RIP Hippo

I know, I know - it’s been a long time since you’ve heard from me on here. Over the past four months, I have completed another three-week business trip to India, started my final year of grad school, and landed back in India one last time for my final four-week trip.

This incredible journey is coming to a close and I’d be lying if I said it’s not bittersweet.

Speaking of bittersweet – my paternal grandmother, affectionately known as Hippo or d'Maw, passed away yesterday, at the age of 81, after getting a bacterial infection after a recent knee surgery. Yes, she is out of pain, yet she is gone and her passing leaves a deep void in my family.

Hippo, around 2009, enjoying her crosswords and reading the paper

This is the first close relative I've lost and it is weird to be so far away from family while all of this is going on. I am thankful for my friends and colleagues here who have provided support to me over the past day, and for all my family who has spoken with and comforted me on the phone.

One thing I learned from my grandparents is that travel and exploration is not a scary thing, but something to be embraced. Seeing pictures of them in foreign countries and hearing their travel stories shaped my mind to realize that I, too, can travel. Their example helped me embrace travel abroad opportunities in college to Italy, Romania, Slovakia and Croatia, which set the stage for my travels to Zimbabwe, Peru, India, and other places after graduation.

Hippo and Papa during their extensive travels

So now, as this South Carolindian stares out across the skyline in Bangalore, almost 9,000 miles away from my family, I want to send this tribute up to Hippo, my grandmother, to thank you for the happy memories of jelly beans, Gameboys, sodas by the pool, your laugh and your jolly nature.

I will remember your love of the arts, lilac-dyed hair, and the massive stack of silver bracelets and necklaces that gently clinked as you moved.

May you rest in peace.

Hippo and me, July 2015

Honk Honk Beep Beep

I'll be in India for just two more weekends. While I am desperately looking forward to coming home, I am overwhelmed by the experiences I still want to have while I am here.

The past four months have stretched on for what feels like a year, but when I think about having less than two weeks left in Bangalore it suddenly feels as if I just arrived at 3 AM, jet lagged, nervous and excited. Such is the funny nature of time.

You try crossing this street!

I've yet to take any cooking classes and I never found a serviced apartment to live in - I've been in a hotel the whole time. I have a million things I still want to buy for myself, family and friends, and I feel the pictures I've taken haven't captured enough of what life here has been like.

One thing that I wasn't prepared for and that I have learned to live with is the number of interruptions that occur in everyday life. For example, walking in the states is generally associated with a therapeutic activity - Passion Pit even memorialized this in their song, Take a Walk.

An apt song title for walking in Bangalore is Say a Prayer or Please Don't Die. Sidewalks are rare, and cars, auto rickshaws, and two-wheelers pay little heed to pedestrians. Cross walks are virtually non existent, and when you do find one, they are useless as motorists frequently disobey traffic signals.

Aerial view of the local market traffic

In the US, people use the horn to say "watch out!" or "go!" or "stop texting and pay attention!" In Bangalore, horns are used to announce the presence of the car to the world, as if the world is blind.

When you walk, motorcycles fly by you, blaring their horn every time they approach, even if you're not in the way. Auto rickshaws honk incessantly to see if you need a ride. Cars honk to announce they need everyone else to clear the road so they can squeeze their "four wheeler" down the pot-holed, dug-up, double-parked, trash-filled street, as if they win right of way because they're the biggest.

So between the horns, trying not to step on trash, in mud, or in stray dog poop, and generally just trying not to die, walking around the city is transformed from a therapeutic activity to one that sends you to therapy. I must say though, that I've mastered the skill of walking on Indian roads - don't text, keep your eyes down, don't make eye contact, and just keep on walking.

The workplace is also filled with interruptions. My company's offices are expanding, but the new workspaces are not yet ready, so cubicles designed for two people have been converted to space for three by simply throwing an extra chair at each workspace. Since it's impossible for three people to sit comfortably side-by-side, most office cubicle dwellers, myself included, move one of the unoccupied chairs to the aisle. This chair situation turns simple activities such as walking to the bathroom or getting a glass of water into a test of agility, patience and balance.

