Day 3-5 India: This Ain't No Vacation

Day 3, 4 and 5 kind of run together. We were doing so much work all of the time and then trying to fit in as many activities in the evening that we were running everywhere all of the time.
On Wednesday, I took about 10 people from the group below (10 of the people who work on merchandising) and we went to a mall to tour some retail stores. This was a "training" class for them. We had set an agenda so that I would be spending several hours each day training the teams. So they were very surprised to learn that we were doing a field trip. They were also SO surprised when they realized I would be doing the training and yet, I didn't know much about India retail stores.
As I had hoped, these stores had all of the same problems as retailers in the U.S. and in many cases worse! We divided into teams, I gave them assignments (things to look for, evaluate) and then we split up to visit different stores. We eventually returned to the office and compared notes and talked about how the software we are building solves many of the problems we had seen. The teams completely loved it. We worked a longer night on Wednesday and I didn't get back to my hotel around 8pm. I didn't want to try and do any activities and this ended up being the only night that we didn't do something!

Thursday was also a busy, busy working day. We rarely even get a bathroom break. And then, I have to do my U.S. work in the morning and nights too. So this aint no vacation. I am really grateful for the few times we do get to go see some things. Thursday was also the evening of our company party. It was held at a hotel and consisted of entertainment (dances, skits) from the employees, games, and then dinner. We have some incredibly talented entertainers in our little company! Sylaja had purchased me a saree years ago and I had brought it with me and wore it to the party. The team LOVED that. They all kept telling me how nice I looked. The Indian people have very strong traditions - especially around clothing, food, and religion. Jairam does take me to these wonderful places for lunch. Thursday, we got to eat South Indian which is a lot of rice and very spicy food. It was incredible. And our restaurant was on top of a building. The ceiling and walls were made of glass and water was pouring over them creating an amazing ambience.

Friday (Day 5) was our last day in the office. Again, such a busy, busy day. So many people to meet with, many more trainings to hold, and trying to cram it all in at the last minute. Also, Jairam had purchased tickets for us to go to a movie so we had to be done by 6:45 PM. Most days we end around 7PM. The team gave us gifts, wished us well, and was very sad to see us go. They really like having us visit and show incredible hospitality. Honestly, we don't even compare in the U.S.
So the movie was quite an experience. The theater itself is just like the U.S. Very new, nice stadium seating, assigned seats. But there were a few differences that cracked me up.

1. For starters, no one shows up until after the movie has already started. They come in during the previews and it seems that no one wants to watch them. In fact, we thought we were in the wrong theater because it was opening night for the show and there were only a few of us in there. But sure enough, during the previews, people start pouring in.
2. One of my previous observations also remains true at the movies - all food is Indian. They serve many choices like the Utah theaters, but the choices are all Indian food. They have popcorn, but it has Indian spices (fortunately, I did get a small BUTTER ONLY popcorn). But many people choose CORN instead of popcorn. They have a big pot of corn and they mix it with spices and put it in these little "popcorn" dishes.
3. "Interval" - a.k.a. intermission. Half way through the movie, it stops and a big "Interval" sign shows up. The lights go on and you have 5 minutes to use the bathroom and/or buy more food. Almost the entire theater empties out - people milling around the concessions and then everyone files back in. Now this is brilliant. I wish we had this. I think I have had to take Kenna to the bathroom EVERY time we go to the movie. Plus, wouldn't we all like just one more snack or drink? I totally love the concept.