Work Day 1 and The Asiana

 My first impression of India was at 1 am at a very crowded, steamy (it’s humid here), and noisy airport. None of the less we were here…and then we had to wait for our car to pull around for us. And all I can say is that it was one big massive chaos. People are everywhere, cars are all over the place, and everyone is honking their horns. Yes, lots and lots of everything. And to top it off, there are no real lanes on many of the roads and people drive where ever they see an opening. Honking here is considered a heads up and courtesy and not the finger like it is back home. Needless to say, the Indian people are very “courteous” to one another. Pretty crazy for the Western mind, but this is India. As we drive to the hotel, we are able to look around and see what is around us. It is mostly, some very old housing, businesses, and other unnamed debris about the place that has not exactly made curb appeal on the top of my list. Upon further inspection, there are several dogs and cattle roaming about the place. Here, there is no or little animal control and animals are considered sacred. So yes, it is nothing to see a cow in the road, standing there, and everyone else going around it. It is definitely something new, even for a girl who grew up on a farm with animals as part of her early childhood.


We are staying at a lovely hotel in Chennai called the Asiana. It is beautiful in every way, with the friendliest of staff. I could not ask for a better hotel experience and am very thankful to be here. Some of the staff, clasps their hands together as if in pray (palm to palm) and bows there heads at me. It is an odd experience for me as no one has ever done that to me before, but one I accept with a smile and a thank you. After all, I am a guest in this country and I am humbled by the respect that is given to me.

A closet with my safe full of important things...like medicine! And my essential granola bars for snacks and sometimes breakfast.

Work clothes and jackets.

Yes, count them--only 4 pairs of shoes.  And you know how I love my shoes...

View from the roof of th hotel of India.

Another rooftop view.

My work day started at 5:00pm and we were driven to the facility that will be our work home for the next three weeks.  It is an architecturally amazing new building that is in the shape of a butterfly.  Over 25,000 people work here—daily.  To say that it is huge and futuristically beautifully, made of nothing but steel is an understatement.  We will be taking a tour soon and I look forward to it.  After meeting several people—some names I knew, others I did not, we were presented with a lovely gift from our team.  It was a gorgeous peacock, the national bird, and a symbol of prosperity.  It was magnificent.  Upon meeting with the team who we will actually be doing a lot of the hands on work, and who my counterparts and I will be answer questions from, there was a beautiful ceremony where we lit a candle in a tall brass statue.  It was something to symbolize new beginnings and all of the parts that we will be playing in our roles. It was beautiful and something that is unique to the Indian culture that I would not find back home.  Our day was busy and included “lunch” that was around 11:00pm (we are working US hours and a little earlier as we are typically in the office by 6:00 pm, time difference is 11.5 hours). All I can say is that becoming nocturnal is hard and I am happy that I will not be doing this for a long period of time.  I am still trying to figure out when I should eat, sleep, and take my medicine.  It is a groove that I need to find still but one that I am embracing as this experience is priceless.

The ceremonial staff.  Those are several kinds of petals--I think roses, and I know jasmine petals.

It is a different culture than what I know, but I am embracing it and keeping an open mind.  I am trying very hard not to look at everything through my Western mind and sensibilities as I am here to do business, but for me personally, this is an experience that I hope to grow in as a person.  I believe that travel can do that for you and I appreciative of this opportunity.