House Hunting

So immediately after writing the last post (and before actually being able to post it) my internet connection died.  I had been hacking into a neighbor’s unsecured wireless connection.  They must have been experiencing a slow connection because of me, and they finally added a password, squeezing me out.  Thankfully, my work was able to provide my mobile phone SIM card within a day, so I wasn’t disconnected from the world.  This is my first smart phone, and it does almost everything that I need.  I can’t believe that I held out on technology this long.  Ironic, only upon moving to a developing country do I finally get high-tech…

Househunting has been fun and easy.  Not only did my Piramal Admin guy take me around with the recommended agents, but I also was shown flats and bungalows by my friend Akshay (met on a roommate website), Ketan (the guy who drove me to the mobile phone store), and the cook at the guest house, along with agents they knew.   Everyone wants to help, even though they are not getting any kickbacks from the agents.  I saw about 15 places.  One was perfect, I knew I’d take it from the moment I walked in.  I will save the description for the next post, when I have pictures.  The friendly owner is moving to NYC.  He is meeting me in one hour to sign the lease at Piramal.  I didn’t have to work today, but he insisted on meeting me here.  I guess he wants to be sure that Piramal is legitimate, and that I am actually a somewhat important employee here.  I’m sure he’ll be satisfied.

Flats here are different from the US.  Floors are all tile or marble.  Wood or carpet would not last long in this climate (dirt, heat, moisture).  Kitchens are rustic.  Bathrooms are small and the showers are not in a tub.  You just close the bathroom door and the whole room is the shower, toilet and all.  Many just have “hole” toilets.  They don’t have one big water heater for the whole flat, rather there is just a tiny water heater connected to each shower (if you are lucky).  Therefore there is no hot water in sinks.  Lucky people have a small washing machine, usually on a small balcony, and no clothes dryer.  Wet clothes hang on lines off the balcony, similar to what I saw in Greece and Italy.

Several places turned me away for being a lady alone.  Apparently bachelors have a hard time finding rentals because they are perceived as dirty.  Single ladies have a hard time, perhaps because they are a liability.  Discrimination is not illegal here.

So things are settling faster than I expected, so I have some free time.  I have been taking long walks just to get more familiar with the city.  I’m now quite comfortable in Prahladnagar (where the guest house is).  However, my new flat is in Bokadev, so I’ll have to learn that area too when I get there.  I originally thought I’d reside in Prahladnagar, because it is closest to work, but Bokadev is only an extra 10 minutes on the bus.  Bokadev is a busy happening area, while Prahladnagar is more residential and quiet.  I think Bokadev is the right choice for me.  J

 Goat Herd (one stepped on my foot)

 Side street with various small shops

 Cute stray puppies

Some new friends

I also went shopping for a new hair iron (mine from the US fried immediately upon plugging in, even though I was using the proper converter), and went to dinner and a movie last night with Akshay and friends.  The high end malls and movie theaters here are as nice as anything I’ve ever seen in the US.  The strange thing:  metal detectors and full patdowns are required to enter either.  The “don’t touch my junk” guy from the US airport security video would not like it here.

Now it is time to shift!  (That is what everyone here calls moving, must be a British thing).

Arrival!

After a 34 journey with very little sleep, I arrived in Ahmedabad.  It didn’t take long for my problems to begin.  I knew my US mobile phone would not work in India, but I did think I’d at least be able to turn on my phone and look through my contact numbers.  I was wrong.  Of course, my driver was not there to meet me at the airport.  Who to call?  And where to find their number?  I had no idea!  Thank goodness I dug up a printed email from my HR guy at work, and found his number.  Then I just needed to find a pay phone.  Ha ha, no such thing here.  But I put on my best sad face and asked a stranger to borrow her phone.  This is the first of many times that a helpful stranger will come to my aid here, I’m sure.  Eventually I got to the company guest house.

Views from Guest House

At the guest house, I started to call the agents that were recommended to find a flat.  Surprise, none of them speak English!  Thank goodness, the Piramal Admin guy is going to come with me househunting and translate this weekend.

Task 1:  Purchase new mobile phone.  This was actually an easy one.  There are communication stores every block around here.  So I just started walking around.  I didn’t see any for about 15 min, so I went up to an old professional-looking guy eating street food, and asked where I could find phones.  He said there were close stores, but the best selection and best prices was at a big store a mile or two away.  He also works in pharma, so we had a good talk about the industry.  So I had a rootbeer with him, then he gave me a ride to the store (recurring theme – helpful people).  Side note – only after drinking the rootbeer did I realize it was a fountain soda.  So I just drank a cup of Indian tapwater!  Oops, uh oh!  But no worries, no gastrointestinal issues resulted.  Phone purchased.  I still need a SIM card for it to work.  This is typically difficult for foreigners without a permanent address (SIM cards are tracked for national security), so my work is assisting with this.  I will feel much better when I have a phone.  It is very easy to get lost here.

So far I have been able to get onto the internet using public connections.  If this had not been the case, I’d probably be huddled in the corner crying right now.  I would not have been able to take care of anything.  The connection is spotty though.  I hope it holds up, there is much to do.  I was smart to bring plug adapters and converters for my computer and other electronics, one less thing to have to search for here.

Riding in an auto

The weather is beautiful, and this city is amazing to me.  The traffic cracks me up.  They don’t drive fast, but they do not pay attention to lanes, and intersections are just a free-for-all.  Company bus and auto rickshaws will be the only modes of transport that I use.

On to Task 2:  Househunting.  Wish me luck.

Eat, Pray, Love

What a stupid book.  I hate this chick-lit "oh my life is so sad, how ever can I survive in this big bad world" crap.  So, for anyone who doesn't know me well, here are NOT my reasons that I am going to India.

• I am not trying to "find" myself.
• I am not going to join a commune and become one with the Earth.
• I am not trying to spread the wonderfulness of America's bounty on the rest of the unfortunate planet.

In other words, I'm not becoming a hippie.  I'm going to work for a big bad Pharma company whose intent is to make a profit, just like I did in the US.

Okay, I am not really an angry person.  I just know that this thought will run through some of your heads at some point.  I am actually extremely excited about experiencing the different cultures and reflecting a little on my own way of living.  In general, I find Americans to be wasteful and self-centered (not you, of course, OTHER Americans).  But I digress, this is not a preachy blog!  On to the fun stuff!  I will post again when I actually move.