Two-wheeler parking bumps right up to the masquerade of a sidewalk

There's also a dearth of conference rooms, so most people take conference calls at their desk - on speakerphone. One of my colleagues from the US visited my office here last week and exclaimed, "I don't know how you work in this environment. Not to sound snobby, but I just couldn't."

It's not ideal, but what option do I have? I've had to adapt.

All these disruptions - horns honking, elevated stress during commutes, lack of quiet space in the workplace - take a physical toll. Someone told me that people in Bangalore get sick a lot, and that's true. Over the past four months, every single person on my team - myself included - has been sick at least once. Poor city sanitation, pollution, food quality, I'm not sure - but it's a serious problem.

Even the idyllic city escapes such as Nandi Hills and Lal Bagh park are increasingly infected with two-wheelers - and their incessant horns.

I have a friend here from India who mentioned that when he went to Florida for the first time, he had difficulties falling asleep because it was too quiet. I wonder if I'll experience reverse culture shock when I go back to the States. I wonder if I'll miss the horn chatter or feel a lack of stimulation in the US office, which disabled the speakerphone button on the office phones.

One thing is for sure - I do plan to use my horn more - once I'm finally back behind the wheel of my car!

Cricket Craziness

Today is the last regular season game of India's professional cricket league, known as the IPL (Indian Premier League). I ended up following quite a bit of the two-month season for many reasons - my friends and coworkers here love cricket; I want to be current on the pop culture topics; I was in bed for five days with food poisoning and there was nothing else on TV; and the teams stay in my hotel when they're playing in Bangalore and I wanted to know what all the fuss was about.

In the lounge at my first cricket game

Watching all this cricket has made me realize how unique the IPL is; in fact, the IPL is the only league that I know of where:

• The pitch, the target, and an out are all called the same thing - a wicket.
• The team names are so long - instead of the Panthers or the Yankees, there's the Royal Challengers, Rising Supergiants, Knight Riders, and Super Kings.
• There are so...many...rules.
• If the game is cancelled due to weather or other reasons, the teams split the points automatically.
• If the game is delayed due to weather, the number of overs ("at bats") get reduced.
• Two franchises have been suspended for two years for game fixing.
• The games are played literally every night of the week.
• The top four of eight teams make the playoffs - then there are THREE games before the final. #1 plays #2 (game 1) and #3 plays #4 (game 2). The winner of game 1 automatically makes the playoffs, and the winner of game 2 plays the looser of game 1 to determine the other finalist.
• The cheerleaders for the teams are all foreigners (mostly Russians and South Africans).
• The cheerleaders from both teams dance together in the studio during breaks.

Note that these observations apply to the T20 format, which lasts about 3 hours. There's a longer - much longer - five day format that is played internationally, along with the T20 format and a one-day format.

Tim Cook (Apple CEO) was in India this week promoting Apple's growth plans for the Indian market, and the commissioner of the IPL took Tim Cook to a cricket game. Tim commented that he could really tell how much cricket meant to Indians by the passion of the crowd, and having been to one game in Bangalore, I can agree. The passion rivals audiences at a major concert, or celebratory crowds at New Year's Eve celebrations.

Royal Challengers Bangalore fans - pic credit

This passion for cricket has been somewhat demonized by local media for the detrimental impact the league has on the country-wide drought. Some games have even been moved to other regions to appease the public cries for water conservation and blasts of league commercialization.

I'm not sure what the right answer is, if there is one, but I do know one thing - Indians sure do love their cricket and after experiencing the excitement first-hand, I can see why.

Goa Trip Reflections

Last week, I spent a long weekend in Goa, and since I returned from the trip, I've had trouble summarizing my thoughts on this famed beach destination.

