The wedding is taking place in Trivandrum, the capital of the state of Kerala in southwestern India. The non-anglicized name of Trivandrum is Thiruvananthapuram. The names are interchangeable, but you will likely see Thiruvananthapuram on maps and on your plane tickets.

Basic information on Trivandrum history, travel and tourism can be found at: http://www.trivandrumonline.com/trivandrum.htm

GENERAL INFORMATION

Book your travel early! December is high season for travel to India. Though it is possible to get individual tickets later in the year, you will have significantly less choice in terms of travel dates, airlines and prices. Leaving at the beginning of December, returning December 30, or returning after January 8 will yield the cheapest fares. If you return January 2-3 your ticket price will be about $200 more.

The airport code for Trivandrum is TRV.

More detailed travel info is at the bottom of this page.

TRAVEL AGENT RECOMMENDATIONS

In general the least expensive way to buy tickets to India is to go through a consolidator. Most South Asian travel agents in the US are consolidators meaning they buy tickets to India in bulk and sell them at significantly discounted prices.

Our travel agent recommendations are below. You can contact these travel agents even if they are not located near you - they should have good rates from cities across the country.

Saab Travel and Tours
Joseph Kallumkal
17042 Devonshire St., Suite 215
Northridge, CA - 91325
Phone : 818-368-2783
Fax : 818-360-5964
Email :sales@saabtravel.net
Website : http://anuandakash.com/www.saabtravel.net
Let him know that Dr. Menon referred you

Since it is high season expect prices to be between $1300-1600 roundtrip. Though the flight is relatively expensive note that once you get to Trivandrum many costs during the days of the wedding are covered. Outside of that, food, travel and hotels in India are generally inexpensive.

Groups of 8 or more people can get a group discount. If you are interested in contacting others in your area to organize a group please let us know.

We have also heard about some consolidator websites, but have not tried them ourselves.
http://www.makemytrip.com/
justfares.com
airlineconsolidator.com
kayak.com
cfares.com

SIGHTSEEING

If you would like to travel within India we have a wonderful travel agent there who can help you plan all aspects of your trip. You can contact Subin at Kerala Travels - ktinbound@asianetindia.com.

Anu has worked with Kerala Travels, so please tell him that you are coming to India for Anu Menon's wedding. They can work within any budget and plan an enjoyable trip for you. On your initial e-mail please cc our wedding coordinator, so that he can help as needed (ktcorporate@asianetindia.com).

Additionally, we have numerous brochures on tours within Kerala and throughout southern India. They range from budget to luxury. Let us know if you would like a brochure.

FAQ

***A great web site on what to expect in India is: http://www.indax.com/travel.html. It has a lot of information on everything from culture to food to toilets. Start there if this is your first time traveling to India.***

Visas

US citizens must have a visa to travel to India. Visas are obtained by mail or in person from the Indian Consulate General located in major cities (San Francisco, Chicago, etc). If you live in the Bay Area you can go between 9 a.m.-12 p.m. and drop off your passport at the Indian Consulate. You can pick up the passport anytime after 4 p.m. that same day (or after 4 p.m. any day after that). Otherwise, you can mail in your passport and pay a fee for them to send the passport back to you.

Information and application forms can be found at: http://www.cgisf.org/

Who should I put as my "India contact" on my visa application?

You can put Anu’s aunt:
Hema Sreekumar
6B2 Symphony Apartments
Vazhuthacaud
Trivandrum, 695014
Kerala, India

What immunizations should I get?

Suggested immunizations for India are found at: http://www.cdc.gov/travel/indianrg.htm

Different parts of India require different immunizations, so you do not have to get everything. Conduct some research on what you need for Kerala and the specific locations you are traveling to.
Get your immunizations early! Some immunizations require a series of shots, so try and go to the doctor at least 4-6 weeks before the trip.
Make sure to ask your doctor about taking malaria medicine. We been hearing that malaria is common in Chennai (Madras). Kerala is tropical and has a lot of mosquitoes, so be prepared.

