A Massage to Die for, or a Massage to Die??

After the first two weeks of full working weekdays (that is, after all, what I’m actually here to do!) the usual muscle tightening has taken its toll after 150 exam reports ☺ . . . So it was time to put the Hotel fitness suite masseur to the test!
Actually it turned out the other way around – he put me to the test.
Firstly, in India, in parallel with many other cultural differences from Blighty, massages are exclusively male-on-male or female-on-female. Any mixing of the sexes in this context {and, incidentally, many others} would be considered strictly ‘de rigueur’. So this was a one-hour male assault on my endo-skeletal musculature that I have never experienced before. It was marvellous!
Oiled up like a grease pole at the fair, every area was meticulously given a thorough going over – no aches, pains or strains had a chance of survival and were unceremoniously squeezed out like toothpaste from a tube. And the price of this miraculous service? 1,000 Rps which is £12.50 at 80Rps/£ - an absolute bargain ☺

The Unexpected Pleasures of Overseas Working – with French Guitar Slicksmith Christophe Godin . . .

The chain of Music shops here who host the Exams I’m involved in are pretty switched on, and last wednesday saw the arrival of Christophe Godin to the same hotel. He was here in his capacity of ‘sponsoree’ for Laney Amplifiers, and there was a guitar clinic on thursday evening in a local public hall venue, sponsored and promoted by the music shop (since they are the India Laney importer).
In short – it was awesome, he’s a really nice guy, and I had the privilege to spend some down time with him, and we got on really well. So another great human being is added to the list of associates and friends, and he was also quite inspirational to listen to, not just in terms his playing but in what he had to say in general too.
I won’t risk boring the non-music fans here, but if anyone reading this wants to more, ask and ye shall be told. You can also check him out via his website or youtube. He plays a variety of styles including Heavy Metal, Jazz Fusion, Blues and more. He’s known for his sense of humour, virtuosic guitar skills energetic performances and overall wacky personality [no wonder we hit it off].
He was also voted 5th best international guitarist by (French) Guitar Parts Magazine.


Check out his website at http://christophegodin.com/english/bio.html

Friday night out in Mumbai

Drum Teacher Benjamin Sequiera {that's him next me by the car & holding the drum sticks} was kind enough to offer to spend the evening with me at the end of my first week’s work and take me to one or two Mumbai places of interest. He explained that since Mumbai is so incredibly overcrowded, many people choose not to own and drive cars since a) the experience of driving is so frustrating in the non-stop traffic jams and b) there’s nowhere to park your car anyway, unless you want to part with small fortune {at least in Indian terms}. Instead, what people tend to do when they really need to, is to hire a car for the period they need – and this will often include a driver, since the Mumbai driving experience is so stressful!
So Benjamin had hired a car for the day of his students’ exams, and was happy to make use of it during the evening, mainly for my benefit ☺

And another General Note About The Culture and Experience So Far

The hospitality and friendliness I have been shown has been tremendous - nevertheless – it’s been my experience that people are basically kind and generous wherever you go in the world. Visit a foreign country and express a genuine interest in learning about their culture and way/s of life and they’ll be only too please to show you the way. That’s exactly what’s been happening here.
Everybody I’ve ever spoken to who’s already visited this country has commented on the striking contrast between rich and poor existing in close proximity. You can listen to the words people speak, but you can rarely appreciate the truth of their words until you experience what they’ve describe for yourself. So it is that the difference between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have nots’ here is absolutely staggering – and very difficult to either comprehend or come to terms with. Being white, I’m mega-conspicuous and fair game for any street trader or member of the destitute and begging fraternity – and there are plenty of them, especially near the busy and popular areas.
I’ve been in taxis and rickshaws at traffic lights when various people suddenly appear, hands meekly outstretched, speech mumbling low and indiscernible, hopeful of a few rupees (and I mean 1’s and 2’s) to help them out in their intolerable situations [approx 80 rupees = £1]. Many of the girls/women carry small children or babies, some are disfigured [I’ve only spotted male versions of these so far?] but I find all of them very making me feel very uncomfortable/guilty, and I just want to carry a plastic tub of rupee coins ready to hand out as each situation arises.
Speaking to the people that act as assistants, stewards and guides presents a different complexion – “don’t give them anything – these people can work, they just choose not to because it’s easier”; “the children are rarely their own – they share them around to help the begging process”; “sometimes you can see the women will pinch the babies before they go into the road in order to make the baby cry, then this is more convincing”
‘but are the jobs available?’ says I . . . “yes they’re available, these people are just lazy” . . . . . Hmmmm . . . it’s a tough one there’s no doubt, and a complicated situation perhaps – but that doesn’t make it any easier to witness.

