Love is in the air

I had never imagined Indians as hopeless romantics. Wooing never used to be a skill found in a many Indian men. Women were too shy and reserved when it came to matters of the heart.

With the advent of Valentines day in India, all of this has changed. This year, I was struck by the fact that Valentines Day, which was virtually unknown 20 years ago has now become one of the major Indian “festivals”. There is absolute media frenzy around the day of the cupid. Almost every major restaurant in town offered a special Valentines Day package for couples and was booked solid weeks in advance. For the retailer, this has created another opportunity to create shopping hysteria in a country where there is a high percentage of under-25 men and women with high disposable income. This festival has also brought a boom for florists!

Catch me if you can ...

If your idea of a thrill ride is Viper or X2 at the Magic Mountain, you need to experience a ride to the Chennai airport during rush hour when you have a plane to catch. I found myself in this enviable position several days ago. I left the office at around 7:15pm for a 9:30pm flight. I was feeling pretty good because I had given myself an extra 15 minutes. Unfortunately, this was the day when a group of college students decided to protest something (bad government policy, unfair examinations, too many classes, ban on ipods, traffic congestion in Chennai etc.). They blocked the main Mount Road in Chennai causing a severe traffic jam.

But luckily, my colleague Muthu knew his way around the city. He managed to get me out of the jam but in the process we ended up in the back roads of Chennai. With luck and instinct he navigated us through the obscure unnamed streets of the city. With occasional help from a pedestrian or a bicyclist, he managed to keep us moving in the general direction of the airport. Huge speedbreakers, excessively long traffic lights, road construction, lane closures etc. made this ride feel like an obstacle course.

After what seemed like hours, we were back on the main road and Muthu finally pulled in to the airport at 9:25pm.

Did I make it? You bet I did. After all, this is India. My flight was delayed by about 20 minutes and I made it with enough time to spare!

Recession .... what recession?

The media is full of reports on the economic downturn in the US and speculation whether the country is the midst of a recession or on the verge of one. The collapse of the housing market and the sub-prime crisis and the resulting impact are making news headlines daily.

But if you are in India at this time, all of this seems like fiction. All the IT services majors - TCS, Infosys and Wipro have announced 9-month earnings that are exceeding Billions (Yes, with a "B") of dollars and high rates of revenue growth despite a weaker dollar. Housing market is crazy with the demand continuing to skyrocket. Jobs in the IT and ITES sector are plentiful and candidates are few causing double digit wage inflations. Mutual fund investments are giving 50-60% annual returns.

Consequences of a flat world?

A new day in Bangalore

It's been a couple of weeks since we have moved into our new apartment (sorry, flat) and we have completely adjusted to our new home. The move was easy (since we simply moved next door) and the floor plan is nearly identical. There is no built in furniture like our prior apartment so the place looks a bit bare. We plan to add some furnishings in the coming weeks.

The view from the new apartment is much nicer. The guest bedroom and the children's bedroom face the lake. At this time of the year, the lake is full of water and offers a really nice view in the early morning. During this time, there are plenty of birds such as swans, cranes, herons etc. that would be a bird watcher's delight. Having tea in the balcony overlooking the lake has become a favorite activity for Mona and me.

The city beyond the lake is a densely populated landscape of closely packed buildings. The early morning fog covers the city so it is nearly invisible. It starts to appear magically as the sun comes out.

The morning time also brings with it the street noises of India. Our building is adjacent to a major highway and we hear the noises of the buses, trucks, auto rickshaws early in the morning.

And another day in Bangalore begins.

A New Beginning ...

It is hard to believe that it has been a year since we moved to Bangalore. Last year, we were on a plane flying over Bombay when the clock struck midnight on December 31st, 2006. This year, we celebrated our entry into 2008 by moving into a new apartment. We spent the day moving and the evening having dinner with our dear friends, Ira and Sherry.

2007 has been a good year and we have enjoyed every moment of our transition to India. Ayaana and Aanish have settled down in school and enjoy the new education system. We have made many new friends here and have been enjoying the good food out here. We have also become fans of Bollywood (you must check out Chak De) and enjoy IndiPop!

It has been a long time away from close friends and family in the US. We remember all of you a lot and want to wish all of you the very best for 2008. Hope the new year brings you everything you want and all your dreams and wishes come true. We hope to see some of you in India in 2008.

Here's to another chance to get it right!

Merry Christmas

It is Christmas day in Chennai and I am sitting at the airport waiting for my flight to Bangalore. The airport has Christmas decorations, there are carols playing from a loudspeaker and the boutique store is selling Santa caps. Christmas has arrived in India!

The office (yes, unfortunately I was working on Christmas day) had Christmas art and decorations all over and a Christmas tree sat decked up at the reception. The employees cut a cake to celebrate the occasion. Street vendors in Chennai and Bangalore are selling the latest rage – musical Santa caps with twinkling lights. Indian children have found another excuse to demand presents. And of course, every major store in town is having the inevitable Christmas Sale!

This reaffirms my belief that Indians love to party and celebrate. They will cross cultural and religious boundaries when it comes to getting together with friends and family, eat, drink and exchange presents. Thirty festivals and holidays a year are just not enough. Need more!!!

Let me see where I can find some eggnog and sugar cookies.

Till the next time then … ho, ho, HO!

Honesty

It was another typical day at a crowded Bangalore mall. Mona and the kids were heading off to Bombay for winter vacations and Ayaana wanted to buy gifts for everyone - with her own Money! Yes - she had collected over Rs. 2000/- ($50+) during the course of the year and was going to generously spend this cash to buy gifts.

We found ourselves at the ever popular Landmark store at the Forum where one can find anything for anybody. Ayaana had a blast selecting gifts for each person on her list. As we stood in the check-out line, she realized that she had lost her money somewhere in the store. Her excitement vanished and she couldn't hold back her tears. One look at the hordes of people in the store and you pretty much knew that there was no hope of finding the lost cash.

We made a last ditch attempt and I went with her to the help desk to inquire if the money was found and returned to the lost and found. Unfortunately nobody had turned in the money. Then I walked with her to the section of the store where she had lost the money and asked the store personnel if they had heard anything about any money being found. One of the employees tapped me on the shoulder and asked me to follow him to one of the counters in that section. He spoke in rapid Kannada to the guy behind the counter while I explained our predicament to him. He took out the money from his pocket and handed it to me. The employee who took us to the counter had found the money on the floor and had turned it in to the manager!

I thanked the man and offered him a reward which he refused to accept. And Ayaana - she was in seventh heaven. The excitement was back and she was once again happy.

And my faith in the human spirit and the goodness of man (and woman) went up another notch.

In Search of Efficiency

Taxes wait for no one and they caught up with us last week. The property tax on our home was due last week and we realized it a few days before the payment deadline. I called the number listed on the tax bill for credit card payments. I had made the payment using our credit card and was done with the transaction in less than 5 minutes. A few days before, we needed to check the balance of Mona's credit card, make payment and transfer funds. Another 5-minute call to Wells Fargo got everything taken care of.

These interactions made us realize how much we miss the high degree of efficiency that is common place in the United States. The other day, I had to transfer funds from an account in one Indian bank to another and we spent half a day visiting the banks, writing checks, filling out complicated deposit forms etc.

Complicated procedures exist here to conduct simple day-to-day activities. These are compounded by difficulty in reaching people and lack of clear instructions.

You eventually get used to the system but occasionally when you are exposed to a highly efficient interaction, you do long for high degrees of efficiency!!!

Bangalore Unwired!

The state of Karnataka has started an ambitious project to turn Bangalore into a wireless city. A pilot project is underway and scheduled to launch in early first quarter of 2008. This is supposed to Wi-Fi enable the region around M.G. Road (the main drag in Bangalore). Wireless Bangalore will minimize location dependency and allow adults and children to work and play from anywhere in the city.

I dream about the reality of this vision as I am standing in my thirteenth floor apartment trying desperately to locate the one spot where my cell phone might pick up it's signal. There are two such spots (thankfully allowing both Mona and myself to use our cell phones at the same time) in the house. One spot is a circle with a diameter of 2 feet at the border of the kitchen and the living area right next to the refrigerator. The other is a 1ftx2ft rectangle in the bedroom next to the dresser.

Even the landline is not 100% reliable. Most of the times it works ... but it conks out right before I have an important conference call with a customer!

There lies the irony of a place called Bangalore (and India!).

Playing with fire

Mona and I returned from our trip to Jordan and Dubai, picked up kids from Bombay and got back to Bangalore in time to celebrate Diwali. This is probably the biggest holiday of the year in India and a major Hindu festival. And to add to the fun, we had Seema and Mick visiting us from Los Angeles at the same time.

The children (and the adults who are still children at heart) had a blast. Fireworks in India now match the sophistication of fireworks anywhere in the world. Families will spend tens of thousands of Rupees to buy an assortment of fire crackers which include some of the most unique in the world. Gender differentiation is quite obvious during this festival as you see the girls huddled in one corner playing with sparklers and colorful fireworks while the boys are busy in another corner bursting LOUD bombs!

It goes without saying that there is lots of food around. The building association also organized a show which included a fashion show, play, mime and other items that showcased the fine talents of the young children in the building.

Welcome to Jordan

Jordanians are either extremely warm and friendly folks or they (young and old) have been trained effectively in growing tourism within the country. "Welcome to Jordan" is the phrase you will hear from everyone including little children on the street to a police official.

Mona and I were fortunate to visit Jordan for several days earlier this month (the reason for my conspicuous absence from this blog). Jordan is a wonderful country where history rules, there is stress-free chaos and people are warm and welcoming. Petra (one of the wonders of the world) was the main highlight of our visit and well worth it. But we managed to pack quite a bit in a few short days. We had a chance to float in the Dead Sea, view the incredible mosaics in the city of Madaba and live the history in the ancient city of Jerash. Amman was an interesting city where finding your way around (if you are driving) is an interesting experience.

This was our first visit to a country in the Middle East and we will back for more.

Bad Hair Day?

The big day is here! Mona has her 4-hour appointment to get her hair straightened. This is a major make-over ($$$). We are leaving on vacation in a couple of days and she has been planning this for quite some time. The appointment is for 4pm on Saturday. My cousins are coming over for dinner around 8pm on Saturday - so this should work out just fine.

She is at the beauty salon where the first phase (yes, this treatment must be administered in multiple phases) has been completed when the power goes off. Not an uncommon phenomenon in this part of the world. This is the reason why diesel generators were invented. Everyone is waiting for the generator to kick in but ... no electricity. Power comes back on and off but is not staying on consistently enough for phase two to begin. Finally, the generator comes on-line until someone decides to start a water pump, which blows the generator again.

Finally, the owner requests Mona to continue the treatment at home. So next thing I know, she is back at home with a hair dresser and her assistant (and a bunch of supplies and equipment) in tow. Treatment continues at home and is completed after a couple of hours.

Results: A+!

Boo!

It is the end of October and it is Halloween in Bangalore! Yes ... last week it was Dassera and next week it is Diwali but now it is Halloween. With the large numbers of expats living in the city, there is no reason to not celebrate the festival of fear!

OWC (Overseas Women's Club) had a Children's Halloween party at the Doodle Den on Sunday. All the NRI kids in town (and believe me ... there are hundreds of them in town) who cannot miss a year of tricking and treating showed up in their finest costumes. Kids had a blast with face painting, arts and crafts, games etc. etc. Ayaana dressed up in a pirate's costume and went to the party with Mona. Aanish is too old for Halloween and spent time at home playing cricket with me.

And the party goes on ... and on ... and on

Last week, Ayaana turned 11 - her first birthday in India!

Planning for the celebrations started a few weeks ago. She was going to have two parties - a day party for her friends in our building and a sleepover for her friends from school. Of course, we had planned a family dinner for her birthday and we could not forget celebrating her birthday in school! I don't even want to think about what the wedding plans are going to look like for this girl.

Regular readers of my blog have probably figured out by now that Indians are extremely social. So these multiple celebrations should come as no surprise because it is natural for one to share happy moments with as many people as it is humanly (and economically) possible.

All the planned celebrations went well and she had a great time during the entire week! The girls had a blast during the sleepover (I am still not sure why they call it a "sleep"-over). Multiple cakes, dozens of phone calls, dinner at a favorite restaurant, a pile of gifts and a ton of best wishes .... this was a memorable birthday for her!

Advertising takes wings!

Inspite of flying extensively in India for the last 10 months or so, last week was the first time I flew Air Deccan. I understand that this is an extremely innovative airline when it comes to revenue maximization. Which is probably the reason it was acquired by Kingfisher some time ago. Air Deccan was started with a mission to bring air travel to the common man. Translation: cheap, low frills airline!

You quickly begin to understand their success when you notice the large ads painted on the exterior of the plane. You settle down comfortably in your seat and you see an ad starting back at you from the back of the seat in front of you. There are ads on headrest covers ... ads everywhere!

The airline even has a silent auction that is conducted during the duration of the flight. You can actually bid on items ranging from keychains to watches. If you have a winning bid, you pay cash for merchandise and pick it up before you deplane!

