What is culture? Food, history, traditions, religion, sports, festivals, and more! The goal of a Cultural Tour is to discover as many aspects as possible, while also traveling and exploring. This is in contrast to a traditional tour that focuses more on locations, and simply “seeing sights”. While most tours to foreign places have opportunities to bring home interesting photos and souvenirs, a cultural tour enables you to bring home a bit more: below are 5 things that you can “take home” unique to a cultural tour!
1. Take home Indian holidays!
India is the land of festivals and holidays. While Christmas, Easter, and other Christian holidays are also celebrated, due to India’s diversity, there are also holidays unique to India. On a cultural tour, depending on the time of the year, you can celebrate Diwali (festival of lights), Dusherra (good’s triumph over evil), Lohri (bonfire festival), or Holi (Festival of colors!) After celebrating the holiday with a local family, watching the festivities, and participating in it’s traditions, the next time the date comes around, why not celebrate at home? A lot of cities in the United States have significant Indian populations, and they love to invite others to join them in celebrating. You might be surprised what a little cultural knowledge and shared experiences can do to open doors!
2. Take home a conversation starter with almost 1 billion people
While attaining fluency in any language takes several years, basic greetings and short phrases can be picked up in only a couple of days, if given the opportunity. These opportunities are naturally provided by celebrations with local families, shared meals at homestays, and simple (and fun!) activities that tourists can participate in. After learning basic salutations and questions, coming back from your trip, you’ll be surprised the smiles and conversations that happen after greeting someone in their native language.
3.Take home skills from an Indian kitchen
As is the case in every culture, the best food is found where love is, and that’s found at the home. Staying at a homestay with a local family, you’ll be able to watch (and participate!) as an Auntie (what ladies in their 40’s and above are called) makes food in her kitchen. It’s an enlightening culinary experience! Find out what spices are used, how ingredients are prepared, and what methods are passed down from generation to generation. Did you try to make Indian food before but was lackluster? Or had you always wondered what special ingredients were missing? Here’s the opportunity to take home photos, notes, (and a savory taste in your mouth!) that will help you in your quest for culinary excellence in the future.
4. Take home Indian hospitality
A concept used to organize the cultures of world is the idea of “hot” and “cold” cultures. If you belong to a cold culture “(i.e United States, Europe, Israel, etc.) then values such as timeliness, efficiency, and personal identity are regarded highly. However, in a hot culture such as India, values such as respect, belonging, relationship, and friendliness are more valued than in a cold culture. This leads to India’s reputation as being incredibly hospitable. What’s the honorable way to invite in a guest for chai? How do you refuse another serving when you’re at a host family’s house for dinner? (Because you will be served more food than you can eat!) Or when visiting neighboring relatives, what ways do people greet those older than them, and are there things that are considered disrespectful? After a trip of observing and participating in a honor and hospitality culture, the way you view interactions with family and strangers will be different. Indian culture brings a fresh light to the value of respecting others, and you’ll be able to implement it in your own culture back at home (and perhaps invite your neighbors over for chai?)
5. Take home a door to other cultures
After participating in a cultural tour in India, you’ll find that what you’ve learned in one culture is applicable in many others. Tools like immersing oneself and asking questions are used by scientists all over the world, and even has a cool name: ethnology! This tool is used to learn other culture’s stories, and unlocking doors otherwise inaccessible. As a tour operator of Cultural Tours, we firmly believe that every culture is made unique, and has a unique story worth discovering. We want our tourists to be able to discover them with us, but also bring home the tools to discover other cultures on their own. What would it be like to visit another country but thought you didn’t have the cultural skills to navigate? Or to simply introduce yourself to the neighbor that recently moved in, but you’re not sure if they’re fluent in English? With tools under your belt (and a week or longer of living in a different culture!) you’ll have the confidence and ability to go farther than you would before. So why cultural tours? In simple words, so that your trip’s end doesn’t have to be the “end”, but rather the door that opens to a lifetime of learning!