Today I explored the hotel grounds a bit more. With daylight to help me view them they are not too bad. A water feature that must stretch a hundred yards from the main road to the lobby dominates as you come in.
When I got back to the hotel entrance at 08:30 local a car was waiting to collect me. I had been told to expect it at 10:00 local when I had arrived so I wasn't ready! Late for my first day! DOH!
The car returned at 09:30 local and I set off for the office. The first thing that struck me was the shanty towns. I guess this is not the most affluent part of Hyderabad, and I am sure there are nicer parts, but you can't help but wonder when you are faced with row upon row of tents made out of cane and tarpaulin and I simply can't imagine how people live like that. Obviously it is not through choice, even so, it is incomprehensible to me.
Then there are the roads. Take everything you have heard about Indian roads and multiply it ifinitesimally! There are no rules whatsoever it seems. 2 lanes regularly become 3-5 lanes, motorbikes come from everywhere, to pull out you simply make you own gap regardless whether anything is coming or not, you hoot your horn every 3 seconds, and you do your best to dodge the oxen that simply walk out across the Hyderabadi equivolent of the A12! Add to that violent speed humps (of which it is questionable whether they are due to traffic calming or simply bad road building), and you have a small idea of my journey to work. I had to chuckle though, for amidst all the chaos I saw a woman being taught to drive by the Pradhesh School of Motoring. Had I been wearing a cap I would have had to take it off to her for she was much braver than I am for learning to drive on these roads.
Well, having made it to work in one piece (albeit late) I am ready to start my first day. The offices are nice, air conditioned (a must for a country whose average temperature drops to a paltry 24c in winter!), and quite modern. I met my new colleagues, James (ops) and Tony (maintrol) who seem quiet nice. Must admit I am eager to get cracking and get stuck in now. Soon I am to be issued with a laptop and a phone which should make things easier. They also booked me my flights so I can come home for Christmas today which is a weight off my mind. Freya will be 18months old by the time this Christmas comes round and I am looking forward to it.
Plus, there is a get out clause for me should this all go wrong, so it would appear, for when reading the Times of India today I discovered there is a possible career lying in wait for me in Germany. Evidently, there is a shortage of fat, jolly men who a free of any criminal convictions in order to become Father Christmases. Maybe those years of devotion to junk food and beer may have had some purpose after all?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment