New Delhi, India Report of what it's like to live there - 03/15/17
Personal Experiences from New Delhi, India
Background:
1. Was this post your first expatriate experience? If not, what other cities have you lived in as an expat?
This was my second expat experience. My first was teaching in Lukoj, Arno, Republic of the Marshall Islands for one year. This was, however, my first time overseas with a family.
2. What is your home city/country? How long is the trip to post from there, with what connections? How easy/difficult is it to travel to this city/country?
Washington, DC. We had a couple of options for flights. United Airlines flew Dulles to Newark to Delhi. The final flight being about 14-15 hours. Connection time in Newark varied. Several airlines flew from Dulles to Europe to Delhi, including British Airways going via London. Those flights split the travel in half--about 7-8 hours each flight. Emirates had a Dulles-Dubai-Delhi flight that we took as well. It was about 14 hours from Dulles to Dubai and about 3 onward to Delhi. Overall, expect about 20 hours of travel time.
3. How long have you lived here?
We lived there for two years from Sept 2013-Oct 2015.
4. What brought you to this city (e.g. diplomatic mission, business, NGO, military, teaching, retirement, etc.)?
Husband worked at the US Embassy.
Housing, Groceries & Food:
1. What is your housing like? What are typical housing sizes, locations, and commute times for expatriates?
The vast majority of expats live in apartments. Each apartment in Delhi occupies its own floor and buildings are about 4 floors high. Most buildings are gated with parking inside the gate for smaller cars (typically one per apartment) and open street parking. Most have roof access that often belongs to whomever has the highest apartment. These roofs can be turned into nice patios or garden areas. Some ground floor apartments have small yard access. Many apartments are pretty nice and open, though they lack storage and some have an odd layout-especially the older ones. Most have plenty of space.
Many embassies have housing within their compounds, which varies by embassy. The US Embassy has townhouse-type living with their homes. Each home has a fenced small backyard that then opens to larger common grassy space. Homes are two stories and tend to be on the smaller side-most have a kitchen, dining area, and living room downstairs and the bedrooms upstairs. Each has its own parking spot.
We actually lived in one of the rare exceptions-a single family home in a local neighborhood, Vasant Vihar. The layout was really odd, but we had a dining room, living room, kitchen, three bedrooms, and a small finished basement. We also had a tiny yard, our own driveway, and a roof with laundry room. The home was old but gave us plenty of space.
Many expats with families live in Vasant Vihar or nearby Anand Niketan, Shanti Niketan or West End. Many of the preschools are located there and it takes about 20 minutes to get to the embassies in Chanakyapuri. It is also a popular area for people who work in nearby city Gurgaon. In the evenings it can take 45 min to get home. Many singles or couples without kids like to live in Defence Colony where there are more restaurants and night life. It is also about 20 minutes+ to the embassies. Traffic can be a bear, so live near where you work.
2. How would you describe the availability and cost of groceries and household supplies relative to your home country?
If you are willing to pay the high import prices, you can find most things from home. INA Market has some Western grocery stalls (shop is too grand a word) and Priya Market near Vasant Vihar has several stores that import grocery items. You'll pay a lot--for example, a container of PAM cooking spray will be 10 USD. Locally produced items are cheap--local fruits and vegetables, rice, lentils, flour, etc.
The US Embassy has a commissary that stocked the basic US items--higher costs than in the US but cheaper than local market. Some months the shelves were practically bare and some months they were full. Shipments only came a few times a year, though that has hopefully changed.
If you have specific brand items you prefer or certain baking or cooking products you can't do without, bring them.
3. What household or grocery items do you wish you had shipped to post?
Toiletries that you are picky on brand
Holiday-specific food items (for me, this was the specific box of stuffing I like for Thanksgiving)
Quality toilet paper
Ziploc bags
Favorite brand of sunblock
Baby items--food and diapers and wipes are pricey on the local market and in the commissary
If you have access to US Embassy mail (aka the pouch), Amazon is a godsend and I used it frequently. It can take anywhere from two weeks to a month and liquids are restricted to 8 oz per box, but for dry stuff it is great.
4. What typical restaurants, food delivery services, and/or takeout options are popular among expatriates?
Practically everywhere delivers--fast food, Thai, pizza, Afghan, etc. You can find pretty much any type of food, though Mexican was scarce. Lots of Asian varieties and Western foods. Our favorite splurge restaurant was Indian Accent--about $100 for two people--they do a tasting menu with AMAZING food and pair it with wines. SO GOOD.
