JC in India

… just a different type of peaceful!

Two years ago (give or take a few weeks), myself and my team at Manchester Airport left our offices to go home for a few days because of a certain virus that was doing the rounds. Little did we know at the time that we would never return to the bank of desks and office environment that we shared together, and that our whole organisation and way of working would be turned upside down. There’s no need here for a dialogue on the effects of the pandemic – we all know it too well now – save to say that our organisation evolved to adapt and what I had considered the best job I’d ever had, with the best people I’d ever worked with, changed beyond recognition into a world of home working and crisis management. It was suddenly a very different tone to our normal business development and growth focus.

Personally, I went from being very busy, working all hours, travelling most weeks, and spending a lot of time jet lagged to going nowhere – basically grounded. Not long after that day being sent home, we all went into lockdown and so started what was well over a year of staying firmly on terra firma and, at least for the first part, a very peaceful and unhurried existence.

Actually though, turned out I rather enjoyed it.

Going from full speed to zero speed was initially a shock to the system but once I’d adjusted it was nice – a chance to settle more into my local life, build my friendships, and spend time doing things that are arguable way more important than work. I’ve been fortunate not to be directly affected by Covid, and of course I empathise and have great compassion for those that have, and I’d never wish this pandemic on anyone. However, after the initial period of adjustment, it was good to actually make the most of the change of pace, and it turned out to be a positive period in all sorts of personal ways.

Such a change of lifestyle ultimately led to reflection on the next steps in my life, which in turn led to me taking the role I now have here in India. Which in turn led to a rapid acceleration in pace in my lifestyle again…

I’ve gone from the relative calm of mostly home working, and the pleasant environment of North Yorkshire to being back in an office each day, to travel, to jet lag, and to the frenetic activity that presents itself as a way of life in New Delhi.

India is busy. It’s frenetic. It’s crazy at times. There’s an underlying level of noise, and chatter here; be it the animals, the traffic, or the calls of the people in the streets. Either way it is not a country known for its peace and tranquillity. Although I should caveat that comment relates to the city environment only. There are plenty of beautiful country regions that are tranquil havens of all sorts of climate and tropical variety, a lot of which will be visited over the coming years. For me though right now, life in India is ‘busy’.

Ironically, the work environment is sometimes a slower pace in terms of ‘modus operandi’ that is the norm here, meaning it can take a while to get things done, but that’s not a disparaging comment as the professional nature of the work environment here is very positive. It is a balance that I’m learning to adapt to. The teams here are always very keen to help, and I am learning the idiosyncrasies of needing to be very explicit in outlining any requests to ensure my ask is fully understood, and that ‘yes’ doesn’t always mean ‘yes’. You have to watch out for the context and the way things are said to understand whether Yes really means No, but again it’s all part of the learning. I am never going to change culture here, nor would I want to, instead I need to learn to adapt my way of communicating and working to the style adopted here. Which is part of the fun of it all!

The last few weeks I was back in the UK and Europe with some time working from home in Knaresborough (on India time – hello 0430 starts) tagged onto the front of a business conference in Finland – my first International business trip in this new role.

It was nice to be back, to spend time at home, be with loved ones (both 2 legged and 4 legged!) and to give Barney the chance to be on Squirry patrol again!

It was nice to not have to keep my mouth firmly shut in the shower or go through the rigmarole of brushing my teeth in bottled water. It was nice going out for dinner, and ordering my non-veg favourites with little concern for “what’s in this?” (I’m vegetarian in India, and needless to say very cautious – possibly too cautious – about what I eat and drink, but so far I’ve not had any ‘issues’, so I’d rather than be cautious and fine than the alternative…). Which reminds me, I will probably post separately about food and drink here in India at some point…

It was also nice to be able to run again, although admittedly there was some wimping out and using the treadmill. Well, it’s cold in England in the winter isn’t it! 🙄

Coming back to India wasn’t with a heavy heart though, as I’m committed to this experience and keen to embrace it. Of course I miss home a lot, and all I leave behind there, but it helps to know that access is now easier; there are no more testing or quarantine regimes anymore, and also in the last few days the Middle East has opened up by removing testing requirements for us fully vaxed folks. So avenues home are now plentiful and will only increase as the limitations on capacity to/from India gets lifted hopefully in the coming months (the ‘air bubbles’ as its technical known in Indian aviation industry parlance). So, the ability to ‘pop back’ for a long weekend becomes instantly more viable, and it’s comforting to know if I want to go home at short notice or for a brief period now there’s nothing stopping me.

It is a tougher lifestyle here for all the reasons described, but I’m beginning to find my feet now and get into the flow. I am in India for the great career role primarily, and also for the experience of life in this incredible country – #incredibleIndia as the marketing slogan goes.

I’m writing this from my terrace in the sun watching the aircraft pass close by on approach (Rwy 27 is in operation for arrivals today, which is quite rare so it means the approach is nearly overhead Vasant Vihar, where I live – an unimportant fact for us aviation geeks!).

There are two pigeons having a fight on the roof of the overhang and making a right racket, there is a chap down on the street shouting his head off trying to sell ‘stuff’, and the local street dogs have just had a barking frenzy. But that’s India, and that’s the experience I came for. I’m living in a more local area, which admittedly is relatively affluent compared to some areas, and the apartment I have is higher up the ladder so to speak. However, I personally feel the balance is right for me (Ok, the apartment is showing signs of damp, but my contact has rushed a plan to sort it next week in the usual really want to help style).

Outside the door though is “India” and a visit to the local shop, or a walk around the block leaves no doubt about that. Last night I walked to the ‘liquor store’ to pick up some wine – alcohol is not available in the usual shops here just specialist shops only – and to say it’s an experience to do that is an understatement. The queue of ‘blokes’ to get in and buy alcohol is apparently the norm, and inside to say it was ‘somewhat frantic’ is probably a fair description. Bring back Sainsbury’s any day for that purpose, but again… it is an experience.

Walking there involves dodging cars, rickshaws, people, bicycles, cows, dogs and it’s generally easier to just walk in the road rather than the sidewalks (ok, I’m becoming partly Americanised for obvious reasons!). Sidewalks are often not passable in most places due their general state, and…, well, you just have to see them to understand!

On that ¾ mile walk I actually felt pretty comfortable. It is relatively safe – as safe as any major city really. Yes, there will be pockets of crime here and there, and need to be mindful of such as you would anywhere in the world. However, poverty does not directly mean crime. Most people here regardless of level on the social scale are genuine and friendly, and while their style and approach is often foreign to us Brits, once you learn to understand that, it is not something to fear. I walked to that shop for my bottle of Red, and felt comfortable doing so, and while dodging the aforementioned obstacles, I actually felt quite at home.