Goa has a reputation as being a hippy-centric party spot. I pictured long, sun-filled days with raging parties on silky-sand beaches. While I did see some parties and a few hippies, Goa, in particular Baga Beach, reminded me of Myrtle Beach.

Delicious rose water

When you land at Dabolim Airport, you taxi through rows upon rows of military planes and are greeted with an announcement from the captain that "photography at the airport is strictly prohibited." The co-location of the military and civilian airbases to me is a stark reminder of the number of conflicts the state of Goa, like much of India, has experienced.

The State of Goa gained independence from its colonizer, Portugal, 14 years after the rest of India gained independence from England. The sources I consulted said that the Indian army finally decided to take back Goa from Portugal in 1961 "with little resistance."

To me, that sums up Goa. I get the sense that the people have given up the fight to preserve their legacy and historical status and try to go through life with as little conflict as possible. Why do I say this?

Beautiful buildings in the picturesque downtown Panjim are in disrepair.

The river flowing through the city, once a revered trade route, is mired in trash.

Tour boat operators, shop keepers, and casino promoters seemed to be just going through the motions.

Weather-worn facade in the capital of Goa

Drunk driving is embraced by many as part of the Goan life.

It was almost as if there was a "take us or leave us, this is what it is" attitude among many of the Goans I encountered, which differs to me dramatically from the attitudes I've encountered from the people I've met in Bangalore and Kerala.

(Note, the hotel staff at the Marriott really did seem to care and provide excellent service, although many of them confessed to me that they were looking for transfers to other places far away from Goa.)

I recognize that we went towards the end of the typical tourist season, so a general fatigue may have settled across the region that was waiting for the crowds to dissipate and refreshing from the monsoons to come. But the indifferent attitude I encountered among many Goans confused me because I heard from a number of them that tourist traffic was down and "they couldn't understand why not as many tourists were coming to Goa."

I did enjoy my visit and I do want to return to experience the Monsoon season (I heard it was beautiful), tour the less-crowded and picturesque Southern beaches, and escape to the scenic Northern beaches. Perhaps I'll escape when, like the Portuguese in 1961, I feel the need to surrender from the stresses of holding on to daily life and I need to kick back and relax for a few days.

Faded umbrella dot the Baga Beach strand

Because that is the great part about Goa - it doesn't care if you wake up early or stay out all night partying. If you want to wear a string bikini or a full-body bathing suit, go for it. You're not really questioned as you are in other states; they're used to seeing it all. A friend compared it to being in Las Vegas.

So maybe that's the beauty of it - beyond the parties, beyond the beaches, Goa is a place whose indifference is refreshing in what otherwise can be an overbearing and intrusive country.

Kerala and The Backwaters

These two songs remind me of this boat ride, so feel free to listen them while reading this post for a multisensory experience!  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MauA2Adejgc, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzhtQFz-CBM&index=3&list=PL2gxaGXEGl6kGQWVcQVhB8BAQ2UbJOkRU

View from the front seat of the boat in the backwaters

One of the quintessential activities while visiting Kerala is touring the backwaters, which are a chain of canals and lagoons that link five major lakes in the region. The backwaters connect many villages and serve as local commerce corridors. To experience the backwaters, many visitors chose to rent a houseboat, such as this one, and spend a couple of days meandering through the canals.

Typical houseboat in Kerala

Since I was exploring Kerala on my own, I didn’t really want to spend the night on a boat by myself, with the boat driver. As much fun as that sounds, I prefer my resort room with helpful room service, and security, staff :)

So to experience the backwaters, I rented this blue gondola-type boat for a couple hours one morning while I was staying in Lake Kumarakom. The driver, Benny, was friendly and gave a swift tour of the local canals. Benny pointed out his house to me, which was on the main channel. He also introduced me to his wife, who we passed while she was fishing in a separate boat.

Boat I rented

Benny the boat owner and operator

I enjoyed the morning ride as I got some fresh air and really got to soak in nature, including many numerous palm trees and herons. I even saw a Kingfisher bird, and a water snake.

