उम्मीदों ("um'mīdōṁ" - expectations)

48 hours from the time this entry is posted I should be leaving O'Hare on my way to Delhi (ideally enjoying 1 or 2 celebratory beverages to christen the 2011 Rose Bowl Champion Wisconsin Badgers).


Wisconsin +3? Yes please.

I have my topic picked out for the blog tomorrow but I struggled with what I should fill today with. While I really am not sure what to expect, I wanted to record the few expectations I do have and then revisit them when I come back just to see how far off I will likely be. 

The number one thing I'm trying to prepare for is the poverty. While I'll consider myself rather emotionally reserved and possibly somewhat cold, I have to admit I'm slightly concerned about what images I may see in this trip. This past week I spent some time discussing the experiences one of my best friends had while in India during a semester at sea in his undergrad. He reassured me that everything you hear really can't prepare you and that some images will be burned into your memory for life. Awesome. Needless to say I'm expecting to receive a reality check on just how good we have things here in the States.

I can't wait to interact with the people also. I've had nothing but positive experiences with co-workers and friends from the area. The energy, optimism, wit and intelligence I've seen is something to be desired. Recently I've been helping to train an HR team based in Gurgaon and it's been an awesome experience. So thanks again Chaks, Pushpa, Faruk, Aanchal, Gagan, and Amit for making my job so easy. Drinks are on me at F-Bar in Gurgaon, you've earned it.

Lastly, on a lighter note, I'm surprisingly looking forward to the uniqueness of traveling in the country. From the taxi drivers on their own agenda to a metro transit that is sporadic at best, I'm sure my patience and desire for punctuality will be tested on this trip. I'm guessing this guy probably couldn't handle it.

 Seriously, if this is a majority representation of the youth of America I don't want to come back.

स्वागत ("Swaagat", Welcome)

Well here goes nothing. I'm dipping my toes into the proverbial blogging world. Joining the masses of  broke, lazy, males that dominate the blogosphere. Thank you to Annie for showing me the ropes on how to blog. Please be kind as this is certainly an experiment as much as it will be my attempt to share my experience. Why the blog? It's pretty simple : I'm going to India, the few friends and family I have want to keep in touch, and I'm always open to new technology. Blogging this 16 day adventure to India seemed like the solution.

To give you some filler, one of my biggest regrets was having not traveled abroad during my undergrad years and one of the main draws for me to the University of Minnesota and their HR graduate program was the chance to go abroad. There were plenty of options from full semeters abroad in all sorts of locations. I picked India for many reasons. First, the culture is one of the most fascinating to me. Second, it's going to put me out of my comfort zone more so than China or Brazil would. Lastly, I believe the business and personal connection to India is strong with the career path I have chosen.

I really don't know what to expect from this trip. To give you an idea, the academic portion consists of our group visiting and speaking with business leaders of companies such as Lenovo, United Health Group, Ameriprise Financial, and Target to name a few. We've been instructed on the seriousness and confidentiality concerns of these meetings so I will likely not be able to share any details of these experiences. These visits will take up most of our time during the days leaving us the night to roam about.

The meetings and academic portion I'm really looking forward, but the most excitment lies in the unknown and unstructured evenings we will have free to explore. This is what I hope to share extensively through this blog. I am aiming to recreate my experience as much as possible through this blog so my goal will be to share as many photos, video, audio and whatever other media I can think of with you as possible.

So welcome to the blog. I hope it satisfies and some of you find it entertaining yet informative. I hope I don't get attacked by a leopard while I'm over there.

- D