My First Monsoon, I’m a Real Indian Now

After a few posts on traveling, I decided to write about my roots. After months of downpours and cloudy skies, I saw the sun for the first time.  It was great! I actually kind of forgot how bright it could be. This is cause for a celebration of another milestone, I’ve survived my first monsoon. I loved the monsoon, when I didn’t have to go outside. But I loved listening to the rain and the way it would wash my feet when they inevitably got dirty from walking on the street. It made the once brown and dead fields lush and green, right now everything looks like a rain forest and it’s so pretty! The rain also helped keep the dust down so now my eyes are itchy and watery as ever. But it’s still nice to see the sun. This also means that the solar-powered water heater for my building is also seeing sun which means no more ice cold, but lukewarm showers! I am really living the life now. This also means my laundry will get some warm water too. Laundry probably means something different to me than it does to you. I remember being lazy and piling up a month’s worth of laundry and doing five loads over two days. I now do about two loads every week. Laundry consists of soaking my clothes in water, and then wringing them out to get the excess dirt out. Then it requires a nice beatdown with a bar of detergent. From there it soaks in detergent water overnight. Then I have to manually rinse all the detergent out of the clothes, which is the most time-consuming part. What I usually do is squeeze all the soapy water out of the clothes that I can, and then soak them in water, and then squeeze out all the soapy water again. I do about four or five iterations of this until the water in the bucket is absolutely clear. Then I leave the clothes in regular water for about an hour to get the detergent smell out of them and wring them one last time before finding creative ways to hang them in my bathroom. Once they have been hanging in the bathroom for a few hours, they have stopped dripping and I move them out to my kitchen area where there is a long bar that I use to hang the clothes for the next day while they dry completely. One load of laundry takes about three days from start until being completely dry to wear. So I have to plan, running low on underwear now means only having a week’s worth left. I don’t mind it, I actually enjoy it and I feel that there is a lot of energy and water wasted with washing machines and dryers. But don’t get me wrong I will be using those appliances when I get home. I just think it adds to my Indian cred.

The second thing about Indian cred is using public transport. I’ve written before that the bus numbers are in Hindi script and they don’t really stop so you have to know and commit to getting on the bus while it’s still moving. I live near a small mall, but there is a really large one about ten miles away. It has nice stores and good restaurants. So if I need something Western, or am looking for good food, or just want to kill a few hours I make my way over there. I also usually meet friends there for the same reasons. Thus I developed the habit of going over there pretty regularly, and usually by auto or taxi. This costs about Rs. 250 each way, which is $5. Not so bad for a 20 minute ride. But this has been eating into my meager stipend so I decided I would get there by public transport. For me that means I still take an auto to the train station, take the train, and then take another auto at my destination. But I decided I was going to go at it totally Indian style. So I walked out to the point where I usually get my auto because I knew the bus goes by there. The bus started rolling up and I decided to hop on. Indians are so nice, and I knew people would help me if I asked for help. Sometimes I get help without asking for it too! Anyway I asked “rail station?” and the fare collector bobbed yes and I paid my Rs. 4 for my ride to the train station. That’s 8 cents. I got to the train station and was debating whether I should pay for a roundtrip rail ticket because I might change my mind and still come home by cab. Well each way costs Rs. 7 so I would only lose about 14 cents if I changed my mind later. So I decided to get the Rs. 14 roundtrip and spent the next half hour on the train. I got off at the rail station, and I did my research beforehand so I knew I could just walk to the mall. After my shopping, I decided I would take the train back home. I walked back to the train station, took the train, and then took the bus home. We were squeezed like sardines on the bus, and I prepared to get off at my stop. Well the fare collector didn’t have a chance to get to me so he didn’t know anybody had to get off at that stop, and the bus wasn’t slowing down. I made my way to the edge of the stairs, and once the bus slowed down at an intersection I jumped off. Well when I jumped it turns out the bus started moving again so I actually jumped off a moving bus. I was fine though and made my way home. I spent Rs. 19 to get to and from the mall I usually spend Rs. 500 getting to and from. I was grinning while walking home because I did it! I felt authentic and that I accomplished what I set out to do. Part of being here is to have the real Indian experience, and taking air-conditioned cabs just made me feel a little like a fraud and elitist. But now I can navigate the public transport with the best of them. Plus it helps knowing that people will have your back.