Selfie on the backwaters!

The ride did feel a bit strange though as I felt like I was riding through the villagers’ backyards and peering into their daily lives. Many small houses are located on the backwaters, and since we were out for our ride in the morning, the canals were full of families going about their daily business. All of the houses on the canals had an opening to the backwaters from the yard, covered in large stones, where the women performed tasks ranging from doing laundry, washing dishes, bathing, and brushing teeth – all right there in the river.

House among the canals in Kerala

Most of the shallow waters we went on were opaque and I spotted numerous water bottles, shopping bags, and other refuse scattered in the lake. I wondered how this “dirty” water could be used for all of these tasks.

Overall I enjoyed the boat ride and being in the sun, distanced from the traffic and honking horn cacophony that permeates Bangalore (the residents there mainly used boats or two-wheelers to get around), but I felt a bit sad during the ride looking at all the pollution that humans have caused to these beautiful habitats.

Mangroves and other life on the backwaters

It really makes me wonder how I can have more of impact on sustaining the environment, both here in India and in Charlotte when I return home. I want to make sure I am recycling all I can and making smarter choices when it comes to my water consumption and use of plastic.

Clip from the trip:

Kerala and Lake Kumarakom – The Creature

“It looked…kind of… like…this.”

I put the pencil down and showed the front desk worker at Lake Kumarakom Resort my rough depiction of “guess the animal that was in Michelle’s room earlier.”

Thankfully he drew version 2.0.

“Did it look like this?”

“No,” I said. “It wasn’t a rat.”

“Ok – what about this?”

“That looks more like it. What is it?”

Google images revealed that what I’d seen that morning was possibly a grey skink, aka an Arana lizard. It looked kind of like this little guy, although not exactly:

My "roommate" looked kind of like this

Assured that they weren’t poisonous, I returned to my room to relax a bit.

You know the noise the smoke detector makes when it runs out of batteries?

That's the noise I heard when I went to grab something from my purse.

Guess which one I drew??!

Luckily I had recently ordered room service, so I knew help would be on the way soon. I sat still as a log until I heard a knock on the door.

I ushered the resort employee in and explained the situation. He picked up my purse and carefully went through it, finding nothing. He searched around all the curtains, carefully looking in each pleat, coming up empty.

Then I saw it, perched at the top of the curtain, debating a jump to the man’s head.

I squealed and he placed his hand on his head, averting the danger.

Pest control showed up with two long, skinny sticks. Not Raid, not poison - sticks.

As I learned over the next squealing minute of drama, there is some type of tree that grows a substance at the end of the branch that acts like a glue. This “glue” is so sticky it traps pests, such as lizards and rodents.

Once captured, the lizard was placed outside and I was informed that I could “sleep safely now.”

It's at this point, as I'm writing about this poor lizard, or rat, or mouse, or whatever it was, trapped in my room all day, that I realize I’ve given way too much thought to this particular creature. I guess this points to the broader issues of development, loss of wild habitations, deforestation, overdevelopment, etc. Man tries to coexist with the rest of God’s creation and sometimes helps yet sometimes hurts.

Any interesting lizard or creature stories from your vacations? I’d be happy to hear them!

Kerala – “God’s Own Country”

Kerala is one of India’s 29 states, and its motto is “God’s own country” due to the natural beauty and lushness of the state. Kerala is in South India, on the West coast, aka the Malabar coast. Kerala is known for its beaches and backwaters (network of canals), and its lush greenery and peaceful way of life.

This weekend I had a couple of days off of work and I chose Kerala as I was in desperate need of some rest and relaxation - the constant traffic and work stress in Bangalore were really getting to me! After consulting a Lonely Planet guide and many Tripadvisor reviews, I chose Lake Kumarakom in Kerala for my R&R, and stayed at the Kumarakom Lake Resort.

