India and Maldives Vacation Index:

1. Introduction
2. Overview and Statistics
3. Zurich, Switzerland
4. Dehli and Agra
5. Jaipur
6. Hyderabad
7. Aurangabad/Mumbai
8. Making Peace with the Poverty
9. Quotes
10. Top 10 Favorite Things About India
11. Maldives & 11.5 Maldives with the Meyers
12. Top 10 Favorite Things About the Maldives
13. Paris
14. What We Would Have Done Differently & What We Did Right
15. Meanwhile, Back At Home…..

 WHAT WE WOULD HAVE DONE DIFFERENTLY

• Stayed longer.  (Not really)  We would have loved to have seen Kerela, Hampi, Anu in Visaq, Bangalore, Veranasi, and Amritsar.
• Kept track of spending better.  We had a joint account so it’s been hard to sort out who owes who what.  We wished we had set up a combined travel account which we each contributed equal amounts to for things like guides, transportation, entrance fees, and food.  Then we wished we’d each of had a separate souvenir funds.
• Eaten street food.  (This is Sarah’s comment actually).  We were told not to eat a single bite of street food in India.  We obeyed.  We never got sick, which was good, but I think we would have been safe to try some of the unique fruits at the stands.
• Met more of Ben’s friends. (Sarah’s comment again).  It was hard to leave Benson, Vipin, and Gordon in Dehli.  We would have loved to spend more time with them and their families.  The sights were fun to see but maybe we should have tried to find more time to socialize.  There were also some friends in Bangalore we would have loved to seen, too.
• Underwater camera.  Mike and Sarah talked my dad into buying an underwater camera and then asked if they could borrow it for their trip. Ben and I were left out in the cold.  It would have been nice to have in the Maldives, for sure.
• Planned better for Zurich and Paris.
• Phone.  We planned to purchase a SIM card in India but we had some difficulties.  Turns out we would have needed a new SIM card in each city anyways.  Mike has a world phone we could have used but it was ~$5/minute.  It probably would have been helpful for just-in-case emergencies.
• Double checked reservations.  (Michael are you listening?)  Those two hotels Michael booked for the wrong dates….need I say more?

WHAT WE DID RIGHT

• Melatonin.  I just discovered melatonin 4 months ago.  It’s a sleeping aid.  It’s non-drowsy – it helps you fall asleep but doesn’t prolong sleep.  I took it when I felt like I should sleep and had an opportunity to sleep but didn’t know if I’d be able to sleep.  It was super helpful!  The time change both going there and returning was never a big problem for me.
• Maximizing the time we had in India.  We knew it would be a tiring trip but we wanted to push ourselves to do as much as possible.  I’m happy we made a busy schedule.  I was so excited to be in India I was eager to explore and go go go.  Maybe we went too fast?  For us for this trip it worked.
• Nicer hotels.  We didn’t experience much culture shock because we had our happy bubbles to return to at the end of most days.
• Balancing adventure and relaxation.  Our time in India was culturally intense and physically exhausting.  The time in the Maldives was relaxing, luxurious, and romantic.  It was great to get both in on the trip.  We loved the adventure; we also loved relaxing.  For us, it was the perfect combination.
• TripIt.  Michael told us about an app called TripIt which had all of our flights numbers, confirmations, and times.  It also had our hotel reservations and all other travel information.  We used it many times and it was quite helpful.
• Google Maps.  Ben and Mike starred each landmark/hotel/airport/destination on a map so that we would have a general idea of where we were and we could show our drivers where we wanted to go.  I never used it but I know they referred to it a few times.
• Writing things down.  Sarah bought a small handmade notebook during a stop between Agra and Jaipur which became our trip journal.  At meals, during flights, and on the train we’d jot down the events of the day.  I’ve used that as I’ve written the blog posts.  If I had waited and tried to blog our trip when I got home so many details would have been lost.
• Traveling light.  My parents let us use their travel backpacks.  Mine was quite light at the start of the trip.  We only brought 4 or 5 days worth of clothes, toiletries, two pairs of shoes, cameras, and tablet.  I brought one cardigan and used one of Sarah’s extra scarves when it was cool.   We started off great.  By the end, though, my bag was uncomfortably heavy. There were a few times I looked longingly as roller suitcases in the airports.
• Diverse transportation.  We traveled SO much but because we had a variety of modes of transportation it didn’t feel too torturous.
• Schwabb Account.  Saved us at least $200 in fees.  Very helpful!