Since it is going to be a long flight wear something comfortable (cotton dress + full hand shirt). Wear your shoes; once on board, you can remove them (some airlines give inflight shoes - else relax in your socks).

 

Be at the airport 3-4 hours before flight departure.

 

Collect $20 at the airport in $1 coins and quarters to make emergency phone calls.

 

Relax during flight, sleep as much as possible. Drink all the fluids you can. I recommend that you only drink alcoholic stuff if you know you can handle it. Dehydration on a long flight is not fun.

 

Vegetarians - watch out before you eat - you may get non-veg even if you had asked for veg. Veggie food on most airlines is generally bland - fruits/juice are good choices. (Before ordering anything on board, check if you have to pay for it separately). Don't hesitate to ask questions. Remember, seafood is considered vegetarian by some airlines.

 

Once out of India, be watchful but at the same time enjoy the journey. If in a fix, don't hesitate to spend money. Also, ask if youre not sure about something. People will answer all your queries properly - very different from India. You can trust anyone who is wearing a uniform to answer questions politely and correctly.

 

Dont accept unknown packages or ANY food items from anyone other than cute airhostesses.

 

Port of entry procedure

 

Sometime before landing, the flight attendant will distribute customs declaration forms & immigration forms. Fill these out on the plane (you will submit them to the appropriate authorities when you land). Read the instructions carefully. Do not hesitate to take the flight attendant's help. You can indicate that you have nothing to declare & total value of all your things is less than $100 on the customs form (just a suggestion, stick to the truth if you can).

 

Just before you land the correct local time will be announced. Set your watch correctly.

 

Once you are out of the plane, go straight to the immigration counter. Try and get there as soon as you can to beat the queue. It might take half an hour to an hour here. Keep your docs, passport, admission & aid letters ready. They might ask a few questions e.g., is this your first time in Canada? which Univ are you going to?, etc. Please be sure of your profs name and address and the degree you are going to study for and the field you are going into.

 

Present both the pieces of paper given to you by the Canadian embassy along with your visitor visa. The visa office will give you an official looking document called the student authorization (now called a study permit), which will be stapled to your passport. He/She will then stamp an entry stamp on one of the pages, which proves you have landed on Canadian soil..

 

You are now in Canada!

 

Go to the baggage conveyor belt which bears your fight number. Pick up a cart for the bags. You get these at a machine for $1 whereas sometimes they are free. Take your bags off the conveyor belt as they come out (suitable eye-catching labels help here). If you don't get your baggage inform the airlines baggage inquiry section.

 

Cart your baggage to nearby Customs. If asked, tell them that you are a student, giving details if asked for.

 

If asked to open the baggage, do so slowly and dont get flustered.

 

If asked about the "podi"s, tell them that they are "dried Indian spices" to make traditional Indian food like curry. Rarely, they might ask you to go to the agriculture dept. nearby. This could mean they will ask you to get rid of them. Dont worry, you can get everything at the Desi stores here. If asked about "vibuthi" tell them that it is holy Hindu powder used for prayer.

 

In most cases you will NOT be asked to open your boxes at all & will be simply waved through.

 

If you are having a connecting domestic flight to an other destination in Canada, then observe that there might be a separate check in counter for international passengers on domestic flights just after the customs, before you exit the building. If there isnt much time for the next flight, then avail this facility and get rid of your bags as soon as possible. Note that is usually no need to pass them through another baggage scan.

 

Now go & wait at the nearest exit for the people who are supposed to pick you up. If nobody turns up after some time (say 30 minutes) make a collect call (at the public phone dial a '0', get the operator & ask for a collect call). Please dont use collect calls if you have a credit card or 25 cents (change required for a local call in Toronto or London). The phone will accept credit cards for all calls.

 

There will surely be places where you might get TELUS calling cards. Buy them and scratch the secret number at the backside and you can make long distance/local calls.

 

Other places/people you can call if you get stuck:

 

1. your professor (guide)

2. your department.

3. the International Students' Office

4. the admissions office

5. Anyone from the ISA. Most often this would be the best solution, any Indian student at the university will help you out, particularly when you have arrived in London for the first time.

 

Another option is to go & ask for an announcement to be made over the PA system. You can also get a card, write your name & hold it up if there are too many desis around. Dont go over to the limousine parking lot and enquire, the ISA is a non profit organization (tragic, isnt it?).

 

Never leave your baggage unattended in any airport. Be paranoid about this. Do not keep any sharp items or some kind of sports equipment (bat/stick) in your hand luggage airline security staff are paranoid about this ( No nail-cutters, knives, tools etc etc ) .

 

In case you are carrying any costly electronic equipment in your hand luggage like a digital camera or a Discman, then you will be asked to show that all these equipments are in the working condition by putting in batteries and demonstrating its functionality at the security check just before boarding the domestic flight. Be prepared to demonstrate the working of all that. However, they may ask you to hand over the batteries to them, which will be given back at destination.

 

Once you reach your friend's house (or other destination) call home & inform them that you have reached safely. If you prefer email, tell the person who comes to pick you up and they will figure out how to get you to a computer terminal. Free internet on campus is available in most libraries.

 

 

Important stuff that needs to be done after you get here

 

Go to the International Centre and collect your Orientation kit. The kit has information about day to day life in London and about the University.

 

There are active volunteers at the International centre who will clear all your queries about how to apply for a phone/ how to create a bank account, how to get a bus pass etc.

 

Meet the HOD/student advisor/advisor/graduate supervisor etc.

Register for courses that your Supervisor suggests.

 

Get your University ID card from the One Card office

Open your bank account

 

Its suggested that you apply for the health insurance through the International Office. You will receive your health insurance card by post some time later.

 

Relax and enjoy the weather (assuming you are coming for the Fall session). The city has the best weather at this time of the year. You can observe the tress changing colors gradually.

 

Call/Email the ISA and let us know that you have arrived safely.