This overview on sending a parcel to the West from an Indian post-office is based on today's experiences on an exhausting trip to Vrindavana, a part in a series of how-to articles meant to make life easier for people new to all those wonderful Indian complications a Western visitor would never anticipate. First of all, remember that things take their time. If you intend to get something mailed, reserve two hours for the process. If it takes less, then good for you — but wasting two hours for the task is not at all unheard of. I'll first cover the principles and then conclude with a juicy story.

Packing. Basically, you have two kinds of content. One is books only that may qualify for a separate, lower price, and the other is everything else. If books are shrink-wrapped or wrapped in bubble coated plastic and cartoon, or packed in an equivalent tight and sturdy way, they may be sent as they are. Everything else will have to be sewn tight inside a cotton cloth. Yes, you got it right — go and buy a piece of cotton and bring it to the tailor. Once it's neatly packed, you will need to get some sealing wax and paste some around the joints. They may or may not require this, and may or may not be able to do this in the post office, but your best bet is to get it done yourself in advance. That's the packing part...