2016 Travel Group To India

The Information Page For Our February 12-20, 2016 Trip To Southern India

EDUCATIONAL VIDEOS ABOUT INDIA-CLICK HERE

Our Travel Partners
Garavanian Travel

Gabe and Harry Garavanian, twin brothers and owners of Garavanian Travel, have been in the travel business for more than 28 years. Our commitment is to provide the best possible service and experience for our clients.

Gabe, (pictured to the right) is the account manager for our trip and is handling all of our tickets and hotel accommodations at the Leela Palace in Chennai. Carole Copeland Thomas, our trip leader and certified tour manager,and has done business with Gabe for almost 20 years. Gabe's wife (who often answers the phone) is Eileen Garavanian.

Gabe is the New England Chapter President of the American Society of Travel Agents.

Garavanian Travel has been awarded the Sandals Chairman’s Choice Award for being the “Best of the Best”. This award is given to the highest standing travel agencies throughout the United States. Garavanian Travel has also been selected as a Preferred Sandals Specialist.

===============================

Carole Copeland Thomas of C. Thomas & Associates is a global diversity professional, a certified international tour manager, and has been in business for 28 years. She has spoken or conducted training workshops in most of the 50 US States and traveled and spoken in 7 other countries around the world, including India.

Gabe Garavanian of Garavanian Travel

Carole Copeland Thomas, Certified Int'l Tour Manager
Dressed in an Indian Salwar Suit with
Granddaughters Julianna (left) and Gabby (right)

EDUCATIONAL VIDEOS ABOUT INDIA-CLICK HERE

Your Visa Process

You will complete and Submit THREE Documents via Travisa:
1. Travisa Order Form (2 Copies + Your Copy) (along with your payment)
2. Government of India Visa Application (2 Copies + Your Copy)
3. Government of India Particulars Form (2 Copies + Your Copy)

Along with: 2 copies of your 2 inch x 2 inch photo, a copy of your driver's license and your ACTUAL passport.
Mail ALL via Express Mail, FedEx, or UPS Express

**Important: Make sure that you include your MIDDLE NAME on your application IF your MIDDLE NAME is on your passport. And SIGN your name on your application the same way that it is signed on your passport.
Also: Please SIGN Page 1 (Under the space for photo) and Page 2 of your Visa Application Form.

Click Here To Download Step By Step Visa Process

IMPORTANT! DON'T FORGET--PARTICULARS FORM

This Particulars Form is somewhat new. Some of these questions about any Pakistani connections were answered on the Visa Application Form. But now you must fill out this separate form, sign it (with your Passport Signature) and return it with your application package. If you don't, you'll have to complete and send in on its own.

YOU CAN COMPLETE THE FORM RIGHT ONLINE BEFORE PRINTING IT OFF.

Trip Orientation, Information and Resources

Orientation Conference Call #1
Getting Started, Packing & Getting Your Visa

VERY IMPORTANT ADDENDUM
About Your Visa. Please Listen!!!

Orientation Conference Call #2
With Gabe Garavanian

Orientation Conference Call #3
With Carole....Open Format...Q&A Session

Webinar with Revs Sarah and Abraham Peddiny: Learning More About India!

This one hour Webinar took place on Thursday Jan 7, 2016. You only see The Peddinys, Sandra Jenkins, Paulett Moore and me....but there were actually 12 + travelers on the call. There were no PowerPoint slides, but the audio quality was pretty good. I look like Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer because a nasty cold wouldn't let me go!

The Peddinys are sitting in their home in Chennai, India.

More than 20 will travel to Southern India from February 12 through 20, 2016. Destination: Chennai, Tamilnadu India and surrounding towns and villages.

Orientation Conference Call #1 to the left is the audio recording of the 1 hour 16 minute conference call meeting held on Tuesday October 27, 2015 in preparation for the upcoming trip to India.

A very important Addendum is below it. PLEASE listen to it and complete your visa accordingly.

Here are highlights of the Addendum Audio Recording:
1. VERY IMPORTANT: MAKE SURE THAT YOU APPLY FOR A TOURIST VISA!!!

2. If you are a full time minister, please contact me for additional documentation you will need.

3. Regarding Which “Mission” You Should Select:
Question: Where should I apply for my visa?
Answer: Your India visa processing site depends on where in the United States you currently reside, also known as jurisdiction. You can find a listing of the states in each jurisdiction, in addition to the hours, addresses and contact information for each site by using the following links: Washington DC, New York, San Francisco, Chicago and Houston.

All foreign nationals entering India are required to possess a valid international travel document in the form of a national passport with a valid visa obtained from an Indian Mission or Post abroad.

4. When DATES are required on your applications use the European/Asian/African version: Date//Month//Year such as the First of December would be written as:
1/12/2015. NOT 12/1/2015

5. If YOU Express Mail Your Documents/Passport to Travisa and They OVERNIGHT everything back to you, expect to pay $230.55 for a 10 year Visa. You can pay with a credit card or debit card ONLINE.

Questions? Call Carole Copeland Thomas, Tour Director,
508 947-5755 or email [email protected].

Additional Resources

Watch videos about India on YouTube and www.bbc.co.uk. Learn as much as you can about the vast cultures, food and people of India.

A good travel guide to purchase for about $10 is India Culture Smart: The Essential Guide to Customs and Culture by Becky Stephen. Published by Kuperard.

Indian Summer A PBS Series

Click Here For The PBS Link

RECOMMENDED TO BUY THE FIRST SEASON at $10.99 and watch on YouTube. It is set in the 1930s; however, will explain much of the social-economic-political dynamics of India today. And the "Untouchables" referenced are our current AME India members today!!

**Madras is modern day Chennai where we will be visiting.
**Bombay is modern day Mumbai, on the western coast of India.

Set in a subtropical paradise during the twilight era of the British Empire, Indian Summersexplores the collision of the ruling class English with their Indian subjects, and the intricate game of power, politics, and passion that ensues. Julie Walters (Harry Potter, Oscar® nominee for Billy Elliot and Educating Rita) stars as Cynthia Coffin, the glamorous doyenne of an English social club, and is joined by Henry Lloyd-Hughes, Jemima West, Nikesh Patel, Roshan Seth, and Lillete Dubey.
Told from both the English and Indian perspectives, the drama of Indian Summers unfolds as illicit agreements, romance, and revolution abound. Though the English socialites are having the time of their lives in Simla, the local Indians have started to call for national independence, a path which is quickly rendering the world’s greatest empire helpless. As pressure builds, the two sides alternately clash and merge in a passionate and dangerous game.
Indian Summers airs in nine sweeping episodes, and premieres on Sunday, September 27, 2015 at 9/8c on MASTERPIECE on PBS.

You can see the trailers or purchase episodes (at $1.99 each) on YouTube at the PBS channel. Here's the link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ysUJnERHn9o&list=ELMfuhuCJBoXxeKv61k-L4cA