Wanderlust Heaven!

In the wake of the coming “reconfiguration” of our little consulting group, lots of anxiety about what’s next.  I did what I could to reassure people and calm them – but felt a bit guilty about my own relatively assured glidepath.

We had some intriguing discussions about spinning off our group.  That discussion is likely to continue – I think the idea has some promise.  Of course, actually having the balls to take that step, and actually making it work, is an entirely different story.  Between the wish and the thing the world lies waiting – I think that quote’s from a character in “All the Pretty Horses” by Cormac McCarthy.  Read it now.

Told my landlord, the inestimable Mr. G., about my situation.  He took it quite calmly, leading me to believe he won’t play hardball and that I’ll get my money back (I paid a year up-front, common practice here).  He mentioned that we’ve become friends – I was warmed by that remark.  He may very well be the person I miss most from this short gig.  How about that – when’s the last time you thought you’d truly miss your landlord??  Anyway, let’s hope he comes through on the refund, then I’ll confirm that sentiment…

The Indian Sensex stock index has shot up over 40% this year.  I had some $ in there but obviously not nearly enough.  Who knew?

Walked out of my flat the other morning en route to the main street and the waiting taxis.  Seems they gather and then get rid of a huge mound of trash once a week, and this was the morning.  I’ve seen women picking through the stuff, hence they’re “ragpickers” – a job well and truly at the bottom of the human pyramid.  The stench was brutal – and I found myself walking slowly behind a guy carting the stuff off.  I couldn’t get around him, and I certainly didn’t want to get near him.  Things like this make India hard.  I recalled being in Hong Kong in 1988/9 with Bryan, being on top of a double-decker bus, and going into a long tunnel right behind a fish truck.  Not much fun – things like that happen in India at least once a week.  Come on over and check it out…

Things have descended to the level of absurdity here.  I’m leaving for China soon…yet must take care of a bunch of administrative matters in India so that I can get paid.  I’ve been working for 3 months, but because until recently I lacked a work visa I couldn’t open a local bank account, hence the firm couldn’t pay me.  When I joined I was under the impression that they could pay me in the States, so I didn’t sweat the lack of the visa.  I soon learned that they couldn’t (or wouldn’t) pay me overseas, and ever since I’ve watched my 2 bank account balances dwindle perilously close to the minimum/no-fee threshold.

So I had to register with the Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO), a much-feared entity that basically administrates we foreigners to death.  Went there with Zarine, our office supremo, who helped guide me through the process.  Stone-faced woman interviewed me – all was in order (I’m well-versed in these matters, unfortunately), except that she wasn’t satisfied with my housing contract and wanted an additional letter from the firm attesting to my residence.  Ugh.  We left, got in a taxi, and Zarine – efficient as always – called colleague Ruby at the office and dictated the necessary letter.  When we got to the office 15 minutes later, the letter was ready and the office boy brought it down.  I returned to the FRRO and Zarine went back to work.

Saw the woman at FRRO again – she took the letter, read it, and she was satisfied.  We them spent 5 minutes jointly punching holes in a few documents and putting them in a dossier/binder – quite an odd little experience.  I wanted to tell her my hourly rate but decided that wouldn’t be productive.  Then she indicated I could go, and I happily did.

I get to do all these fun things for the privilege of living in India.  It’s amazing I have any time to actually do some work…

Went to HSBC in Fort to start my long-awaited bank account – which I expect to close fairly soon, once everything gets taken care of here.  Problem:  I didn’t have anything from FRRO besides a receipt – apparently they’re supposed to give you a little booklet that you get stamped every time you exit/enter India.  I had seen the booklet, but the woman at FRRO didn’t give it to me when she indicated I could leave, and I figured they would send it to me after a few days.  Should have clarified that, and if Zarine was still with me she would have caught that, but no.

