Friday 9 October 2015

[www.keralites.net] 21 American habits I lost i n India​ ​by Rachel Rueckert

 

21 American habits I lost in India

by Rachel Rueckert

1. Expecting things immediately.

I come from a microwave culture with expressions like "time is money." In India, I learned to wait. If someone said it would be thirty minutes for a table, I assumed it would be a few hours. If someone said they would meet me at three, I showed up with a book to read. Patience, I was shocked to discover, is a learnable virtue.

2. Panicking when there's no toilet paper.

Millions of people in the world live without toilet paper and rely on their hands, buckets of water, and soap. It took me a few attempts, but the new routine may be even cleaner than the way we do it in the West.

3. Complaining about how complicated American weddings are.

A year's worth of planning for an American day-long wedding ceremony doesn't come close to the complex processes and rituals Indian couples and families go through. Most ceremonies last for days and include several celebrations leading up to the actual wedding. There are families who save for decades to throw the best wedding party.

4. Being afraid to wear florescent colors.

My favorite color is yellow, which isn't often flattering in US fashion. But in India I can wear a bright banana yellowsalware kameezewith a matching sparklydupattaand fit right in with the vivid saffron, indigo, purple, and lime-green saris women wear every day.

5. Being offended by invasive questions.

People never got tired of asking "How much money do you make?", "Why don't you have children?", "How much do you weigh?" I also became perfectly comfortable discussing bowel movements with friends.

6. Thinking the "third floor" is literally on the third floor of a building.

It took me a few awkward visits to local stores to realize that what I assumed was the first floor is called the "ground floor." The "first floor" is actually on the next level up.

7. Being used to bad customer service.

Customer service is good — almost too good in India. I felt uncomfortable having a napkin spread out on my lap for me or having my glass refilled every time I took a swig of water. I think the security guard at my apartment stood up to greet me every single time I passed by.

8. Making lump assumptions about India rather than recognizing the differences that separate each state and region.

India is the largest democracy in the world with hundreds of languages separating different cultures, religious beliefs, and traditions. Even something as stereotypical as Bollywood doesn't apply to a large chunk of India where Hindi is not primarily spoken. Each state could be a different country.

9. Eating with utensils.

Few things were more satisfying than squishingdaland rice between my fingers. Eating with my hand instead of a fork made it easier to mix satisfying flavors without tasting any intrusive hints of metal.

10. Waiting for cars to stop before I cross the street.

If I'd waited for vehicles to give me the right-of-way I would never have crossed the road in this lifetime. My world changed when an Indian friend taught me to use what she called "the hand of God." If I stuck out my hand with my palm facing traffic and walked with confidence into the street, the cars magically stopped.

11. Gawking at a family of five squished on a motorbike.

In India you'll see families balanced on a scooter as frequently as you'll see cows wandering the roads. Eventually I stopped staring and believed what I was seeing.

12. Thinking worship had to be done in silence.

Temples are often filled with songs, chantedpujas, bells, and chatter. There is a place for quiet meditation, but don't plan on sleeping well if there's a religious festival going on at the local Hindu temple.

13. Cringing at the smell of sewage and garbage heaps.

All countries have challenges and India is faced with the massive task of dealing with public waste for over a billion people. I couldn't escape the smells and walked through a few sewage rivers in the road, but I tried not to forget the good scents too. Few aromas compare to jasmine flowers, incense, and tandoori ovens.

14. Thinking I had any idea what Indian food tasted like.

The majority of the world's spices originate from India. I used to think chicken tikka masala, naan, and mango lassi found in American restaurants were good representations of tasty Indian food. The cuisine varies drastically depending on the state, but no matter the dish it will explode your expectations and tastebuds. The world would be a lot better if I could find decent dosa, pickled mango, chicken biryani, curd, or any Andhra food served up on a banana leaf in the US.

15. Putting up with fake fruit juice.

Boxed orange juices packed with artificial sugars lost all appeal once I tasted fresh-squeezed guava and mango juice in the mornings. No matter the season, there is always real juice on hand.

16. Insisting on personal space.

If I could move sideways, backwards, or forwards on a bus, then the vehicle was not at capacity. People cram together when they eat or stand in lines. I got used to moving shoulder-to-shoulder when I visited the city.

17. Expecting set prices.

Haggling is a part of everyday shopping, even when some places claim to have set prices. Often I got deals for less than half the sticker price.

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18. Doing lots of planning and traveling to visit something old or historical.

In India, if you go in any direction long enough you'll see an artifact or building that's at least 500 years old. India is steeped in history and has preserved much of its ancient culture. You'll never see it all here.

19. Being suspicious when someone stares at me.

Foreigners stand out in India, and staring is not considered rude. Most looks, from both men and women, come from a place of friendly curiosity.

