Naya Saal Mubaarak!

As posted yesterday, 2011 started with a bang! We took January 1 slowly, exploring the neighborhood around Pamposh, the sites of Delhi, and another shopping market. After a hearty American breakfast, one group headed off to see the sites of New Delhi, including Gandhi’s memorial, while another group ventured downstairs to Domino’s, across the park to buy scarves, and into a market to buy tailored suits. We even managed to ride in traffic next to two elephants and two camels! Quite a sight, considering what we are used to outside of car windows at home. We also dealt with beggars at our windows – another sign that asking for money is an occupation here, instead of a last resort.

Casey and Heather were particularly struck by the deviations within the shopping and eating experiences here. Walking into the restaurant, at least 28 employees were working behind the counter at Domino’s to serve the no more than 15 restaurants patrons. Then, at the market, the employees of the suit shop were willing to bend over backwards to make our experiences more pleasant (offering water, tea, coffee, anything we wanted). The service culture here is drastically different from what we are used to in the States – the tailors are coming to our hotel to fit the suits! They go out of their way to make all transactions a positive experience.

We ended our day with a trip to an Australian bar (Americans, in India, at an Aussie bar?!). There, we were able to reflect on our first week in India and discuss with Dr. Gawande and Dr. Goswami the intricacies of the Indian culture. We discussed the future of India as a global power, and remarked about what obstacles India has to overcome in order to compete successfully with countries around the world. Currently, infrastructure and education are lacking fortitude, and these areas must be addressed in order to further develop India.

While today ended up being a day of catch-up before we start classes on Monday, it was not without the experiences that have become inherent to everyday here. We continue to be struck by the similarities and differences between our two cultures, and look forward to being able to further explore these at JNU.

--Heathery Gregory, MPSA 2011 & Casey Braswell, MPIA 2012