So now I was at HSBC, and couldn’t open the account.  I was quite pissed, and very worn out.  I slunk out of the bank and back to the office, where I tracked down Zarine.  She told me I was supposed to have gotten the little booklet from FRRO – I’d have to return yet again the next morning, and then try HSBC again.  And I was heading to China in a few days – didn’t look like I’d have time to get my various checks cleared and then wire some cash to my 2 other bank accounts, a key step in preserving my liquidy and credit rating.  Ugh.

Did some work – things are really winding down for my work here, but my new pharma gig in China is already heating up.  Stayed till around 8 p.m., then went to Zodiac Shirtmakers near my flat to pick up some shirts – mainly to replace those that have gotten lost/fouled here.  My strategy was to buy a few shirts and take them straight to China, where they stood a much better chance of not getting wrecked immediately.  Compared with India, China’s nearly spotless.

Zodiac is perhaps my favorite Indian company – they make terrific shirts, with good fabric for these temps and good tailoring.  I bought 4 shirts and packed them up, careful not to expose them to the usual grime here.  Between Zodiac and Wordell Chemists, where I buy my generic meds, it’s worth a trip here for those stops alone.

En route home I went to Crosswords Bookstore, where I found a copy of the Lonely Planet China guidebook.  A couple years old, but looked like that was the latest version, so I plunked down the usual US$30 or so and picked it up.

Got a budget code to take care of my moving expenses and initial client work.  The last 3 letters are MBS, mirroring my initials.  I believe it’s the first time I’ve ever had a code named after me.  Sirrah…

Next day, back to FRRO, where I asked the woman about my book.  She seemed surprised – “Didn’t I give it to you?”  She checked her drawer and there it was.  I suppose I was thankful, but then again this was my third trip to FRRO and I was annoyed.

Took a cab to HSBC, and this time I was able to start the account.  Guy who processed me was very nice, and it turned out he knew a Monitor person in our Powai IT office.  So that was done, but I still had to wait a couple days to have the checks clear, and it wouldn’t be still after my China trip that I’d be able to wire the $ and boost my overseas bank accounts.  Oh well, I’d waited three months, what was another 10 days??

On my way back to work I stopped for a haircut and full shave at a little shop in Colaba.  Haven’t had a full shave (with straight razor) in a long time – there’s a slightly dangerous air to the experience, but it’s sort of fun and the barber always does a terrific job.

That night I went to Ayu’s, a kebab place next to the Jewish synagogue in Fort.  Ayu’s is an underrated place largely frequented by cabbies and students, and I think their stuff is even better than Bade Miye’s.

Next morning, my doorbell rang – twice.  I tried to ignore it, but figured it was something important.  Torture.  Went to door, naked, opened it (while standing behind it for privacy), and there was a fellow wearing a filthy white singlet, with a trash bucket.  It took a minute to figure this out, but apparently he collects trash.  I have no idea if he works for the building or for himself.  It was a bit like Monty Python – “bring out your dead!”  Quite annoying, and bizarre.  I hoped not to ever see this guy again.  I do have a Leatherman multi-knife near my bed (largely for opening beer bottles); you never know what you’re capable of when it’s 6 a.m. and some weirdo rings your doorbell.  Very cheeky – next time I will call the police.

Had an internal meeting on our work in the Indian pharma market – will try to link this office to our overall pharma initiative, and perhaps return from time to time.  It will be nice to get back here – but stay in a hotel, have a driver, and of course gorge myself at Trishna.  The overhead and general daily living is something I can do without…

Got out my project’s invoice before May closed.  Fairly important thing to take care of, and was happy to get it out the door.  My responsibilities here now are mostly administrative – invoices, personnel evaluations, and the like.