5. Are there any unusual problems with insects or other infestations in housing?
We had issues with ants that we could treat with ant traps.
Daily Life:
1. How do you send and receive your letters and package mail? Are local postal facilities adequate?
We mailed through the US Embassy for mail to/from the US. You could receive letters and packages. You could mail letters and packages the size of a VHS tape and smaller. For larger packages you'd have to pay through ACSA (the American Community Association), but I never did that as it was pricey.
Locally, things were often delivered by courier, including things you ordered online. I mailed postcards home from the local post office and it worked well. I have heard that mailing things in envelopes or packages locally is risky due to theft.
2. What is the availability and cost of household help, and what types of help are typically employed by expatriates?
Cheap and easy and widely available! Every expat has some sort of help, many have multiple employees. We had:
All-Arounder-- a woman who worked 7 hours/day 5/days a week doing any combination of cleaning, childcare and cooking that I needed. Also worked overtime to babysit as needed. Paid about $220/month, plus about $1.50/hr overtime. Wonderful lady who my daughter adored.
Driver--if you have a car, you will probably have a driver. A few people drive themselves (my husband included), but if you plan on needing to park anywhere other than an embassy, you'll want a driver. Parking is horrendous. Drivers also run errands for you, can pick up and drop off items, and pay bills. Ours worked 6 days a week and we paid $250/month.
Gardener--our part-time gardener watered plants, swept the driveway, and planted things. He came in two mornings a week for about 2-4 hours total weekly and we paid about $30/month
Other people had more staff--perhaps an "ayah" (nanny) and then a separate woman to cook and clean. Or a woman to do childcare and cook and a separate part-time one to clean.
3. What kinds of gyms or other sports/workout facilities are available? Are they expensive?
There are not really gyms in the typical sense that I was aware of, except at the embassies. The US Embassy has a gym in ACSA that has both classes and workout equipment. They also have a pool with a lap lane. Pool season is about 9 months of the year. Some people run, but the air pollution is pretty bad, so be aware of that. You can always find an in-home yoga class, aqua-aerobics class at a pool, or hire a yoga teacher to come to your home for personal instruction.
4. Are credit cards widely accepted and safe to use locally? Are ATMs common and do you recommend using them? Are they safe to use?
India and Delhi is mostly a cash society except at the bigger hotels. We paid cash for practically everything. At the Embassy, we could put things on our account and pay by US check or cash at the end of the month. We would pay for hotels and flights when traveling by credit card, but day to day is cash. We got our cash from the bank at the US Embassy. I think ATMs in general are fine, though I never used one. Keep lots of small bills with you as no one ever has change. You pay local domestic staff in cash monthly.
5. How much of the local language do you need for daily living? Are local language classes/tutors available and affordable?
English will allow you to get pretty much anywhere and do pretty much everything. Taxi and tuk-tuk drivers know enough English for navigation. Store owners know enough for selling. Knowing some Hindi can be nice and gets you a better price. The US Embassy offers classes for its employees and families. You can also find local tutors for cheap.
6. Would someone with physical disabilities have difficulties living in this city?
Yes! Few sidewalks, really poor road conditions. Lots of holes and bumps. Few elevators--apartments don't always have elevators go all the way up or you have to take four stairs up to get to the elevator to start with. No handicap parking.
Transportation:
1. Are local buses, trams, trains or taxis safe and affordable?
Avoid buses. Metro is safe and cheap and has a separate female-only car. Metro does not go everywhere, though they are expanding (slowly).
Taxis are cheap, though you will argue about prices as most meters don't work. Few have seat belts. You call the nearest taxi stand to send a taxi rather than hailing one on the street. The airport has a prepaid taxi stand. Train stations have taxis.
Auto rickshaws (aka tuk-tuks) are very very cheap. No seat belts and not very safe, but can hail on the street. Cheap option for hauling home groceries from the local market.
We used our car and driver most of the time. As a female, I avoided public transportation and taxis after dark.
2. What kind of car do you recommend bringing to post, given the terrain, availability of parts, burglary/carjacking risks, etc.? What kind of car do you advise not to bring?
We bought locally from a departing expatriate. That is a very common way to do it. We had a Land Rover. It was big and sturdy and gave us an advantage in traffic and allowed us to fit in guests. However, parts were very hard to get and mechanics often didn't know what to do about it. Buying a local car makes repairs easier.
Burglary isn't really a risk. Smaller cars are easier to park. Bigger cars have an easier time pushing through traffic where size gives right of way.