Trying Times and Front Row at Kolkata Fashion Week

I’ll be totally honest and admit that my first couple months of being here were tough, being separated from family and friends in a very foreign country in almost total isolation were very tough on me. These months tested how much I could take mentally, socially, and emotionally and there were times where I questioned whether it was all worth it. There were times when I thought it easier just to give up and go home to perfect San Diego weather with my family and eat all the beef, Mexican food, sushi, and chocolate chip cookies that I want. However in this last month I have reached a point in my journey where I am genuinely glad to be here, and to be living this very unique opportunity. The times where I thought I would break, I didn’t, and I am now a stronger, better person for it. I have more respect and awareness for myself and my capacities, as well as a new perspective on the human condition. If you aren’t pushed to your brink, then how will you know what you are capable of? How will you grow and cultivate yourself as a person? For too long I was comfortable with my life and being here has made me realize how much life there is to live. I am deeply grateful for the chance to be here and learn these timeless life lessons. I know I will come out a better person, and I will have memories and lessons to take away that I might have never learned.

On a lighter note, this new appreciation for my opportunity here has partially translated into more traveling! My friend invited me to go to Kolkata (Calcutta) for the weekend and I jumped at the chance. I was excited to see this famed city and yes, a part of me just wanted to get out of Navi Mumbai! Getting to the airport requires an auto ride, then one and a half hours on the train, then another auto ride, and making sure to get to the airport early enough to pass screening for entrance into the airport, check in, and security. So for my 8:15PM flight I left my house at 4:15PM. I usually get past security quickly because there are separate lines for men and women, and there are usually about 5 women and 100 men. After getting a chicken sandwich for dinner, I met a fellow Accenturite! (spelling?) He’s an SAP consultant based out of Bangalore but traveling to Mumbai for the client. His next staffing opportunities include a choice among Stockholm, Indianapolis, and Singapore. So unfair! Anyway, our flights were about five minutes apart so we spent some time talking about how great consultant and Accenture life is (I’m not joking).  I know that at certain times of the year, like after annual reviews, people can be a little disillusioned with Accenture. However I can tell you that after being a poor NGO worker for the past six months, Accenture is a heavenly dream. Health care! Dental care! Life insurance! 401k! Traveling! Hotels! Rental cars! And of course, really great people (still not joking). So to all those people who diss on the corporate life or complain about their jobs, I invite you to spend a week here with me living on my $7 a day and then tell me how much you want to quit.

Back to my story. I get to Kolkata, and the hotel we are staying at is on the famed Sudder St., pretty much the most poverty-stricken, dingy part of India I have been to so far. The hotel is nice, but the street’s characters were definitely a highlight of the trip. Every person was incredibly nice (except this one old lady) and as Indians, always eager to help. I crashed pretty hard after watching Family Guy (TV!) in the hotel room and was ready for a day of sightseeing. If you can believe it, Kolkata is more humid than Mumbai. I don’t know how you get more humid than 100% Mumbai humidity but you can. We saw the sights and then went back to the hotel to get ready to go to a fashion show. I did not have high expectations for this show. I half expected it to take place in a TGIF room with no catwalk and the models walking down the center of the restaurant. I had never been to a fashion show so I was excited but I wasn’t expecting Christian Siriano. Anyway we get there and the hotel is really nice. Not a bad start. We get shown to the ballroom where the shows will be taking place and it is really nice. A nice runway with full lighting and a really great DJ. Oh, and did I mention that we were front row? And this was Kolkata Fashion Week? Yea, we’re pretty  dope.  The dresses were beautiful, and after spying on all the models’ footwear I really, really miss wearing heels. I have not worn heels for six months and currently do not have any in my possession. I think once I get home I will only wear heels for at least a month. Oh and the models were gorgeous too. After the fashion show we are ushered to the after party in the hotel bar, which again is really nice.