A General Note About This Blog

Since I haven’t found the way to edit entries on this blog once they’re posted, there will very likely be some ‘out of sequence’ comments, or an apparent ‘mix’ with factoids woven into the prose as my brain allows me to realise what’s actually going on around me! It’s been a huge culture shock arriving here, and the differences are sometimes screamingly obvious, and at other times the observations may take a while to formulate. Differences between this culture and the one I grew up in are present in almost every aspect, and coming to terms with it is quite tricky.
The opening few days were quite isolating – not unpleasant at all, just isolating – and as I’ve got to know a few people and start to engage, the warmth and hospitality that’s been shown to me has been marvellous and, in some cases, quite humbling.
Please do post comments and/or questions if you feel so inclined, and I’ll endeavour to answer as promptly as I can.

If you’re following – keep looking for updates from time to time, and remember they won’t always be in strict chrono-order ☺

Himalayan Natural Spring Water . . .

Now these marketing gobbits were too rich to resist writing down - they were actually on the labels of the pictured bottles and their many cousins:

“I was born in the Sivalik range of the Himalayas. In a place most of you visit only in an Atlas. In a world which had nothing to do with yours. Seems like reason enough to be born here”.

“I look back on life – it’s funny how things turn out. You, a connoisseur of fast food, now gaze at water that took years to make. And I, some of the purest water in the world, stand here, trapped in a bottle. Come, enjoy the irony”.

“I am so pure I make a worldly worn-out cliché like “pure” seem new again. So pristine, I could only have survived twelve hundred metres above the rest of the world. So removed, the only things I’ve been in contact with before you are the sun, wind, earth and snow. I am one of the purest things you’ve laid your hands on. I hope you’re thirsty”.

“I spent my youth never questioning a destiny that led me from the top of the Sivalik range to the foothills of the Himalayas. Nor the decades I spent gathering the natural goodness of minerals like sodium, calcium and potassium. Where I come from, destiny is a good thing. And now that yours has led you to me, don’t hesitate to drink up”.

Smiley card amongst the Hotel welcome blurb . . .

“We kindly request you to hand over this ‘Smile Card’ to our hotel Associate who has delighted you with their service”. Thank you.

Monday 19th - 1st day of work . . .

. . . met by car in the morning & taken to the YMCA building where exams take place on the 1st floor. Aircon is a big help as it’s hot outside and I don’t think I would have found it easy to cope without.

Arrival at Mumbai Airport Sunday October 18th at 0015 Hrs - and it's the first night of Diwali!!!

. . . is anyone meeting me? Not sure, so take the precaution of booking a ‘pay in advance’ cab at 1st opportunity outside the baggage hall – after changing the sterling I had left in my wallet – 75.4 Rps to the pound and suddenly I’m rich – I’ve got thousands! And every single one has Ghandi on the front.
‘Air-conditioned or ‘ordinary’ sir? Scuse me? Oh the cab . . . errm . . ordinary please (thinks – I can handle it!) 380 Rps for the cab – just over five quid – wonder how far it is then?
Now as we turn the 1st corner we notice the veritable market of currency exchange stalls with fawning smilers eagerly leaning over the counters trying lure us in. Miniature Basil Fawltys at their most obsequious. Did we get a decent rate, or should we have waited? We turn the 2nd corner and there they are – the crowd of meeters and greeters armed to the teeth with illegible dog-eared A4 papers which will no longer stay up straight so you can read them. I scan them from a distance but don’t expect to see my name. just as I reach the end of the crowd, there I spy my name printed in Black Arial 96 point – hah! That’s how you get noticed.

The arrival . . .

Hi guys!

Plane landed 15 mins early but had to wait for 2 other aircraft to leave before the stand was vacant! Plane jams! If you've heard rumours about how they drive here, you'd have to witness it to believe it! When traffic lights are red, but there's nothing much around, everybody ignores them - this has a certain logic to it until it goes further and they just tend to ignore the lights even if there is a little traffic! This results in some rather interesting situations reminiscent of a bumper car track at Goose Fair on a friday night. Added to this, it's the start of 5 days of Diwali yesterday, so fire crackers going off all the time. Crazy! Very few crash helmets on bikes, and alot of crazy overtaking & bobbing & weaving on both sides of cars, and the cars do it too, using their horns to encourage others to get out of the way, or just insinuate their presence from behind in case they weren't paying any particular attention and were about to make a sudden right turn with little or no warning! It's mental!

I was met at the airport, which was just as well as it's a fair way out of town. They've upgraded me to a very posh room at The Taj President on Cuffe Parade. It's pretty warm outside & I've been chilling & prepping for tomorrow's 1st day of work. I figure I've got plenty of time to venture out once I get some advice etc. Pretty tired after yesterday anyway.

I'll keep you posted.