Kumarakom Lake Resort - a bit of Indian paradise

The resort was a little piece of paradise. The climate was tropical, complete with palm trees, humidity and friendly lizards (more on those later). My room was HUGE and came with a private jacuzzi. It was in a two-story building that looks like it’s made up of 4 two-story condos, but each floor is a room to itself. 

Front porch of my "villa" :) 

Every evening from 5:30 – 6:30, the resort offered a “sunset cruise,” complete with live local music, consisting of a drum and a flute. I really enjoyed this part of the day - I went on the cruise all three nights I was there. Check out this video to hear some of the tunes:

The resort specialized in Malayalam cuisine, which is characterized by rice and rice-based breads, seafood, coconut, cashews (which I avoided), fried onions, tamarind, and spices. Bananas are also frequently used; some typical snacks in Kerala are shown here:

Kerala snacks and coffee (I may or may not have eaten four of the rice balls)

Kerala snacks and chai

At one dinner, I tried a vegetable called drumstick. I had initially inquired about the item as it was listed as vegetarian, and I was confused (aren't drumsticks chicken?). I learned that drumsticks are a green fibrous vegetable, boiled as part of a stew; the taste of it reminded me of okra (which Indians call “ladyfingers”). The drumstick remains tough when boiled, so most people chew it for the “meaty” inner portion and juices, then trash the fibers.

Eating the drumstick required more work than eating an artichoke, to put that in perspective.

Kerala rice is another staple of Malayalam cuisine. This red rice is promoted for its health benefits as the fibers are not removed before cooking, giving it the reddish tint.

I liked most of the food I tried; the seafood especially was fresh, and I enjoyed the prevalence of coconut and rice in the cuisine. The resort has a sister hotel in Bangalore that has a Kerala restaurant; I will be sure to check it out.

Appam and prawn curry

I'll post more on the backwaters and other adventures I had soon, so stay tuned!

Birthday in Bangalore

"Many many happy returns of the day Michelle!"

The first time someone in India wished me a happy birthday like this, I thought it was a sarcastic blessing, as in they hoped I was able to easily return all the gifts I didn't really like.

Cake, pre-smearing

I quickly realized that this greeting was a typical Indian way of saying "Happy Birthday," with all the associated blessings and well wishes.

My recent birthday on Saturday was the first one I've celebrated abroad. Overall it was good, although I missed being able to call more of my family and friends since I was out for most of the weekend and, well, timezones.

On Friday night I went to an expat social event hosted by a group called the Bangalore Expat Club (bec). I've met some young adults there from Italy, Germany, Mexico, the U.S., Iraq, and the Congo, as well as India. Most people are working in India, while a few are here for school. At midnight, the DJ and my new friends wished me a happy birthday.

My new friend Sheryl - yes it was hot and humid!

On Saturday, my work team took me for a day event at a resort called Mango Mist. We started off the day with the traditional "cake smearing," where after you cut your birthday cake, those closest to you make your face eat the cake:

We are part of the cake tribe! 

No I didn't have to wear it all day!

I liked Mango Mist as I was able to enjoy nature and play paintball, which I've never done before. I was also able to conquer a "difficult" level ropes course, enjoy a BBQ and lunch buffet with my co-workers and some of their families.

The downside of the event was that it took over 90 minutes to get there, and 3 hours to get back. Traffic in Bangalore can be horrendously frustrating - it took that long to go less than 20 miles.

When I finally reached my hotel, I found a nice birthday display including a cake, personalized bottle of wine, card and a bouquet of red carnations in my room. This helped put me in a better mood!

Gifts from the hotel

After resting for a bit, one of my new friends from the bec took me out for beef tacos as this is what I was really craving. The beef was imported from Brazil, and I devoured four hard shell tacos, and some taco soup.

I then had the hotel tech support help me connect my computer to the TV, so I could watch El Clásico on the big screen. Even though the game started at midnight, I easily stayed awake to watch Real Madrid come back from a 1-goal deficit, and a red card (thanks Ramos), to beat Barca 2-1. It was a great end to the day.