Phone & Internet:
1. Is high-speed home Internet access available? How long does it typically take to install it after arrival?
Internet speeds are fine for regular internet usage, though we found trying to stream videos often led to a lot of buffering. Installation is pretty quick-our home was already set up and I just had to call to have it turned on. If you need work done, though, repairmen are not always very knowledgeable. We had internet and landline phone problems and had to have the worker out multiple times before it got fixed properly. Internet is cheap--we paid about $32/month for internet and landline phone combined.
2. Do you have any recommendations regarding mobile phones? Did you keep your home-country plan or use a local provider?
You can get phones on the local market easily or bring an unlocked phone from home. There are several providers. As a foreigner, you have to show your passport and visa and have a letter vouching for your address (work can provide this). You can then do prepaid or postpaid. We did prepaid, which meant we loaded money on our account and when it was out, loaded more. I'd send my driver to add more minutes when needed. Postpaid you get a bill each month that you then pay. Prepaid means giving less information, but they are picky about how long you can have the account for. Postpaid you can have it longer. We had issues with cell service inside our house.
Pets:
1. Are qualified veterinarians and/or good kennel services available? Do animals need to be quarantined upon entry to the country? Are there other considerations regarding pets that are particular to this country?
No quarantine for cats or dogs entering the country. We brought our cat from the US. There is a lot of paperwork to do ahead of time. If you are with an Embassy, they will help you. It is a pain getting your pet into the country.
Pet supplies are hard to find if you are picky about the brand. We ordered our cat food online and shipped through Amazon via the Embassy. Kitty litter we tended to get at the Embassy commissary, but it is available locally (though brands I didn't recognize).
Veterinary care is fairly poor. They do a bit better with dogs than cats as Indians tend to own more dogs. Vaccines and care are cheap. We never needed to go to the vet for a sick pet and I was glad. Our cat got his vaccines yearly and had an exit exam before leaving the country (as required by India). I have heard people who needed sick pet care were very disappointed with results. Definitely ask around for recommendations.
Most people have their domestic staff care for their animals when vacationing or they will ask a friend to house-sit or take in the pet (we watched a rabbit for a month while the owners were out of country). It is very hot much of the year and there are not a lot of grassy areas. Dogs that come to post should be able to handle the heat and apartment life.
Employment & Volunteer Opportunities:
1. What volunteer opportunities are available locally?
Lots!! Americans (or spouses of Americans) can join the AWA and be connected to all their volunteer opportunities (library, thrift shop, NGOs, etc.) Delhi Network is for any foreigner and they do lots of volunteer work with NGOs and within their organization. NGOs do work with animals, people with disabilities, kids, tutoring, teaching skills, medical, etc. You can find something for any niche.
2. What is the typical dress code at work and in public places? Is formal dress ever required?
At the Embassy, the dress code is the same as the US, though often a tie and jacket is not required during the hot months.
Out and about, women should have shoulders and knees covered. I wore a lot of maxi skirts and t-shirts or local garb--especially the drawstring pants with kurtas (long loose tops). So comfy! Cheap and bright and perfect for every occasion. You can dress a bit fancier or with bare shoulders at restaurants in hotels.
Many diplomatic events are dressy at night. You can never go wrong wearing Indian clothing for formal occasions--saris or a Nehru suit.
Health & Safety:
1. Are there personal security concerns to be aware of at this post? Please describe.
Women should be careful at night or being alone in certain areas. You get the lay of the land quickly. My driver could give me good advice if I was ok going somewhere alone. Or he would come with me and be my escort. Most tourist areas were fine.
Houses/apartments have walls and gates and nighttime security guards. Some have daytime guards too.
2. Are there any particular health concerns? What is the quality of available medical care? What medical conditions typically require medical evacuation?
Mosquito-borne illnesses are probably the biggest issue-especially dengue, though others exist too. Malaria isn't in the city. Wearing long sleeves and pants and using DEET helps. Medication is cheap and often doesn't need a prescription.
We did not use local medical care, except I got an ultrasound locally twice when pregnant. Otherwise, our care was through the Embassy Health Unit. They could handle all regular illnesses and care. Staff depended on which EFMs were there--we had a pediatrician half the time we were there because she was the wife of a worker. Otherwise, our kid saw a nurse practitioner.
Medical evacuation for Embassy personnel is to Singapore. Dengue complications were probably the most common reason.
3. What is the air quality like at post (good/moderate/bad)? Are there seasonal air quality issues? Does the air quality have an impact on health?