Show 2 of the night.

The designer and her beautiful dresses from show 2.

The first day of Durja Puja started while we were here. Durja Puja is a six-day festival that celebrates Hindu Goddess, Durja. In West Bengal (where Kolkata is), it’s the biggest annual festival. It also includes the worship of Shiva, who is Durja’s husband (and if you remember from the previous post, Ganesha’s dad and mom!) There are more than 2000 pandals set up in Kolkata, and the city is covered with lights. Lots of tourists come to go “pandal-hopping” which often stops traffic. It’s referred to as the Rio Carnival of the Eastern Hemisphere. How lucky am I! Ganesh Chaturthi and Durja Puja!

Durja Puja pandal.

Sunday consisted of more sightseeing and relaxing. Both our flights were that night, to different cities, so we headed to the airport. All in all, a very nice weekend. From Sudder St. to Kolkata Fashion Week, I experienced the new and old, the privileged and unprivileged of Kolkata.

Kolkata is one of the few places in the world with hand-pulled rickshaws.

Workplace Culture

My pre-departure training focused on many aspects of living in a foreign culture and included examples of how the workplace culture can be different from the Western workplace. The aspects I kept in mind for India were the fluidity of time, the hesitance to give any form of bad news, and very rigid bureaucratic hierarchy. I told myself that these would be different and might really fly in the face of my dislike for tardiness and appreciating when someone was straightforward with bad news instead of just saying yes to save face. I was ready, I might have a hard time at first but I know these are the things to look out for.

I was totally not ready. Living in the midst of it, where deadlines aren’t usually given, and if they are then they are very flexible, and in a culture where it was more important not to break bad news than to be blunt with it was very different than knowing to confront these things. When I would ask when a co-worker if he could please do this task by a certain date and it doesn’t happen, my instinctual reaction would be frustration at making me behind in my deadline and why he didn’t simply tell me that he was overloaded with other work and just wouldn’t be able to get to it. In the heat of the moment it never occurred to me that this situation is exactly what the training was for. After weeks of frustration, I’ve realized that the workplace culture is just different. I was finally able to see this is what fluid time means, how important it is to save face or not give bad news. The switch in my head went off and now I am at ease at work. Time fluidity is embraces the attitude that things will happen when they happen. There just isn’t the obsession of getting things done by a certain time; there isn’t really a bad consequence if it’s not done by a certain time. The world really doesn’t end if I don’t get the spreadsheet on time. I am actually grateful that things work differently here; I can sometimes be very rigid and by the book with work. But here I have learned to take things as they come, and using my judgment to determine which situations require me harping a little on the deadline and which situations I should just let play out. The harder aspect to get used to is the hesitance to give unhappy news. This can range from “sorry I won’t be able to finish that today” to “I will not finish this assignment because I don’t know what you’re asking me.” This extends to everyday life as well, when auto drivers will say they know what obscure building you want to go to. At times I’ve discovered they haven’t understood what I said but nod and say “yes.” I’m still trying to figure this one out, I understand how wanting to save face is important but I also think being straightforward will accomplish more in the long run. I’m sure they know that as well, so I’ve tried to figure how to work with it. I’ve found that people are so incredibly helpful when I ask for help, on the street when asking for directions or at work. They don’t seem to judge me when I shrug and say “I don’t know,” so I’m curious why people I’ve become familiar with show such hesitance to asking me for help or showing they might need some further explanation. The rigid hierarchy also took a little getting used to. Every assignment that is finished is sent to peers and superiors for feedback and comments. Thus the process of completing a simple assignment can take weeks and months waiting for all the feedback and implementing all the comments received. This is a complete departure from what I’m used to. I remember starting out in my work and being surprised that I was asked to complete assignment for formal submission without a review from my boss. One time I asked “You don’t want to look over it?” and my boss said, “no I’m sure you did fine.” I guess I got used to just submitting briefings and deliverables, but now everything I write or review is reviewed again. Hopefully I can jump back into non-reviewing mode when I get back. Although it took a few months, I’m glad that I’ve adjusted to a different workplace culture. We’ll see how the reverse culture shock goes when I return to work in the US.