20. Pretending I understood the word spicy.

I thought I had a high spice tolerance before visiting India, but it's all relative. I found there is only really spicy, kill-me-now-spicy, and I'll-be-on-the-toilet-for-weeks spicy.

21. Believing my worldview was best.

India stretched my mind and burst my understanding of how I thought the world worked. As I watched women bathe in the Ganges River, Tibetan monks chant prayers, rickshaw drivers swerve through traffic, and arranged marriages blossom into positive relationships, I ditched the notion that my cultural paradigm had all the right answers.


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Posted by: Pramod Agrawal <pka_ur@yahoo.com>
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Re: [www.keralites.net] CURE FOR BLEEDING PILES - SIMPLE HOME REMEDY

 
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[www.keralites.net] 13 Facts About Fibre That You Need To Know!

 

Your mom has probably been nagging you to eat more fibre, and while you have a vague idea that fruits and veggies have fibre, youre not 100% percent sure what it is or why you need it. Well, heres what you need to know!

1. Fibre is a type of complex carbohydrate that the body cannot digest.

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Your body breaks down most carbs into glucose, which it uses for energy. However, fibre consists of such complex carbohydrates that the body cannot digest them, so they pass through the system undigested.

2. Fibre has 0 calories and no nutrition.

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Since your body cannot digest fibre, it does not add to your calorie count or nutritional intake. 

3. The main benefit of fibre is that it keeps your digestive system healthy, preventing constipation and flatulence.

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Well spare you the gross details, but fibre basically keeps your digestive system going, and lack of it could lead to some very uncomfortable bathroom episodes.

4. Adults require about 30 grams of fibre every day.

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Most of us dont get as much fibre as we need, so we need to step up our intake.

5. The older you get, the more fibre you require.

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Your digestive system is padded with muscles that help get the food you eat from Point A to Point B. However, as you get older, these muscles get weaker, so your system needs more fibre to be able to process food.

6. Fruits, vegetables, nuts and whole grains are rich in fibre.

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Some of the richest sources of fibre include corn, celery, carrots, bananas, peas, broccoli, apples, oranges, pears, beans, lentils, avocados, whole wheat foods, brown rice, oatmeal and almonds.

7. Whole fruits are better than fruit juice any day, because when you drink juice you lose out on fibre!

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When you make juice, you tend to strain out all the pulp and throw it away, however thats actually precious fibre that youre missing out on. A cup of apple juice for example, is made with about 3-4 apples. Each apple contains roughly 3.75 grams of fibre, so thats 12-15 grams of fibre that youre losing! 

8. Meat and dairy products have no fibre.

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Meat, eggs, milk and other dairy products contain no dietary fibre at all. 

9. There are two types of fibre soluble and insoluble fibre.

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Soluble fibre dissolves in the stomach, creating a sticky gel-like substance that traps sugar and fats and slows down their absorption. Insoluble fibre does not dissolve; instead it absorbs water and grows in size. Oatmeal is a good example to help us understand the two types of fibre. If youve ever cooked oatmeal, youve probably noticed that as it cooks, it absorbs water and grows in size. This is because of the insoluble fibre. Youve probably noticed that your porridge has a gluey consistency. This is due to the soluble fibre. 

10. Eating plenty of fibre every day can also help you lose weight.

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To begin with, fibre takes time to pass through your system and keeps you full for longer, so youll probably eat less at mealtimes. It also has a lower energy density, which is good for overweight people, and it slows down the absorption of sugar from your intestine. Studies show that people who eat more fibre tend to be slimmer than those who dont.

11. Fibre is essential for diabetics. In fact, it can even help prevent Type 2 diabetes.

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Diabetes is all about controlling your blood sugar levels, and since fibre helps slow down the rate at which sugar is absorbed from the intestine into the blood, it is essential for diabetics. Research shows that eating a high-fibre diet can help reduce your chances of getting Type 2 diabetes considerably.

12. Fibre also reduces your blood pressure and cholesterol levels.

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Fibre lowers your cholesterol levels by binding to the bile in your system and preventing your intestines from using it for digestion. This forces your liver to use the cholesterol in your blood to produce more bile. And voila, lower blood cholesterol! 

Fibre also lowers your blood pressure significantly. Several research studies have found that eating fibre regularly can lower both your systolic as well as diastolic blood pressure levels.

13. Fibre can prevent cancer, especially colon cancer.

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By flushing things out of your colon on time, fibre prevents a build-up of toxins and thereby protects you against colorectal cancer. Preliminary studies also show that fibre can prevent other types of cancer as well.


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Posted by: Fereshteh Jamshidi <fayjay81@yahoo.com>
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