Atmosphere

Friday, May 2

Finally had some traditional Indian food. We had food brought in for lunch today since the cafeteria was closed for International Labor Day. For some reason they thought I wanted pizza. So we got Pizza Hut. I don't even eat pizza at home much anymore let alone Pizza Hut pizza.
The guys though ordered chicken with rice and curry and said they had to eat off by themselves because they eat with their hands.

I ate the pizza so as not to offend but then went over and asked if I could try the chicken and rice. It was delicious. A little bit spicy but not much. The chicken and rice and curry are all cooked together. The chicken is on the bone. I ate with my right hand as you are supposed to keep your left hand on your lap.

The canteen in the basement sells American Sweet Corn. If Dave MacKenzie sees this, he will be so jealous.

We worked late as usual. The taxis in MindSpace are just for the call center workers and you generally cannot hire them on the street. So Luis and I have been walking out to the entrance to MindSpace to try our luck at getting a ride. We had been real lucky either convincing a call center taxi to take us or a driver from one of the hotels take us. These vehicles have been air conditioned. Last night there weren't that many taxis out. I was up for taking the three-wheeled motorized rickshaws. They are open air but have a roof. Basically it is a motorcycle with three wheels and generally two passengers but you see them with a lot more riders than that.

The driver was great and weaved in and out and around traffic. We made it back to the hotel in no time.

In the evening there is a smokey dusty haze and smell of open fires. I think it is a combination of the tent dwellers and some open-air eating areas that have fires for cooking. The haziness, odors and dim light along with no wind give the city a completely different feel than it has in the morning under the blazing sun and almost constant breeze.

Work, Work, Work

So much for International Labor Day. The team here offered to work on this holiday in exchange for another day off later. So instead of working some from the hotel and then sightseeing, it is off to the office and put in a full day's work.

The IBM office is in an area of Hyderabad called Hitek City. And within Hitek City within an area called MindSpace. There is construction all over the place. New office buildings and a large Westin Hotel right across from the IBM office. The amount of steel and concrete is
unbelievable. The energy consumption must be staggering. But contrast that with street cleaning which involves women with brooms made from palm fronds and lawn care being done by a man cutting the grass by hand with a knife not much bigger than a razor blade!


This is really a country of extremes. The government successfully launched a rocket the other day with 9 satelites it. The 9 satelites were all successfully put into orbit. They are planning on sending an unmanned mission to the moon later this year and eventually put a man in space. Yet there is such incredible poverty - as Luis put it "misery." People sleeping in the street medians and along the sides of the roads. Tents made of discarded plastics and tarps. Corrugated metal structures. All this right next to new and modern office buildings and condominiums.

Another update

Wednesday, April 30
My reports are really for the previous day. I'm writing this from the hotel while waiting for the shuttle bus to go to the IBM office.

Still not able to eat very much but slowly feeling better. We went out to lunch as a group. Drove across the city to a shopping mall called City Centre. Mostly western style clothing stores and such. There are restaurants on the top floor. Luis, the project manager from the US that came over is Hispanic. As we were riding up the elevator at the mall two women get on speaking Spanish. In a country of 1.3 bill lion who would ever think you would run into Spanish speakers?!

Hyderabad is a hilly city. We drove through the area of the city called Jubilee Hills to get to City Centre. Not tall hills but rolling with enormous boulders everywhere. Hyderabad and its neighbor, Secunderabad, are referred to as the Twin Cities. How about that!

Still haven't done any site seeing for real. On the taxi ride back to hotel we passed a big festival near the hotel and had to wait while they shot off fireworks on the street. Tomorrow is a holiday - Labor Day. I'll be working from the hotel but plan on getting done at a reasonable time and going to see the Charminar and maybe do some pearl shopping -- Hyderabad is known for fresh water pearls.

Subway

Tuesday, April 29

And I'm not referring to transportation. We had Subway sandwiches for lunch yesterday. We were working through the day and missed lunch time so had Subway sandwiches brought in. I had a chicken sub Indian style. Either the sandwich or the water or both have really not agreed with me. In the US it would be called Montezuma's revenge. I'm still queasy today.

We worked late, 8:30pm, and got a ride back to the hotel with one of the team members. I was expecting a whirlwind drive through the streets of Hyderabad. Didn't happen. I think he was nervous and also timid but we had a slow drive from Hitec City, the area with all the national and international business offices, to our hotel.