Group shot from Mango Mist

Sheryl took me out for dinner and dessert on Sunday night. We ate Thai curry and some chili chicken at an Oriental place, then she was craving McDonald's soft-serve which sounded good to me at that moment, too. We stayed out for a while walking around an area called Koramangala, and it was a really nice, chill, enjoyable end to a great birthday weekend.

It was so hot inside that suit

Even though this birthday felt much different than the others, I felt loved and appreciated. Thanks to everyone who sent me birthday wishes - may you have many many happy returns :)

Bollywood Reflections, Part 1

Greetings from Bangalore - happy Resurrection Sunday! I've had a good time the past few weeks. I've been learning more about India's two passions, cricket and Bollywood. I've watched a number of cricket matches (the world cup is going on right now in India), and I've seen two Indian movies in the theater.

The first movie, Neerja, portrayed the life of the courageous Neerja Bhanot, who sacrificed her life while protecting over 350 passengers on Pan Am flight 73 in 1986. The flight was hijacked by a terrorist organization. The movie was in Hindi with English subtitles, and I give it 3 out of 5 stars (the plot was a slow and the acting forced at times).

Lobby of INOX Theater at Garuda Mall

The second Bollywood movie I saw was Kapoor and Sons, which was advertised as a family drama revolving around two brothers who fell for the same girl. It was not a comedy, as I had hoped, but a dramatic tale of family secrets, acceptance, life and death. This move was in Hindi with no subtitles, and I give it 4 out of 5 stars.

I was amazed at how much of Kapoor and Sons I was able to follow based on the cinematography and the universality of certain human emotions (love, anger, disappointment, etc.). One of the most memorable scenes of the movie actually came during the advertisements that preceded the movie. Please check out this link to see the ad:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vwW0X9f0mME.

It wasn't until the very end of this tear-jerker that I realized the ad was for a laundry detergent. The ad spoke to the cultural norms that pervade not only India, but the U.S. too - laundry and the home are a women's domain, and men can't be bothered with such things.

My personal view is that each couple should discuss and come to an agreement on the roles in a house, and serve each other willingly and wholeheartedly.

In the movie Neerja, the audience is shown parts of the heroine's past, including the demise of her first marriage. Her husband is shown verbally and emotionally abusing her for actions such as bringing home take-away food for supper when she had to work late and for trying to pursue her blossoming modeling career while being a new wife.

The movie looked like a comedy...

These scenes show that India, like the U.S., is grappling with gender roles in society. One of the major themes in Sheryl Sandberg's book Lean In (click for quotes) is that each couple should discuss and agree on who should be responsible for what. Maybe one person is responsible for laundry and cleaning, and the other for cooking and grocery shopping. I think this is important so resentment doesn't grow, especially if one person feels that they are contributing more to the relationship than another.

I write this post to share a glimpse into Indian cinema and the issues that this society grapples with, which are very similar to those men and women in the U.S. face every day. I think we all need to talk about expectations and goals in our various relationships, and support each other towards those. Let's all work to #ShareTheLoad.

Month 1 Reflections

I've been in Bangalore for just over a month now - can you believe it?! Work has been going well and I am settling into the hotel room which will be my home for the next few months.

Although my original plan was to stay in a serviced apartment (furnished place with daily maid service), none of the options I was shown felt particularly safe to me. The hotel has been good so far.

I've noted a number of little things over the past month that hit me as either unexpected, surprising, or just plain weird. Since you've been on this journey with me so far, I'd thought I share some of them with you:

English is common, but so are misunderstandings
To avoid the astronomical laundry charges at my first hotel, I ordered laundry service through an app on my new local phone. The first time I used the app, the courier showed up on the wrong day. The second time I used the app, he showed up at the wrong location.

I thought the instructions were pretty clear!

Worse still, my entire second order was dry cleaned. Upon realizing the mistake, all my clothes were actually laundered, including the pieces I had designated as dry-clean only.

I did get a $5 voucher for my troubles that I have yet to redeem.

