Near Death in New Delhi

unclelach · Dec 23rd, 2005, 08:19

A friend's misfortune of being violently ill on the return flight(s) from Bali to Melbourne this month reminded me of my own horror return trip to Oz from Delhi in 1981.

My first stop ever in India was on the return to Australia from a work trip to Europe. I booked New Delhi's old Ashoka Hotel because of its anticipated historic charm. My reading of Paul Theroux had not prepared me for the fearful grime and general scruffiness that could then accompany the best of service. I moved on to the Hotel Taj Mahal and encouraged by the five star luxury started work on the menu of delicious Indian food (second mistake).

Before any serious illness, I was on an Indian Airlines flight to Bombay to connect with a British flight back home. In 1981 India was a pioneer of recycling. The domestic flight served, with poorly cleansed, reused disposable cutlery, a breakfast which I ate(third mistake). I blame the subsequent digestion disaster, which hit me on the next hop, on the early flight's breakfast. Today of course the main domestic carrier is excellent judging from some 2003 travel.

My Melbourne friend is a serial food poisoning victim. In the early seventies my friend, according to her story, was unable to move for weeks from her wretched hovel in Old Delhi. Since then she has eaten out, as the expression oddly puts it, on accounts of every kind of traveller's illness contracted between the Nile and the Mekong.

I have come across several engaging compilations of worst journey stories eg published by LP, but I'm sure that IM folk have many more to tell.

mca2005 · Dec 23rd, 2005, 10:02

It was exactly my fear of this that led me to take precautions - having digestive sickness while in motion on a crowded plane, train or worse, boat is the worst feeling in the world...

How about stories of people who avoided it. I attest my not getting ill to:
a. taking acidolopholous cultures (protobiotic)
b. not taking any risks with food
c. keeping my immune system healthy be taking vitamins and such as i normall do at home.

Nick-H · Dec 23rd, 2005, 11:40

The worst thing that ever happened to my bowels was caused by paint stripper ...err, the people who gave it to me said that it was home-made wine.

This was on a sailing trip, helping the owners of the boat to take it from Ipswich to Dover. It was a newly built boat, the owner had his own boatyard and the quality of workmanship was beautiful. However he had never actually sailed before, and his boat was a collection of well-made snags. The food and drink a collection of not-so-well-made snags

The wine tasted disgusting, but I still drank it. Next morning I had to alternate a trip to the toilet with each of the four or five other crew waiting for their morning visits.

Closer to the topic, I once suffered from some SriLankan Airlines prawns. What a shame, having had a stomach-happy two weeks in India, to be ill for my first few days back in UK!

Dec 23rd, 2005, 08:19	#1
unclelach Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: melbourne, australia Posts: 219	Near Death in New Delhi A friend's misfortune of being violently ill on the return flight(s) from Bali to Melbourne this month reminded me of my own horror return trip to Oz from Delhi in 1981. My first stop ever in India was on the return to Australia from a work trip to Europe. I booked New Delhi's old Ashoka Hotel because of its anticipated historic charm. My reading of Paul Theroux had not prepared me for the fearful grime and general scruffiness that could then accompany the best of service. I moved on to the Hotel Taj Mahal and encouraged by the five star luxury started work on the menu of delicious Indian food (second mistake). Before any serious illness, I was on an Indian Airlines flight to Bombay to connect with a British flight back home. In 1981 India was a pioneer of recycling. The domestic flight served, with poorly cleansed, reused disposable cutlery, a breakfast which I ate(third mistake). I blame the subsequent digestion disaster, which hit me on the next hop, on the early flight's breakfast. Today of course the main domestic carrier is excellent judging from some 2003 travel. My Melbourne friend is a serial food poisoning victim. In the early seventies my friend, according to her story, was unable to move for weeks from her wretched hovel in Old Delhi. Since then she has eaten out, as the expression oddly puts it, on accounts of every kind of traveller's illness contracted between the Nile and the Mekong. I have come across several engaging compilations of worst journey stories eg published by LP, but I'm sure that IM folk have many more to tell.

Dec 23rd, 2005, 11:40	#3
Nick-H Loud-mouthed, Noisy Bird Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Chennai, India Posts: 27,692	The worst thing that ever happened to my bowels was caused by paint stripper ...err, the people who gave it to me said that it was home-made wine. This was on a sailing trip, helping the owners of the boat to take it from Ipswich to Dover. It was a newly built boat, the owner had his own boatyard and the quality of workmanship was beautiful. However he had never actually sailed before, and his boat was a collection of well-made snags. The food and drink a collection of not-so-well-made snags The wine tasted disgusting, but I still drank it. Next morning I had to alternate a trip to the toilet with each of the four or five other crew waiting for their morning visits. Closer to the topic, I once suffered from some SriLankan Airlines prawns. What a shame, having had a stomach-happy two weeks in India, to be ill for my first few days back in UK! __________________ . Just one member of the IndiaMike Mod Team

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Dec 23rd, 2005, 10:02	#2
mca2005 first time traveler to India Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: new york Posts: 66	It was exactly my fear of this that led me to take precautions - having digestive sickness while in motion on a crowded plane, train or worse, boat is the worst feeling in the world... How about stories of people who avoided it. I attest my not getting ill to: a. taking acidolopholous cultures (protobiotic) b. not taking any risks with food c. keeping my immune system healthy be taking vitamins and such as i normall do at home.

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