Shopper's Paradise

Before leaving for India I heard and read stories of how great it is to shop in India and how you can get great clothes at fantastic prices. I had braced myself for being disappointed by these grand expectations, and figured that being in a big city in Delhi the prices might not be as cheap as people claimed. I am so happy that the shopping reality here is better than the stories I have heard. After the colored festivities of Holi, I have made some ventures into Delhi's shopping selection. My first week here I went to the N-Block market in Greater Kailesh and surprised to find that I could buy an entire outfit for about $25. This deflated me a little because this was not the outrageous value that I was told India was going to offer. However, the shops in this market are Western style with showrooms and racks of clothes. I did a little more digging to find out where the locals shop.

Monday afternoon I spent the afternoon and evening at Sarojini Market, an authentic market where locals told me some great deals were to be found. As I started to wander the stalls of the array of kurtas and jewelry, I couldn't believe the beautiful colors and the amazing prices. Many of the prices for kurtas were 150 RS, about $3, and of course that's just the starting point for some hard haggling. The stores at N-Block market had kurtas starting from 600 RS, and those were fixed prices. I went from stall to stall, overwhelmed by the choices I had in style, fabric, and pattern. There was stall after stall along each lane, and then on each side of the lane when going further into the market. There were even more stores and stalls when navigating perpendicular to the main stalls. Stores were selling clothes, shoes, jewelry, scarves, pillows, saris, everything that could be worn or was made from fabric. I'm still getting my bearings on the array of different kurta styles and salwar kameez I could wear so I limited my shopping to necessities. For two skirts, two pairs of shoes, and two pairs of pants I paid about $14. Amazing!

Since I have been struck with a little Delhi belly on Tuesday, I've been taking it easy this week. Tuesday and Wednesday were classes as usual. After being cooped up for two days I decided it was time to find some more shopping. I've been hearing about Lajpat Nagar Central Market from locals so I decided that I had to check it out. I found even more stalls and stores filled with an even wider variety of items, including housewares and silverware. One thing I love about India are the truly gorgeous fabrics and colors and patterns that all the women wear so beautifully. One fabulous store had ribbons of these amazing fabrics and patterns, material to line curtains, sheets, clothes, everything. With all the different types of patterns and clothes, and a question from my language teacher about why I haven't started wearing Indian clothes, I decided it was time to start my collection of kurtas. Prices were a little more expensive here but I walked away with two kurtas, pyjami leggings, and a scarf for 770 RS, about $17.

Before leaving for India I also decided to learn how to sew so I could make some clothes for myself. I can be really picky when I know what I'm looking for, and often I've spent hours looking for something and giving up when not being able to find it. While researching for India, I learned that India has many great tailors and it is affordable to get custom tailoring. At different markets I've received quotes for a pair of pants to be $24, including fabric $9 if I provide the fabric. I haven't done much research at fabric stores, but I'm hoping that buying the fabric separately will make it even cheaper. Now I can have all those clothes that I've searched for!

I'm kicking myself now for not taking pictures of these markets thinking, oh I should savor the experience, and generally I don't take much pictures. But I'm realizing that since I'm leaving Delhi I should be better about taking pictures! I do have some videos from some of the rickshaw rides I've taken. Here is a fairly tame one although you can hear how important the horn is while driving.

Auto (as they are called):

My experience: