Rough Start

I have to apologize for taking so long to write. I had every intention of writing when I first got here, but to be honest, I wasn’t feeling very inspired. Then, when I finally felt like I had something to write about, disaster struck. I encountered a whole host of personal health and hygiene issues over the course of about 24 hours.

I had a disastrous encounter with India, which landed me in bed for two days. Before I left I assumed that if you ate something ‘local’ or drank the water, you might end up spending a little extra time in the bathroom.  However, in my naïveté, I did not realize that this slight discomfort was more like severe stomach cramping, a pounding headache, fever, chills, sweating, nausea, body aches, fatigue, dehydration, and the general inability to move.  I’m completely serious when I say that I slept for 30 hours straight, waking only to visit the Google nurse for some rehydration salts. I spent the next 15 hours watching bad Indian television, wishing I was still sleeping. I haven’t been this sick in years and I do not wish it on anyone. I don’t know what did it to me, but it’s kind of irrelevant. I’m hoping the mini torture session built up some immunity against future GI attacks (pun intended), but from what I hear, repeat performances are far from unheard of.

As for the rest of the story, it will remain untold for now. If at some point I actually find it amusing I will share it with you, but I’m still not laughing about it.

So, my first impression of India, which I still maintain, is that it’s not at all like the India other people described to me. I was expecting to face some serious culture shock, but so far it hasn’t been that different. I’m sure much of that has to do with the fact that I’m still working at Google and we’re treated very well here, but even the authentic experiences I’ve had have not been overwhelming (save for my authentic digestive problems). Yes, the streets are overcrowded with cars, buses, rickshaws, motorbikes, and bicycles. Yes, people stare a lot. Yes, there is blatant poverty. Yes, it’s hot. And yes, there is always someone trying to sell you something or help you in some way. But, so far being in India has shown me much more of the similarities we share across cultures, regardless of our obvious differences. It’s a beautiful country with beautiful people and I feel remarkably at home here.

I was really lucky to have arrived here on time to attend our 2009 India Sales Kickoff event. It was a full day conference where a number of our VIPs spoke and I learned a ton about our India strategy. It’s pretty cool to be a part of a global company and to get this sort of perspective on international business. Some of the teams that received awards performed skits, my favorite being a play off of Slumdog Millionaire, complete with a choreographed dance to Jai Ho. Bollywood culture is so amusing and it’s everywhere. The conference lasted well into the early morning hours with a Bollywood style cover band (the India equivalent of Tainted Love for my fellow Googler readers) and a DJ. We danced like crazy and even made it up on stage at one point. The great thing about dancing here is that everything goes. People just like to have a good time and it’s contagious.

I had a chance to do some site seeing this weekend. I’m actually not a huge history buff, and I usually forget everything I hear, but I love seeing the beautiful architecture and taking in the scenery. We saw a cool monument at the center of Hyderabad called the Charminar and an amazing old palace called Chowmahalla. I have posted some pictures already and will be adding some as the other expats post their albums. Some places charge you to take pictures, so we usually default to one camera and share. You can access my albums by clicking on the link to ‘My Photos’ on the right side of the screen.

I have a bunch of silly stories to share, but it’s late and I have to work early tomorrow. I’m looking forward to writing more regularly now that I’m settled and mostly healthy. Ridiculous things happen every day and I can’t wait to write about some of the simple idiosyncrasies that make living in India so much fun.

My goal for this week is to figure out where exactly I am in Hyderabad and what direction I’m pointing at any given time. I’m still a bit disoriented.

 

gv