My First Day at Work

Today was better. We started our first day on the job. The Tata staff are very nice and speak fairly good English, which is reassuring. We started the day at a nearby training centre for a Community Development department staff meeting. Everyone sat on cushions on the floor in along the edges of the room. Introductions were made and I was happy to see that the women I am working with are pretty friendly. Yay!

Then, we went to the Chemicals plant offices where we did some security stuff and then were given some prior annual reports for the Tata Chemicals Society for Rural Development. We spent the late morning reading through those.

At noon, everyone leaves the office and walks back to their homes for lunch. We walked back to the guest house to the dining room where we eat all of our meals. We get an array of curries, buffet style, as well as chapattis (flat bread) and whatever else we seem to want (e.g., an omelet for the morning, a cut up apple, etc). The food is good and so far, there haven’t been any repeats.

In the afternoon, we continued to read the documents we were given, and just about when we ran out of stuff to read, our boss came by at 3:30 and said we could go home for the day. Tomorrow, we’re touring the salt-making plant here and then we’re going out to a village called Tupni to observe some work Tata is doing on improving the local watershed for farmers. I’m not sure when I actually start my specific project, but as I understand it, this first week will simply be about settling in, observing work in the field, and getting clarification on what we’re expected to do. It’s a slow pace relative to the US, but I like it … I need it, considering there’s so much to digest about this place otherwise.

The work week here is a six-day work week, so I will work a full day on Saturdays, as well. I suppose that makes up for the work time lost to 2-hour lunches. It does mean, however, that I won’t have a ton of time to travel about … except to the local town up the road called Dwarka, which the other intern says is cool. That’s fine. I have lots of work to do.

Tonight, we might walk to the beach here, which is supposed to be beautiful with lots of coral reefs and flamingos. The wildlife here is pretty cool … yesterday, I saw my first camel; today, I saw two cameleons and a couple of cows fighting with their horns. There are big cows with horns and neck humps everywhere on the streets here and in Mumbai.

After work, Lee and I walked into town and made our first market purchases: shaving cream for him and cell phone time for us to share. Afterward, we went to the other hostel where there is a store set up by Tata from which the local women sell their handicrafts, mostly tunics, pillow cases, bags, and skirts made in the local style, using local techniques. I bought a tunic for 3.60 GBP (Ru 299). The girl who sold it to me is a young local girl, and when I told her I might get to work with her group, she seemed pleased. I hope that the tunic will help me to blend in a little better … although even today, I felt a little better walking the streets. Still a little of the circus sideshow going on – a couple of young guys on a motorcycle stopped to ask us simply, “Where are you from?” – but I find that if I smile at most people, they’re quite warm. Up till now, I was a bit afraid to look men in the eye … Lonely Planet says that too much eye contact might be perceived as a come on.

Talked to Dad tonight, which was helpful. Unfortunately, our cell phone time doesn’t last long here. We seem to get about 25 minutes of international calls (no matter whether we make or receive the call) per 150 rupee top up (1.81 GBP). I tried for a bigger top up amount, but Ru 150 seems to be the max. Boo.

So adjustment continues …