Noise Isolating Devices

Ever dreamed of driving on one of the busy cities of India but nit being bothered by the noise? For those who have not experienced this, it is a nightmare.
Here you are driving back home, after a long hard day, and all you wish to do it reach home safely with the least amount of stress. Half a kilometer from your home, the traffic signal turns red. So, you stop, switch off the engine and wait patiently. Perhaps, you are listening to some music. The traffic light turns green, and wham! every bus, truck, car, scooter. motor cycle, start pressing their horns, honking with all their might, as if willing to move the traffic by sound energy. What do they expect? Traffic to flow like water?
Well, no use carping about it. SO what is the next best thing to do?
Cut off the noise.
A good noise-isolating headphone or a earphone should do the trick.
Noise-canceling headphones are no good in this situation; they work on feedback and are best suited for a constant frequency noise (such as that from aircraft engine).
For variable frequency, variable magnitude noise, noise-isolation works best.
What is noise isolation?
insert your forefingers in your ear. You block of fair amount of sound waves. That os noise isolation for you.
I recently got hold of Shure 210. There are some adverse reviews on this ear phone, but to tell you the truth, I have never been happier. It has good fidelity and has excellent noise isolating ear plugs.
If you are not so sure, or not a music-listening kind of person, here is one more method.
But some swimming ear plugs - the ones that flex.
Use those and I guarantee you stress-less driving on Indian roads.
But do not use if you ride to bike. The requirements are different. You want to stay alive while riding your cycle on Indian roads.

iPod is a Life Saver

Picture this ...

Traffic moving at a snail's pace ... motor cycles trying to weave their way through ... drivers honking their heart out ... all of a sudden someone turns on his music system and all you can hear is a dull thump hammering against your brain ... and just when the traffic starts moving the vehicle ahead of you stops dead.

Aaaargh!

Enough to give you road rage. Good thing India doesn't have gun laws like America has. The roads would be bloody.

In all this chaos if you see some one driving with an angelic smile, two white wires sticking out of his ears, giving way to others as they cut sharply across, and actually enjoying traffic jams ... you can be sure that he is on an Apple iPod (or something similar).

iPod can be a life saver in such cases. I have loaded all those wonderful German podcasts available at Deutsche Welle on my iPod. These german lessons are woven around interesting stories.

Here's how my iPod helps me ...

a) Since driving with attention diverted to podcasts could be dangerous, I slow down and that makes my driving safer.

b) It keeps away noise from the traffic surrounding me.

c) Since I am more interested to listen to one complete episode that reaching office, a traffic jam does not bother me. In fact I welcome it at times.

d) I learn German the best way possible - by complete immersion.

e) And most importantly, I don't get involved in road rage crimes.

I wish every one on the road was on an iPod trip. It saves life.

Note: The picture used belongs to Nathaniel Dodson (see gallery)