My Passage To India

I'm leaving Monday, the day before Kyla gets home, and I'm returning on the 18th, the day after her birthday. Lousy timing on all sides. I don't have many people working for me there, but it seems nearly inevitable that I will have more over the coming year. I'm also visiting various Indian companies who are partners to us. It's hard to build a coherent group in a place you don't have any firsthand knowledge of, so I was going to have to visit some time. In any case, it shouldn't be hard to come away with better insights than the ever-insipid and mind bogglingly shallow Tom Friedman.

It's 12 1/2 hours in terms of time difference and about 20 hours of time in the air to get there. Who the hell ever heard of a timezone on a 1/2 hour slot --just one more indicator of how different things are over there. I've had my Hep-A shot, I'm done with my Typhoid pills, and my malaria pills start today. I skipped the Hep-B, which I will only regret if I'm planning on exchanging bodily fluids or sharing needles. Neither activity is on my to-do list. The doctor told me that if I needed a blood transfusion, I should leave the country. That advice will be hard to follow, I'm sure. Other helpful hints from the travel service we use:

Do not rinse your mouth or toothbrush with tap water, and do not open your mouth in the shower.

It is considered impolite to point with your finger, to whistle and to position your feet in the direction of another person.

Always use your right hand to accept or pass food. Never offer another person food from your plate.

It is advisable to be punctual to appointments. However, your Indian counterpart may be late.

In the New Delhi area, criminals known as "goondas" frequently kidnap local businessmen for ransom.

Sounds like a blast! Fortunately, I'm only going to Bangalore and Hyderabad.

I suspect I'll be blogging a bit while I'm over there. It's hard to know exactly how it will go. I'm having to reserve 8AM-11AM Pacific for calls with people at work here. Most of you can appreciate just how coherent I will be by 11:30 at night there, if you've ever seen me up that late. Keep up the blogging!