"Dining" with the stars

Vidhyarthi Bhavan is an old iconic restaurant that has served legendary Masala Dosas for generations. The place is a must-stop for South India's most popular movie star, Rajnikant on his trips to Bangalore. After nine months in Bangalore, we finally made it out to VB last week with Maya Mami, who was visiting us from Los Angeles. We had actually gone to MTR for breakfast but seeing the crowd and not wanting to wait an hour, decided to go to Vidhyarthi Bhavan instead.

The restaurant is in the heart of Gandhi Bazar - an old building with the long and narrow interiors resembling a tourist bus. There is no air conditioned waiting lobby, no reservation system and no system of queue. If a table is not available, you simply target a table where you might want to sit and go stand next to it. Don't worry about offending sensibilities as the restaurant's patrons are quite used to this. You grab a seat when it is available, seat, eat and leave.

Masala Dosa is the main specialty here and you will be served one by default. The menu is limited to a couple of different types of dosas, idly, masala bhat and vada. Mona and Mami loved the Dosa but I thought it was a bit too oily and thick. The Chutney has a thin consistency but the Sambar was delicious. Vadas were fresh and crisp and definitely my favorite here.

Overall, quite an experience and if you are a foodie, you must check it out at least once.

Grocery Shopping in LA!

Some things never change.

This is the thought that went through my mind as I was pushing my shopping cart at Ralphs in Glendale earlier this week. I was back in Los Angeles and made my mandatory visit to the local grocery store with Mona's shopping list. It's been nearly ten months in India but there are some things that we still miss. Such as Mexican Food!

So I am here - 10,000 miles away from Bangalore and still shopping at the store for salsa, beans, tortillas and cheese! Of course, I can't forget the muffin and biscuit mix.

Most other products are now easily available in Bangalore but for some reason, supplies for Mexican food are virtually impossible to come by. But we are well equipped now for our next meal of fajitas, enchiladas, spicy salsa and spanish rice!

Buenos Noches!

'Jet'ting to London

I flew Jet airlines on my recent trip to London. For those among you who are regular travelers to India, Jet is a well-known name. They are one of the premier domestic airlines known for great service, terrific cuisine and friendly staff. The airline has recently been granted licenses to fly on overseas routes and has started flights to Singapore, London etc. The New York segment is scheduled to be operational soon.

I was not disappointed flying an international route on Jet. The 777 was designed with passenger comfort in mind. Subtle design changes (like moving the handset/remote control from the side of the seat to the back of the seat in front) make flying more comfortable. The TV screens are huge and are equipped with touch screen control. Seats are ergonomically designed with built in comfort such as lumbar and neck supports.

Service is exceptional as expected and the cuisine is top class.

In the eye of the storm

The monsoon season in India is a unique experience especially in an urban center such as Bangalore. September is supposed to be the highest rainfall month and as the resident expert here, I can certainly vouch for that. While Bangalore rains do not come close to Bombay rains, they come down hard.

I have written numerous times about the traffic in Bangalore so my regular readers can imagine the impact of the rain on commuting. Without a decent drainage systems, roads are generally flooded within minutes of a heavy downpour. The traffic clogged streets get further congested and the vehicles (except for bicycles and 2-wheelers) come to a virtual halt. And of course, this is precisely the same moment when the drivers of vehicles on the roads (especially the large buses) take leave of their senses and rather than heading for their destination, start moving in the direction of any empty space that comes in their sight.

You must have the ability to set aside your anger, frustration and other negative emotions and learn to enjoy this (unless you are an hour late for an important investor meeting). If you can do that, it is quite entertaining and in some ways uplifting! The fury of the rains is insufficient to quash the human spirit here. It is amazing to see children playing in ankle deep waters or pedestrians bravely making their way to their destinations with minimal protection against the rain. And the patience of the drivers – to my knowledge there has not been a single incident of a person shooting some one else due to road rage.

Now that is Nirvana!

It's a dog's life

Mona joined a Yoga class last week. An instructor from the Art of Living foundation offered a week-long course (2 hours daily) at the building. Over two dozen residents from the building participated in the class. Mona has been gaga over the class and I spent an hour learning the basics from her today.

Of course, tennis lessons are still going on (thrice a week) for both Mona and Aanish. They have been learning for months and I suspect they are both getting pretty good at it. Ayaana makes a new friend every week and with her new and shiny bike is out every evening.

I am trying to visit the gym twice a week and a gym trainer has developed a customized one-hour workout plan for me.