It's an interesting phenomenon that happens to me when I travel to India. I don't know if it is because I am out of my element, or have traveled there enough times to know that some items aren't super easy to come by, but I become a hoarder of certain things whenever I travel to India.
It is probably linked to my need to adapt and normalize quickly to any situation. Call it a middle-child syndrome or just the trait of a psycho, but I always have this need to take any situation and normalize it down to my level asap. When traveling, the first thing I like to do is unpack and get things in their 'normal' spot- chargers by the bed, toiletries by the sink, my favorite pillow on the bed. It doesn't matter where I am; before I get comfortable, this is the first thing I do. Next thing is to survey the landscape and figure out where to find things I need, or what the overall lay of the land is. I like to know where the exits and entrances are, and I love to explore where all the facilities are. This is pretty much anytime I travel.
Traveling to India is a bit different for me. I know things like water are generally a problem, and I need to always be searching for bottled water. Not that it isn't available at shops, but it just isn't always convenient or I have to ask someone to get it, which is something I hate. On this trip to India, we spent a few days in a Hilton on the other side of town prior to joining the wedding party location with family and friends. Throughout that stay, there was a housekeeping cart parked down the hall that had bottled water, towels, and soap on it. Every time I walked past, I would grab a handful of water bottles. Like a squirrel preparing for winter, I knew the time would come when it wouldn't be readily available, so I stash it away instinctively. There is something satisfying, almost competitive, to me about finding things that I need in this manner. It becomes something like a challenge and a game to see how much I can get.
Before leaving for the guest house, one thing I know about India is that most people travel with their own towel. 'Guest towels' is not a thing when staying at someone else's house, not as far as I have ever been accustomed to, nor are toiletries or other basic necessities. I wasn't sure of the exact situation at the guest house with it not being a house or a hotel, so I decided I'd better figure out a towel plan pretty quickly. This occurred to me while we were traveling back to the hotel the day before we left, and I decided that the housekeeping cart would be a perfect victim for a few towels to make their way into my stash. To my surprise, the cart that was there the first 3 days was now gone. I decided to take a trip around the hotel to find out what else was available. First stop: the gym. Surely they would have towels. Nope, 1 washcloth: usable, but not what I was in search of. 3 small bottles of water, got it. I went out by the pool area, which, although open, wouldn't have anyone using it because of the cold-ish weather. I checked the locker room and found a few dirty towels- not ideal, but a last resort. Finally- JACKPOT! A giant stack of striped beach towels, just lying in piles next to the lounge chairs. Perfect for what would surely be a necessary need at the guest house shower. These ended up working great, and when leaving for our trip back home, I happily regifted them to a few aunts who were thrilled to now be the proud owners of 'Hilton towels'.
My Indian scavenger hunt tactic is something I have deployed numerous times, and it has become somewhat of a survival mechanism for me in terms of being comfortable and being able to self-obtain things I need. Being a highly independent person in India isn't typically possible for me, being without transportation, funds, and language skills, so this method ends up being pretty lucrative, as far as a survival currency goes.
Hilton coffee or tea, anyone?
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