India w/ kids-Safety in New Delhi + AES + Chennai

[emilyhurd]

There are a couple of schools in India (specifically in Delhi & Chennai) my husband and I are interested in for next year. We have two young kids. After the Dec. attack of the young woman and man in New Delhi, we took both of the schools off of our list. We are enamored by AES and love what we know of Indian culture, though, and frankly, have only a handful of possibilities (because of dependents, lack of IB & int'l experience). My husband has asthma, so China is off the list. We've already explored ME options and are thinking it's not the right time for us, though we would be open to going to places in the ME down the road.

New Delhi questions:
I would love to hear others' thoughts, particularly from women, on living in New Delhi right now. Do you avoid going out at night at all? We're not partiers, but would want to see an occasional movie, dinner after dark with kids. As a woman, do you avoid going out alone? I have heard that India and New Delhi are really nice places to go with kids. But are we crazy to even consider it now?

About AES:
I hear Bob Hetzel is leaving next year (and isn't his wife a principal or administrator there as well?) Can anyone inform me of who will be replacing? Anyone know where Bob Hetzel is going?

Chennai questions:
Chennai sounds like it could be a nice place for us. But is the rubbish seriously everywhere you look? I could deal with trash here and there, but not sure if we want to be literally surrounded by piles of rubbish, trash in the water, etc. Also, is it true that medical care in Chennai is good? I'd like to be in a place where my kids can get treated well for sickness or emergencies.

Thanks so much! This forum has been a great place of comfort and knowledge for us so far.

[Teachermama]

It has been a while since I lived in India and I lived in the south, but I found it to be a very safe place as a single woman. I was careful, but it wasn't ever a scary place for me. Lots of looking, comments, random touching from strange men in crowded places but it never went beyond annoying. For better or worse, western women are treated differently from Indian women in many situations.

If your husband has asthma, you probably want to rethink Delhi. Really terrible air pollution there.

Don't know about chennai as far as air pollution, but I really loved the south. I lived in Tamil Nadu and I found the people to be much more laid back than in the north and generally really friendly. The food is really different for up north; much more tomato, fish, coconut based.

We have three small children and I would go back to India in a heart beat if we could find an appropriate job there.

[Teachermama]

Oh, and yes, there is garbage around. India is not for the faint of heart. It is a bit of an assault on the senses, some good some bad.

Medical care is excellent in India if you have money to pay for it, which you will as a foreigner at an international school.

[emilyhurd]

Thanks so much. I did want to clarify that the question about trash was specifically about Chennai as I have read there are serious waste disposal problems in that particular city. I'm looking to understand if it is indeed much worse there than in other parts of India. I'm guessing that coming from the U.S and never having traveled in India before, it will be something to get used to no matter what. Anyway, thanks so much for your insight. It is helpful to hear from a woman's perspective. The terror of the New Delhi incident in December has my mind reeling with worry about being in India. Any other feedback is appreciated.

[emilyhurd]

Thanks so much. I did want to clarify that the question about trash was specifically about Chennai as I have read there are serious waste disposal problems in that particular city. I'm looking to understand if it is indeed much worse there than in other parts of India. I'm guessing that coming from the U.S and never having traveled in India before, it will be something to get used to no matter what. Anyway, thanks so much for your insight. It is helpful to hear from a woman's perspective. The terror of the New Delhi incident in December has my mind reeling with worry about being in India. Any other feedback is appreciated.

[shadowjack]

Emily, no matter where you go, India is an assault on all your senses - both good and bad. It really is an amazing country, but it has both its good and bad. As a westerner, you are quite safe in India. You would not be standing on a street and accept a ride on a bus from people you didn't know, I hope, which is what happened in Delhi.

The Embassy School staff live in a nice part of Delhi, but Delhi does get polluted, particularly in the winter months. That said, it does not get as bad as places in China.

THAT said, there are some schools in China in very nice locations where the pollution is not great - think Hong Kong, Macau, Xiamin (on the coast), and more - but you have to do your homework on which ones.

If you had a choice, I would recommend your top school be the Embassy School - I have friends teaching there and friends who have taught there - and it is an amazing school. Asthma is also something that can be managed.

If your husband has bad asthma, though, you might want to go for more of a SE Asia feel rather than India...

Good luck!

[Lopaka]

Emilyhurd,
Paul Chmelik will be replacing Bob Hetzel. Paul is currently head at ISKL and friends there say he has been a strong leader. Sounds like he will be a good replacement for Bob.

[PsyGuy]

I know your going to hate hearing this but the trash condition throughout all of india is going to make your husband miserable. It really is everywhere, and not like NYC everywhere, but piled up everywhere.
Its not just particulates that come with regular air pollution but the chemical complexities of methane and other byproducts that are just as intolerable. Not to mention the tendency that asthmatics are more susceptible to respiratory infection, your husband would need a hazmat suit to be comfortable year round with the microbiology you will be exposing yourself too.

Safety wise you will have no problem, pick pocketing and petty bribery (its amazing how many number of "minor" offenses where one can pay the fine on the spot there are) are the worst and most common your going to find. Your kids will be perfesctly safe. Depending on your appearence you will get various degrees of "unwanted" attention. to be honest if your: tall, blonde or blessed on top your going to be stared at a lot. Your likely in your time their to get some rude comments, but thats going to be it.

[cdn]

I would avoid chennai if possible. I haven't lived there, but I travelled around India pretty extensively, and it was the worst city I visited. There is little to do, and less to see.

[amerikumar]

Does anyone currently teach at AES-Delhi? My husband and I are attending Cambridge next weekend and would love to ask a few questions to a current teacher there. If so, would you mind if we contacted you? Please let me know. Thanks!

[wntriscoming]

I would reconsider India if you have any family members with breathing problems. I was thinking it could be a good change after living in Shanghai, which has bad air pollution, and I started looking at India. Guess what? India has overtaken China in air pollution!

http://india.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/ ... tudy-says/

"India has the worst air pollution in the entire world, beating China, Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh, according to a study released during this year’s World Economic Forum in Davos.

Of 132 countries whose environments were surveyed, India ranks dead last in the ‘Air (effects on human health)’ ranking. The annual study, the Environmental Performance Index, is conducted and written by environmental research centers at Yale and Columbia universities with assistance from dozens of outside scientists. The study uses satellite data to measure air pollution concentrations."

I was just in India over Christmas, right during the riots, and while we weren't in Delhi the entire time, I was never concerned or felt unsafe.