JC in India

I’ve never spent so much time in one room. For the first seven days since arriving I didn’t experience the great outdoors once, so no fresh air for me (well, when I say ‘fresh’..).

The current Indian travel / Covid requirements require a day 8 PCR test to release, so Tuesday saw me being picked up from the hotel and whisked to the terminal to do this. The advantage of working for the airport again shone through when my ‘chaperone’ quite literally just walked to the front of every queue and sorted all my admin, including actually having me tested, by just cutting in front of all the waiting people. Of course being British that required a lot of sheepish apologies on my part, but there wasn’t so much annoyance seen, instead more curiosity as to who this strange foreign chap was getting bumped to the front. Ultimately, from leaving the hotel to being back again took about an hour, and was all a bit of a blur. I’m pretty sure if I was fending for myself then most of the afternoon would have been given to the task. 

Thankfully the negative result (when it came through) signified my official release and successful compliance with the Indian regulations. So then I was free… to spend more time in the hotel because of the curfews in place and the fact the office has now closed due to the third wave pandemic response of the government!

There is a curfew in place now overnight from 10pm-5am every week day, meaning you cannot leave your residence without an exemption, and this is extended over the weekend and applies from 10pm Friday to 5am Monday. Couple that with the fact that all restaurants, bars etc are now take away only, this means that the hotel restaurant facilities are closed, with in-room dining the only option. There is quite literally nothing open in the hotel. Joy.

The government has now mandated that only offices of essential service providers remain open, so the GMR offices are now closed and remote working is deployed for all office employees. Obviously the operation remains up and running, but given my role is office/commercial I have no ‘essential need’ to work from the office. So despite having joined the company 10 days ago, I have yet to actually see the office or meet any of the team in person. Instead I have had a range of induction meetings over Teams / Zoom, and while this is less ideal in terms of building relationships it has in a way meant for a soft launch to my time with the business. When I do finally get to the office (possibly only in March if current predictions come true), then I should be fairly familiar with the business and the key people.

Despite this though, now I am technically free I have been able to venture out in non-curfew hours, and am working on becoming a bit of a regular at the Starbucks in the Aerocity area of the airport.

Still, despite all the pandemic related challenges, the practicalities of setting up in India are progressing well. My formal application for a FRRO (Foreign regional registration) is complete and submitted, and as soon as this comes through – hopefully in the next few days – I’ll be able to open my bank account, and finalise pretty much everything else.

The biggest positive development has been the securing of an apartment. Friday saw my second foray into the big wide world outside the hotel, with a property broker picking me up and whisking me around 8 potential apartments in the region of South Delhi where I had targeted my search (following a range of recommendations). In India properties are usually rented unfurnished, which can be more challenging for someone like myself who is simply looking for an easy and convenient way to live, without all the complexities of furniture purchasing etc.

The tour consisted of unfurnished, part furnished and one fully furnished place. The fully furnished place won. Hands down. It was the 3^rd place I saw, and I instantly knew it was the place I wanted. The current tenant was there and was an expat from Spain (I think), and so it was useful being able to get his honest opinions of the place, and thankfully he was very positive. I followed the broker round the rest of the apartments, but ultimately they all ranged on a scale of ‘No’ to ‘Meh’, and so the tour ended with my instruction for him to secure me the one I liked, and 3 hours later the draft contract was in my inbox. One thing in India; when people put their mind to things, they can happen very quickly. I’ve found this with some work interactions already. Often it will seem fairly calm, and I will be waiting for something to be sent or to happen, then the minute it is, it’s like a tsunami of activity, with everything kicking off very quickly.

So my Vasant Vihar apartment is secured. It’s a nice two bed spot, on the edges of the zone, right next door to the Libyan and Kenyan embassies, a small park, and a cluster of local shops are round the corner. Just under a mile away is a more comprehensive selection of shops and restaurants (including McDonalds…), and a mile beyond those is the large Ambience Mall which hosts a range of major international brands and a cinema etc.

From a commute perspective it is as close to the airport as can be, and should take no more than 20 minutes on a normal day. I’ll take possession on the 25^th, which is perfect as it coincides with the last day the hotel is booked until so saves me extending the stay here. As much as this is a nice hotel, there is only so much of the inside of one room you can see. I’ll be glad to move to the new apartment, put it that way.

And one other positive to the new Chez Carr… It is a top floor apartment, with a small terrace, which has a small little bar like fixture!

Admittedly, as I’ve been reminded by one of my fellow expats already, it may only really be suited to Spring, as in the winter there is too much pollution, the summer is too hot, and the autumn is monsoon season, but at least the option for an outdoor rooftop beer is there!

Still no chance to run sadly, and realistically unlikely to be able to for the next few weeks either. So far as I can tell there is a mandate to wear facemasks outdoors (I’ve not seen any notice about this but everybody is), and with the weekend curfews, and the gyms being closed, the opportunity to run is pretty much non-existent. I suspect my next run will actually be when I get back to the UK in February, and I dread to think how my fitness will have taken it’s toll. I’ve been doing virtual workouts with Jen (London) and her Niece (St Louis, USA) every couple of days though, so these truly global core workouts may preserve a small degree of fitness, fingers crossed!

Oh, and here is a picture I took of my new neighbours…

Street dogs are prevalent in India (as are Cows and the occasional Camel), and generally mind their own business. These fellas have had an impromptu shelter built for them, and despite the harshness of their overall lifestyle did seem fairly content to just snooze and watch the world go by. I’ll be sure to keep my eye on them as I settle in!