Bad Bad Bad. Horrendous in the winter. On the 0-500 2.5pm pollution scale, Delhi often capped out at 500 (300 and above is considered hazardous). Winter is very grey and smoggy and yucky for pollution. Summer is a bit better. Many people wear masks. People with asthma have a rough time.
4. What do people who suffer from environmental or food allergies need to know?
Dairy is in pretty much all local cooking. Vegetarians will be fine-many locals are vegetarian and everything is clearly marked. Restaurant staff don't always know what is in the recipes, so be leery if your allergy is bad.
5. What is the overall climate: is it extremely hot or cold, wet or dry, at any time of year, for example?
Nov-Jan is chilly (lows 40F but warms up to 60sF). Feb and March is pretty nice (like spring). April-June is really hot and dry (like 110F+). July-Sept is hot and wet (90s and really really humid). Oct is fall-like--pretty dry and nice.
Schools & Children:
1. What is the availability of international schools? What has been your general experience with them, if any?
American Embassy School (AES) is where most of the US Embassy kids go. We didn't have school aged kids, but everyone loved it. Lovely campus. There is a British school and a French one too.
2. Are preschools available? Day care? Are these expensive? What has been your experience with them, if any? Do the schools provide before- and/or after-school care?
There are some good preschools. The US Embassy has one, which is convenient for those who live on compound. Vasant Vihar had several and that is were many people send their kids. Many follow a Montessori-esque style (some completely, some partially). Preschool starts at 18 months--5 days a week, from about 9-12. Preschools are comparable to what you'd pay in the US or a bit cheaper. No one does day care--you hire an ayah (nanny) if you need child care.
3. Are local sports classes and/or activities available for kids?
Swimming lessons are common. One of the expatriate moms had a little soccer team for preschoolers when I was there. There are not a ton of quality kid activities. Music Together had classes which were good. We did a lot of playdates and playgroups. There are a few playgrounds that are ok. Nothing is Western quality for the most part.
Expat Life:
1. What is the relative size of the expatriate community? How would you describe overall morale among expatriates?
Large number of expats. Most love Delhi and India and many stay for a long time. The air pollution is the biggest concern among the expats.
2. Is this a good city for single people? For couples? For families? Why or why not?
Singles--yes, particularly men. Single females may have a tougher time at night, but it is doable. Couples-yes, lots to do at night. Families-yes. Good schools and cheap household help. Not as much for teenagers to do. Pollution is the main issue for families.
3. Is this a good city for LGBT expatriates? Why or why not?
Not really. India is not supportive of LGBT people in general and I believe homosexuality is technically illegal. Embassy workers do come with same-sex partners, but need to be discreet locally.
4. Are there problems with ethnic, race/racial minorities or religious prejudices? Gender equality?
People with dark skin may face prejudice. I heard several times the assumption that every black person is a drug dealer from Africa. From what I could most religious beliefs are accepted, at least in Delhi. For locals, there is not much gender equality, but as a foreigner it is much better.
5. What have been the highlights of your time in this country? Best trips or experiences?
Travel, travel, travel! We loved the tiger safari in Ranthambore, Fort Kochi in Kerala is awesome and a great break from Northern India, Shimla and Landour in the Himalayas are great breaks from the heat. The Pushkar Camel Festival in Oct or Nov is amazing. We did a lot of cities in Rajasthan and loved them all--Jaipur, Jodhpur, Udaipur, etc. Taj Mahal lives up to its hype.
6. What are some interesting/fun things to do in the area? Can you recommend any “hidden gems"?
So much history! Visit them all big and small! The President's Mughal Garden is only open for one month in Feb/March and is worth it. Do the Seven Cities tour program for a huge taste of history. Qutab Minar is my favorite big place. Feroz Shah Kotla is a great less visited place.
7. Is this a "shopping post"? Are there interesting handicrafts, artwork, antiques, or other items that people typically buy there?
Lots of shopping! Khan Market has high end shops. INA market is great for spices. Dilli Haat for handicrafts. Cottage Emporium has tons of fixed priced items of all types. Clothing, shawls, art, decorative kitchen items and more.
8. What are the particular advantages of living in this city?
Cheap domestic help frees up your time for volunteering, shopping, and exploring. Lots of travel nearby and far. From Delhi you can fly to many other cities domestically and internationally.
Words of Wisdom:
1. What do you wish you had known about this particular city/country before moving there?
Air pollution is really really bad!
2. Knowing what you know now, would you still move to this city?
Yes, though I would take more precautions with the air.