Pervasive recommendations
Indians are an agreeable bunch and also an opinionated one. Most Indians I meet are quick to offer recommendations on trips to take, restaurants to try, and shops to visit.

Although many people have provided recommendations, very few have invited me to do something with them. A partner at PwC and his wife invited me to join them on their Valentine's Day dinner, and a co-worker invited our team to his daughter's 2nd birthday lunch. A few more people have extended invitations for future events, but particularly the first few weeks I was here, I was surprised at how few people invited me to do things with them.

Outside Valentine's Day Dinner

These experiences have definitely made me sympathize with what immigrants and foreigners in the U.S. must experience daily. While I think I am generally a welcoming person, this experience has made me more acutely aware of the challenges and loneliness of settling in another place.

The lack of good nail salons
I did not expect to miss my go-to nail salon, Decor Nails, so much. Since Bangalore is 9x the size of Charlotte, I assumed there would be a plethora of quality nail salons in Bangalore.

I was wrong.

Gel nails, after one day :(

I've set foot in three different places in search of a quality manicure. I walked out on one after deciding that one of my new personal maxims is, don't go to a nail salon that also doubles as a tattoo parlor.

I've had to return to two nail salons for nails that chipped <2 days after the manicure, and most recently, I had to remind the nail tech that the manicure should happen before the polish is applied, and that a base coat should be used before applying coral polish.

Wild monkeys
There are many wandering cows, dogs, and goats in Bangalore. Surprisingly, I have only seen cats on two occasions. What I was not expecting was how many monkeys I would see!

Monkey's eating a cucumber on my shoulder!

In my trek to Nandi Hills, I shared how shocked I was to see wild monkeys. Yesterday, I took a colleague who's in town for two weeks to the largest park (Lal Bagh) in Bangalore. She desperately wanted to see monkeys, and we found them alright - and we also found a local who has trained the monkeys to eat fresh veggies off the heads and out of the hands of brave tourists:

Wild birds
In addition to being entertained by the many monkeys running around, I have also been enthralled by the number and sheer size of the birds in Bangalore. Every morning I see at least ten birds circling outside my window, and while eating breakfast, I watch them fly at least as high as the 15th floor.

Egyptian Vulture, image from
http://bangalorecaptured.com/tag/flycatcher/

The Asian paradise flycatcher is the most unusual one bird seen. I saw one at Nandi Hills. If its flying at the right angle, it resembles a fish.

Google Image

Google Image

Social activities, aesthetics, and wildlife - hope you enjoyed some of my observations from month one. Stay tuned for month 2!

First Trek to Nandi Hills

In Moving to India - the FAQs, I mentioned a list of the Top 55 Most Popular Places Around Bangalore, according to Thrillophilia (which sounds like a disease I desperately don't want to catch). Number 2 on this list was a trek to Nandi Hills, which I was fortunate enough to do this past Saturday.

View from Nandi Hills

Not quite hills and not quite mountains, Nandi Hills remind me of the smaller foothills in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Nandi Hills is the biggest hill, and is where a historical figure in Mysore, Tipu Sultan, used to go for holidays. You can read more about the hills here.

Everyone I consulted with suggested that Nandi Hills was only worth the trek for sunrise. So, being the semi-professional travel planner that I am, I used a co-worker's trusted driver and left plenty of extra travel time so I could make it there for sunrise.

Enjoying the breeze

My plan would have worked well if the driver hadn't used my call asking him where he was as his wakeup call! The driver did try to make up his almost an hour tardiness by driving aggressively, even by Indian standards. We drove through the sleeping city, past the airport, and into the outskirts of the city. Through the darkness, I could just make out street vendors starting to stir from the sleepy settlements.

It took a little less than an hour to reach Nandi Hills. While most of the trip was in the morning darkness, our drive to the top was illuminated by a hazy morning light.

