Will a Horrific Bus Gang-Rape in Delhi Finally Change India's Culture of Rape?

[lustindarkness]

I have never had the slightest desire to visit India.

[The Brain]

Two good friends of mine are going to India for their honeymoon in October. Neither are very savvy travelers, so I'm worried sick about them.

I keep telling myself that I'm only hearing the worst of it through the headlines, and if I went by that in my own city, I'd be terrified to step outside. Nonetheless, two women traveling the sights of India alone just worries me sick.

They're not bringing their husbands for the honeymoon?   

[Ed Anger]

I have never had the slightest desire to visit India.

It's the birthplace of diarrhea.

[Malthus]

Two good friends of mine are going to India for their honeymoon in October. Neither are very savvy travelers, so I'm worried sick about them.

I keep telling myself that I'm only hearing the worst of it through the headlines, and if I went by that in my own city, I'd be terrified to step outside. Nonetheless, two women traveling the sights of India alone just worries me sick.

Are they going on their own, or with a tour or guide?

A guide set up the tour for them, but I don't know if they're traveling alone or with a group. Given that they have very specific ideas of where they wanted to go and what they wanted to see, I would be surprised if they're traveling with others. Hence, a large part of my concern.

In that case, my main concern would be disease.

I've known lots of people who have toured in India. None have been raped or attacked, but pretty well all of them have gotten sick at some point.

Being sick in a place like that with only your spouse to help you can be very frightening, may be dangerous if the illness is severe. At least if you are with a group or guide, there is a better chance of getting help.

I've never been to India, but I've travelled with my (then, future) wife through SE Asia (Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand) many years ago for some months, and we got sick a couple of times.

Once, I seriously thought we were both going to die - to this day I don't know what disease it was - some form of very severe but short-lasting fever, with vomiting and the squirts. Got that at a place called Tioman Island off the coast of Malaysia, far from any reliable help. After three days of hell we eventually crawled to the only medical man on that part of the island - a vet in the next village over - who told us it was some sort of mosquito-born disease, not malaria, that everyone got, and gave us some pills - by that time I knew we were already recovering (when we were really sick, moving that far was totally out of the question - we were lucky we could get out of bed to vomit). We gave the pills to another couple staying there who, as advertised, got exactly the same disease! 

[frunk]

I've been lucky as far as disease on my two trips to India.  I only got sick once at the end of the first trip, and that could be traced to some step above street vendor food.

[merithyn]

In that case, my main concern would be disease.

I've known lots of people who have toured in India. None have been raped or attacked, but pretty well all of them have gotten sick at some point.

Oh, that's the one concern that they both share, and are almost pathological about. I expect them to be exceptionally careful about where they eat, the water they drink, and their cleanliness, to the point of obsession. One of them has Auspergers, so she's a bit of a germophobe in the first place.

[derspiess]

If she's a germophobe, why the bloody hell is she going to India in the first place??  It's a very, very, very dirty country.

Even if you talk all the precautions, you stand a good chance to catch something.

[merithyn]

If she's a germophobe, why the bloody hell is she going to India in the first place??  It's a very, very, very dirty country.

Even if you talk all the precautions, you stand a good chance to catch something.

Because her new wife wants to go there.

The wife is a huge Bollywood fan, so to Bollywood-land they go! 

[derspiess]

Wives   All the same.

[MadImmortalMan]

Wives   All the same.

You'd have gotten to say that in this case no matter who got their way. 

[merithyn]

Wives   All the same.

To be fair, my friend's preference was for Russia.

[Barrister]

In that case, my main concern would be disease.

I've known lots of people who have toured in India. None have been raped or attacked, but pretty well all of them have gotten sick at some point.

Oh, that's the one concern that they both share, and are almost pathological about. I expect them to be exceptionally careful about where they eat, the water they drink, and their cleanliness, to the point of obsession. One of them has Auspergers, so she's a bit of a germophobe in the first place.

Going to Brazil my wife and I were trying to be super careful about water and germs.  But the thing is you're still stuck counting on other people being super careful as well, which they aren't going to be.  We all had the runs at some point on our trip.  Mine was on a lovely day where we spent about 8 hours on a speedboat-minibus-ferryboat-minibus-public bus.  Nothing like diarhea on a ferryboat.

[merithyn]

Not much I can do about it.

[derspiess]

Thankfully I have zero problems with the food or water in Argentina.  If only it were safer to drive there...

[Syt]

Wives   All the same.

To be fair, my friend's preference was for Russia.

Well, there at least they would be passed out drunk during the rape.