Mosquitoes

December is not high season for mosquitoes in Kerala, but there will be a good number of them around. When you're staying in air-conditioned hotels (like in Trivandrum) it will be unlikely that mosquitoes will be in your room. But, there are ways to prevent getting lots of mosquitoes bites when you’re outside of the hotel. First, wear mosquito reppellent. Anu has found that Indian mosquito repellent works significantly better than the type that you can get in America. Also, think about taking vitamin B-complex. When you take this vitamin daily supposedly your skin releases a scent that insects do not like, so they stay away. Don’t worry – humans can’t smell it:)

Water

Only drink bottled or boiled water in India. Bottled water is found everywhere so it should not be a problem. Make sure to always ask for bottled water in restaurants and never get ice in any drinks. Also, do not eat raw unpeeled fruits and vegetables or lettuce-all of these are washed in regular water.

What to wear?

Casual

We suggest that you dress conservatively when traveling through about India. (See indax.com website listed above for details).

Wedding Events

It is fine to wear either Indian or western clothes for the wedding events. If you decide to wear western clothes slacks and a dress shirt are appropriate for men and a dress is appropriate for women (please make sure that it is knee-length or longer, has sleeves and isn’t too revealing).

Below are descriptions of Indian clothes for both men and women.

Men

There are three major types of outfits that men wear to formal events. The first is called a sharwani and consists of a heavy kneelength top with churidar (fitted cotton pants, aka pyjama) underneath. The second is a kurta which is a cotton knee length long sleeve top with churidar. You can also wear a vest over the kurta to dress it up. The third is a jodhpuri which is a short nehru style jacket with trousers. With the first two, men usually have a sash that they wear around their neck.

Here is a link to a web site which has all three types of outfits (see links on side of pg). http://www.benzerworld.com/collection2006/Home-Men.aspx

Note that this is from a fancy/hip store in India. The designs are much fancier than you need to get.

Indian clothing stores in the US will have all of these types of outfits. If you decide to go shopping in the US just tell the people of the store that you are going to a nightime semiformal wedding. If you plan to wear Indian clothes to both the sangeet and wedding you may want to consider buying two different types of outfits. As you can imagine Indian clothes in India are far less expensive than in the US. There are set clothing sizes for men (38, 40, 42, etc.). So, once you figure out your size you can just going to the store and pick out something in that size range. If you have a couple of days in India before the wedding you will likely have time to stop by a store and buy something to wear for the events.

Women

There are three basic types of outfits for women, too. The first is a sari. A sari is 6 yards of material. The most common style is for the sari to be wrapped around the waist, with one end then draped over the shoulder. The sari is worn over a petticoat with a short-sleeved, midriff-baring blouse. The second type is salwar kameez which consists of pants and a long top, usually worn with a long scarf or shawl called a dupatta around the neck. The last is a lehenga which is a long skirt and blouse with a dupatta. There are myriad styles of all of these outfits. The salwar kameez and lehenga are the easiest to wear.

Examples can be found at: http://www.utsavsarees.com/

You can buy all of these in both the US and in India. Prices are more expensive in the US. But, women's clothes usually need to be altered so depending on how much time you have in India you might want to buy clothing in the US so that you have time to get it altered before the wedding. Saris come with matching blouse material. Once you get the blouse material you take it to a tailor to be stitched into a blouse. Make sure that you have at least one week to have the blouse made. Usually it takes less time than that, but it depends on how busy the tailors are. Lehengas and salwar kameez come in different sizes, but once you buy one you may have to have it tailored to fit you. Many stores will alter these for you at the time that you buy them, but make sure that you have a few days.

What to Bring

If you run out of basic toiletries you will be able to buy them in major cities, including Trivandrum. You might not get the brands that you usually use, but the basic item will be available. When traveling be sure to bring extra toilet paper. Many Indian bathrooms (outside of hotels) are equipped with water for cleaning, rather than toilet paper. If you are traveling on trains we suggest bringing baby wipes. They are useful to help you clean up as well as use in lieu of toilet paper in train restrooms.

Bring all your medications. Also make sure to have immodium and pepto bismol on you. Also bring anti-itch ointment for bug bites.

If food is a concern remember to bring granola bars, power bars and others snack food with you. You will easily be able to get potato chips and other American snack foods at local grocery stores.

Food

Food in Kerala is different from what you will most likely find in Indian restaurants in the US. This is because most Indian restaurants here are North Indian. We found some web sites that have decent descriptions of Kerala food.

http://www.indiatravelite.com/goodfood/keralafood.htm http://www.indiasite.com/kerala/cuisine.html http://www.keralaeverything.com/heal/foo.htm