Final Days

So, today is my last full day in the office, and I am wrapping things up, and doing final things related to my rotation here. Tomorrow will be busy with debriefs, a new hire orientation, and probably crying.

I really don't feel like working (and I've been avoiding somethings like the plague!) so I'll share my random thoughts about being here.

Things I will miss

1. Buffet breakfast - I like the fact that I can have eggs OR pancakes OR phulkah OR sambar everyday. Gawd, if you just had decent COLD milk and yogurt here, I'd be set!

2. Meeting people - I've met so many people from so many regions, and my whole network has really grown while I've been here. Meeting the Hyd staff has also been great, and being able to put a face to a name is really the best part of coming out here.

3. Travel - I've flown more here in 7 weeks than I have in some past years. 2008 in general was a huge travel year for me, and being able to see Taj Mahal, the backwaters of Kerala, and even Singapore, has truly been a blessing.

4. Bollywood - Now I understand the potency of this film style. I've got like 15 different soundtracks now (thanks Sana!), I've seen Dostana and am purchasing all sorts of movie goodies tomorrow. I'm obsessed with all things Abishek (see below) and I now want to be a back up dancer in one of his films. I think I can pull it off! :P

5. Missing people - as weird as it sounds, I'm going to miss missing people. The old verse "you don't know what you've got till it's gone" is so true here when access to people is impossible due to location and time zone. Expect me to be calling you to hang out or just chat more often.

6. Missing things - Plays, movies, concerts, museums, non-corporate coffee shops, local markets - oh dear, how I have taken you for granted! I promise to go to more of you instead of putzing around in my house, debating what to do today.

7. The weather - oh, I hear it's snowing in Chicago?..... and here I am, working on my tan by the pool. Pity......

Things I won't miss
1. Ginger Court - I'm sorry but if I have to eat Ginger Court food one more time, I will freak. I can't wait to gorge myself on Chipotle, my dad's cooking and Cozy Noodle. That and milk - I am going to get SOOOOOOO sick I can feel like, but it will totally be worth it.

2. Lack of sense of direction - there are no street signs here ANYWHERE. I only know where I am because of landmarks (McDonald's, City Centre, the Puma Store). I don't know north from east (since I don't see the sun rise or set) and I've seen maybe one star since I've been here.

3. The lounge singer at the hotel bar - If I hear you sing 'Besame Mucho' one more time, I'm gonna take that microphone and.....

4. Sales people - just stop following me please, and stop selling me sh*t I don't want. I asked for one thing, you didn't have it, end of story. Goodbye.

5. My hotel room - my box of a room was fun for the first 3 days, and then, I just really sick of being in it! I need more space!

6. Boiling my water to brush my teeth - supposedly the water is ok, but I don't trust it!!

7. The personal conservatism - I can't handle living somewhere in which it's illegal to be gay, where kissing on TV is blocked out and where married people can't hold hands. Isn't India the birthplace of the Kama Sutra?! I don't get it!

So there it is in a nutshell. I'd be happy to share all my deepest darkest thoughts with you when I am back in two short days. Even this blog is censored.....

Peace out.
-b-