And now for some general scenes from the every day life of a TW Trainer… for those people who keep asking “what’s it like.” You know who you are.
Above is the TW Office in Bangalore. It’s big, it’s noisy, it’s friendly, and it’s full of people with energy and creativity (photo taken at 6am on my first day in Bangalore — people don’t generally arrive in the office until 9:30). The biggest difference between TW India and the other countries is projects are done in the office in India. Elsewhere we are distributed… meaning we are at a client site working directly with the client teams.
Next is the parking. It seems that everyone drives a motorbike.
And, the apartment.
I’m sharing with random people who come and go. They mostly go. Next month I will be sharing with Jann who I worked with on my last project. I’m hoping for some interesting southern US cooking experiences; Jann loves to cook and I hate the little Japanese range that I’m forced to use.
And my room.
What can I say… I sleep here. I’ve had some bad luck with mozzies so I’m using a net. The room is cleaned by a very chatty woman who stopped talking to me when I told her I wasn’t a practicing Christian. The room is in need of some homey touches… like stickie notes and project maps/calendars (kidding: rugs, pictures, candles, and scarves).
The training space — at the Royal Orchid Bangalore.
This will be my home for roughly 6 weeks starting in June. It’s a typical training space: lights that periodically go out, flaky Internet, and a climate control system that can’t regulate itself. I’m really looking forward to teaching… the space has me all revved up. My first session will be on ThoughtWorks Values. Then I’ll be running with the consulting / BA stream of classes.
And, the 8ft high vases outside the training room.
The view between my apartment and the Royal Orchid. I need to do a trial walk from the hotel to the gym so I can get an idea of how long the walk will take every day.
That’s it. Typical. Repetitive. I was a little surprised on this trip to India because I’ve not gone through any semblance of culture shock. Interestingly, when I did my Strengths Finder a few weeks ago it came back that my biggest strength is adaptability, meaning you can put me anywhere in any situation and I’ll just adapt. That could explain why I’ve been very meh… different country, different people, work to do, things to learn.
Awesome post. It’s amazing that you’re not experiencing culture shock. Could I guess that it’s also because you knew what to expect? Maybe it’s also because you’re there on work and not just to tour? Just guesses.
Keep posting, I’m watching you sister!
Very interesting post! How long are you going to be in India?
Also, what are mozzies?? (do I want to know?! LOL)
Hey … was happy to see this – I’m coming out at the start of July to be a TWU trainer until November … totally excited and can’t wait for the month to be off to head over!
Ooops. Missed Nic’s question (sorry ’bout that). Mozzies are mosquitoes. Right now there’s a dengue fever outbreak (of which you can’t immunize for) and it’s malaria season; though occurrences of malaria are rare in Bangalore.
Hey Ange. I sent you an email. See you in July.
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I’ve still not gone through culture shock. I’m craving it a little bit so I can prove to myself that I am in fact in India and that I can still have intense cultural learnings. Instead I feel like I’ve lived here forever and that this is my true home. It’s unsettling.
I did see a great quote today in relation to travel: “If you’re unwilling to try the food, meet the people, and experience the culture: then you should stay home.” I forgot the person who said it.