We did go through the one traffic light that I have seen so far. Other than that one intersection it is just every vehicle for themselves getting through intersections or turning onto streets. They drive on the left hand side of the road like in England.

Hopefully my stomach and everything below will calm down today.

First full day in Hyderabad, India

Monday, April 28
I've been in Hyderabad almost a day now. It seems so long ago that I left Minneapolis. The travelling has definitely
taken a toll on my brain and body.

The ride from the airport to the hotel was interesting. The airport just opened 20 days ago. Very modern of glass and steel.
But it is very far out from the city. About 40 kilometers. The hotel provided a pickup which was immensely appreciated.

The traffic wasn't the horrific packed and dangerous cacophony I had expected. Sure there were lots of vehicles and
of every time. Trucks, buses, cars, three wheelers, bikes, ox-drawn carriages and even 2 camels. When I saw the camels
I figured all I needed to see now were elephants. Didn't though.

So incredible images of poverty along the way contrasted with new and modern and expensive looking housing. People living
in handmade tents right next to the street. But also these modern town homes and apartments right near by.

I spent Sunday trying to find my bearings. The hotel is very western. Clean, modern and efficient. It is connected to
a large convention center. A wedding of someone famous or with money was going on. All incoming vehicles were
checked for bombs.

As part of my recuperation I worked out in the well-equipped gym and best of all had a full body massage with foot
reflexology and eye recuperation. It was very very nice to say the least.

I did absolutely no touring and did not venture from the hotel. Today is first day of work.

I made it!

Here are my typings while travelling:

Friday, April 25
Super Shuttle pickup right on time arrived at the airport before 2pm stepped up to first class/premium check-in "The 4:40 flight has an 85 min wheels up." What does that mean? Basically it is going to be late. There is some sort of delay in Chicago. Switched to 3:15 flight from MSP to DFW.
20 people on standby-list. No idea how I got a seat. A middle seat but a seat.
Pull away from gate right on time 3:15. Amazing.
Pilot tells us we are parking in a remote holding zone. Wheels-up in 20 mins. according to Chicago.
DELAYED
3:40 pilot says we've gotten the go ahead.
3:41 pilot says while had his headset off telling us we had the clear, the tower came back and said to keep the engines off.
DELAYED
Take off 4:15pm
Flying from MSP to DFW is generally just a straight shot and 57 mins. We were diverted to Traverse City, MI.
That is across Lake Michigan from Chicago. So we had to fly over the lake going east and then back over going west to come into Chicago from the east.
We landed at 5:45.
Once on the ground we had to wait for a gate to be available. While waiting lightening was striking within 5 miles of the airport so all ground crew had to go in.
We weren't able to get to the gate to get off the plane until 6:20pm
Delhi flight delayed from 7:10pm to 7:45pm
Left the gate at 8:15 to park out on the tarmac. Finally took off at 9:30pm. The pilot warned the flight attendants that we would be taking off at full throttle and something about pitch of inclination. It didn't sound good but the take, in a driving rain storm, went fine.

It was a rather rocky ride and the flight attendants had to suspend the meal service while we flew through a big storm at 31,000 feet. Lightening on both sides of the plane. Very creepy. I was seated in the middle section over the wings so really couldn't see much.

I watched The Kite Runner movie (really, really good) while eating the dinner meal (okay). I did some work on my laptop. I read my Al Franken book, Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them. I then tried to sleep. Basically I slept in one hour pieces. I'd sleep for about an hour then wake up. Scooshh around and sleep some more. The flight was not full and I lucked out that the gentleman sitting next to me moved over and I had two empty seats on one side. I still had to sleep sitting up though because lying across the seats was just too uncomfortable to sleep though I did to get
legs up. The gentleman did take advantage of the empty seats and fell asleep across them.

Amazingly we arrived only 30 mins past our scheduled time -- 9:35pm local/11:05am CDT. Either they pad the schedule enormously or over the 7,000+ miles we made up a lot of time.
To be honest the flight wasn't too bad considering I had been on a plane of some sort for 20 hours.

Arrival in Delhi. It is hot and humid here at 9:30 at night. I had been warned that the passport check line would be
slow. It was but tolerable. My one checked bag was coming around the luggage carousel my the time I got through customs.
There aren't really any signs of where to go or what to do. I headed toward what looked like customs check and was
correct. No line really just a cluster of people going through.

Now came the tricky part. I knew I would have to transfer from the international terminal to the domestic terminal. I had read that they are about 8 kilometers apart and that a transfer bus was available. There are no signs. No signs about domestic terminal, no signs about transfer bus and not really any signs about taxis.

I wander out I'm sure looking dazed and confused. A young man approaches asking if I need help. I know I'm in trouble now. He offers to direct me to where the taxis are to take me to the domestic terminal. It is now about 11pm and my flight to Hyderabad isn't until 5:50am. I'm not sure I even want to go to domestic terminal and wait for 7 hours.

I ask him about the transfer bus but he says it doesn't run this late at night. I tell him I want to exchange money. He takes me to exchange window. I'm trying to lose him by telling him I am waiting for another person - a flat out lie.

I can't shake him. I exchange $60 US for about 2200 Ruppees. I ask him how much taxi is to domestic terminal. He shows me this official looking paper that says it is 1050 Rupees. I'm like - no way it is that much and tell him thanks but no thanks. Then the price goes down to 700. I'm still saying no. Then it is 500. And that includes 12 kilometers to get there and 12 to get back. I tell him I'm not coming back but he insists that it is 24 kilometers.

I tell him I'm going to the pre-paid taxi stand and head back into the airport. I find the pre-paid taxi stand. Off to the side is a window with a government sign. The gentleman at the window gestures me over and asks if I need a taxi. I say yes to domestic terminal. I tell him my flight isn't until 5:20am. He says I should go to hotel next to terminal. I am tired, sweaty, confused and easily persuaded. The confusion part comes when he tells me the price of the hotel room and I pay for what ends up being the taxi ride. I only figured this out after I got to the hotel.

The taxi cost 250 Rupees - much less than the 1050 I started at with the outside guy. But I ripped myself off by giving the taxi drive a $20 tip! Even with that outrageous tip he was pissed. I'm really feeling like I'm the one getting ripped off.

My first impressions of India are not good. I can't see anything of the place. It is dark, dusty and hazy. The hotel is directly across from the domestic terminal. I check in paying with a credit card. I'm sure I'm going to get busted trying to expense this but I really needed some place to be that wasn't an airport.

The hotel room is just that a room. The window looks out to the hallway. There is a super duper ceiling fan, an air conditioner that doesn't work, a television, a little refrig and a separate bathroom. The door appear to not have a lock and definitely doesn't have a latch. I'm not feeling too good about the accommodations as a pile my two little pieces of luggage up against the door.

A shower would be great as I am quite sweaty now. the bathroom is actually quite large with a big tub and shower. No hot water but that's okay. It feels good. With the door not locking and not really even shut I'm thinking falling a sleep could be dangerous. I lie down and manage to fall asleep...again doing the hour by hour thing.

There is an automated room freshner that goes off every half hour and showers me, thanks to the super duper celing fan, with a petuli, oily smell. My mind is racing all over the place but I actually do get some rest.

Wake-up call at 3:45am. I decide a shave would make me feel, and look, better. Put on clean underwear, undershirt and polo shirt. Pack up the light jacket. I don't think I'll being needing that while I'm here. The bellman comes to get me and my luggage and off I go to the airport. Quick little drive to domestic terminal. I get checked it and now I am on flight to Hyderabad.

Let the adventure begin

The bon voyage crowd.My passport and Indian business visa did arrive this morning with a few hours to spare. I still hadn't packed and so spent about half hour packing and finishing up the cat care instructions.

I am taking the Super Shuttle service to the airport. Supposed to pick me up between 1:20 and 1:35. My flight to Chicago doesn't leave until 4:40. The Chicago to Delhi flight leaves at 7:10pm.

I found this article that a reporter for USAToday wrote about the exact same flight I'm taking.
USATODAY article

Once in Delhi I have another flight to Hyderabad. There is a nine hour layover but I'm figuring that will be mostly filled with going through customs and transferring from the international terminal to the domestic terminal.

I don't actuall arrive in Hyderabad until early Sunday morning....India time which would be late Saturday night time locally. India is 10 1/2 hours ahead of US Central time.

I hope to keep the blog up to date at least with text. I may not be able to upload pictures until I come back. We'll see.