Line for entry

Because the hills are very popular for sunrise, by the time we reached the entrance to the top of the hill, there was a long line of people waiting for the entrance ticket. While I didn't get to see the actual sunrise from the peak of the mountain, I did see something better - something unexpected:

Monkeys. Wild monkeys!

The first ones I saw were perched on an awning over the public restrooms. They were scampering for their breakfast of bananas and chips, handed over by the trekkers, or stolen from unattended backpack.

After obtaining the entrance ticket, I walked up a stone-step pathway (ala Machu Picchu) to the top of the hills. The walk took about 10 minutes, and was punctuated by the sound of car and bike horns. Unfortunately, the park allows cars and two-wheelers (aka motor bikes) to the top of the peak, which somewhat destroys the serenity of the place.

Just begs you to sit down, doesn't it?

The top of the hill has a circular path, with expansive views from all sides. This was by far my favorite view:

Given that Bangalore has a pollution problem, it felt good to be surrounding by nature and somewhat fresher air.

The morning sun felt so good

I even found a tree to climb:

I had to fight monkey for this branch
(kidding, kidding)

The hills are less than an hour from the city center, and I intend to do this trek again and chase the sunrise. Next time, I may even bring some food for the monkeys!

#TransitionTrials: Getting a Cell Phone

In a culture brought up on family plans, carrier competition, and burner mobiles, I was absolutely shocked to experience how hard it is to obtain a local Indian cell phone number.

I decided I needed to get a local phone because my calls back to the states, both direct line and toll free, kept dropping, and I've been having to use the expensive hotel line to make work calls. I figured if I had a local number, I can use that for calling my co-workers here, and making cheaper calls back to the states.

What I needed in India

After the Mumbai terrorist attacks of 2008, which lasted four days, killed 164 people and wounded over 300 people, India tightened the requirements for obtaining a local number. These restrictions are said to improve national security and make it harder for terrorists to communicate with each other.

Since my teenage years were shaped by 9/11 and the national security concerns that have dominated public conversation since, I can sympathize with the way the Indian government responded to the Mumbai attacks by tightening their grip on who could get a phone.

To obtain my local number, I had to talk to the admin at my local office, who contacted the carrier (Airtel) representative assigned to our office. The representative showed up a few hours later. I had to provide him with two hard copy passport photos, a letter from my company stating that I was employed by them, a company reference (including a copy of their passport), my local tax ID, copies of my Indian visa, passport, and proof of US address; and proof of local address. I also had to sign in almost 10 places, including across two of my photographs, which the Airtel rep pasted to my application.

Pasting my picture on my SIM card application

After I obtained my SIM card (by signing away my first-born child, as some would say), I then asked the admin how I could get a phone for the SIM card.

His answer? "Oh. You'll have to figure that out."

I reached out to some colleagues who provided names of some electronic stores close by (which apparently means more than an hour away). I went to the stores one afternoon, shopped around, and purchased a Samsung Galaxy J2, much like this one:

My Indian smart phone model

After convincing the sales rep that I needed help activating the phone with the SIM card, I had to call Airtel customer service and spent over 10 minutes verifying my information with them in order to have my card activated for calls and data.

Finally, two hours after calling them, my phone was activated, and I was able to make local calls and send cheap local texts.

All was going well until yesterday, when I tried to place a call and was informed by the automated voice (Indian, with a British accent) that outgoing calls were banned from my number. Calls to multiple customer service lines were unsuccessful. Apparently, Airtel has a certain number of days to physically verify my residential address (read: someone actually shows up at your address to verify that you stay there and makes you sign a piece of paper. Can you imagine if that happened for high school sports residencies?).

I signed more times for a cell phone than I did for my mortgage

It took a full 36 hours for my admin to get in contact with our company's representative, who insisted that I needed to visit the customer service center. I insisted back that I was happy to fax or email the residency proof but that I would NOT be traveling to the store.

After 9 emails and 10 phone calls - my phone is working. Yippee!!

This is one #TransitionTrial that I am glad to have overcome. If you need to reach me in India, please message me for my local number :)