and littering remain common in spite of government campaigns. [F]amiliarity with the art of elbowing could prove handy.” We see ourselves again in the subsection on “Bargaining Chinese Style” which, says the guide, can be chaotic, but “for the seasoned Indian bargainer, it should not hold any terrors”.

What also emerges is that no matter where we go, we Indians cannot escape Bollywood. Or, put it this way: we do not want to escape Bollywood. So, a section on “Bollywood in London” lists Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, Mujhse Dosti Karoge?, Jhoom Barabar Jhoom and Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham. France gives us, among others, An Evening in Paris, Ishq in Paris and Don. Not to be left behind, China offers Chandni Chowk to China and Housefull, among others.

The same goes for Indian food. We will seek it out anywhere. Hence, the guides offer plenty of options in Indian and vegetarian cuisines — down to Vishnu Restaurant in France “if you are in the mood for a thali”. Even in parts of China where it is not easy, or even possible, to find vegetarian food, the books offer helpful tips. Such as, to say “Wo chi su” to specify that you are vegetarian because otherwise “greens are often fried in animal fats, and veg soups may have beef or chicken broth”.

Lonely Planet is masterful at what it does. That much is evident from these exhaustive guides, that are anchored by Indian authors who live or have lived in the countries these guidebooks describe. The books are replete with handy family travel and safety tips; they contain expert advice and recommendations, give a sense of history and offer interesting snapshots — like Chateau Cheverney’s Tintin connection, which the comic-book series creator Hergé used as a model for Captain Haddock’s Marlinspike Hall, and much more. Every place has been visited, tried and tested before it has made it into the guides.

Where the books become Indianised is in how their sections are organised. For example, the general idea is that the Indian traveller is visiting a country for the first time and will, by and large, stick to the popular destinations. But there are some travellers who like to explore off the beaten track. For them there are little boxes titled “Detour” and “If You Like”. Pity that the Shaolin Temple, legendary birthplace of kung fu, gets just two paragraphs under “Detour”.

All this takes one back to the journey that Tony and Maureen Wheeler undertook 40 years ago in a beat-up old car with the little money they had saved, begged or borrowed. That adventurous overland trip through Europe, Turkey, Afghanistan, India, and all the way to Australia was what eventually led to the birth of the Lonely Planet guides. For decades since, the guides have been the bible of budget-conscious backpackers and adventure-seekers, those smitten by wanderlust and, of late, even affluent travellers.

With this series, that sacred relationship between the traveller and this lonely planet appears to have been disturbed. Perhaps we should call it Packed Planet for the Noisy, Nosy Indian.

LONELY PLANET FOR THE INDIAN TRAVELLER
(series of 10 titles)
Authors, editors: Various
Publisher: Lonely Planet Publications
Pages: 300-350
Price: Rs 495-595