Entire team went out for lunch – a bit of commiseration, given the impending changes.  Went to Woodside, a cool little place in Colaba.  People were in OK spirits, considering.  Won’t be long now before we’re dispersed to the winds…

Friday morning, packed some bags and went to the airport.  I was bringing some non-critical stuff to Shanghai this trip, so that when I went back “for good” I’d have less to carry.  Got to the airport without much hassle…the check-in line was a breeze…and I was good to go.  The audio was playing “Yesterday Once More” by the Carpenters and for a moment I imagined myself back in Manila…

I was pretty happy to head out.  Between the FRRO, HSBC, and various other indignities, the writing was pretty much on the wall.  I do have to say that I’m never bored, not for a single second.

Flew to Bangkok, where I’d spend the weekend before connecting to Shanghai.  The airport was clean and easy, took a cab to the Novotel Sian Square, where I’d gotten a great spring weekend deal.  My old colleague, Peter, told me about it – he’d emailed me on LinkedIn and he mentioned he was in Bangkok – one of my flight options was to connect in Bangkok (very few Mumbai-Shanghai direct flights), so I asked him if he was sticking around and he was.  Dropped off my bags in my room – a very nice 4-star deal – and met Peter in the lobby.  We hadn’t seen each other in 7-8 years, at least, the last time was probably in Joburg, where we both worked for some time.  He looked about the same – he’s now teaching Marketing at a b-school in Singapore, and he gets to BKK regularly.

We went out for a bite, then to the Novotel’s basement bar, a notorious place called CM2.  I’d been there many years ago, and was curious to return.  Peter and I talked for a long while – about the firm, about Asia, about women.  Great seeing him – and I think our paths will cross a lot more often now, my new gig will take me to Singapore from time to time.  I am sort of excited to get back to East Asia – running around from country to country canbe exhausting, but there is a real buzz in doing that.

Slept till 10:30 a.m. Saturday.  Really needed that.  Got up, did some emails, then walked to the Grand Hyatt Erawan, where I met Bob.  We went  over to Central World Mall, where I picked up a couple shirts at British India – a dry cleaner in Mumbai had damaged one (see a pattern here?), and anyway British India is one of the very few shops I like to visit.

Bob and I had a coffee, then lunch – had lots to catch up on, although it had only been 3 months or so since we’d last met.  He’s looking for work and hoping to start trading again soon.  Market might be improving and the timing might be brightening a bit.

Went back to the Novotel.  Worked out…read  my US history book (need to finish this before my Foreign Service Officer test on June 9^th)…relaxed.  Didn’t have time to take a nap, that always seem to go by the wayside in Bangkok.  I do love this city, it keeps me on my toes and is a very easy place to spend time.

That night, took the Skytrain over to Victory Monument, then walked over to the Water Bar to meet Bob.  En route, saw Jorn and Su standing in front of one of the street’s numerous 7-11s, drinking beer.  Bob told me that Jorn has taken to doing this most nights, it’s a cheap way to get drunk.  Not particularly comfortable or classy, but it’s cheap.  I joined them and bought up “a round” from the 7-11.  Eventually Bob walked by and joined us, then he and I went to Water Bar, which is one of my favorite bars in the world.  One of these days I’ll publish my complete list of fave bars, they’re quite spread out as you can imagine.

Bob and I ate and drank there for a couple hours – he knows all the waitresses there, and I know a few too.  Then we took a cab to Soi Cowboy where we visited a few bars till closing time.  I had an 11 a.m. flight to Shanghai so hit the sack and got some rest.  Another fast, furious 40 or so hours in the City of Mayhem.

On the Shanghai.  My Thai Airways flight had a disturbingly bumpy takeoff – a few of us passengers looked around with some concern.  The flight itself was smooth, only 4 hours.  Landing was also bumpy.  Need some new pilots, Thai Airways.  Before we could get off the plane, 4-5 Chinese “Swine Flu Checkers” came on board and pointed laser thermometers (or whatever) at each of us.  Space age.  None of us seemed to fail the test, so after 20 minutes or so we were allow to disembark.  I hope they don’t continue this process indefinitely…

Driver met me at the airport, and off we went.  Long ride into the city – saw lots of Buick minivans and other GM autos – GM and VW vie for top foreign manufacturer here.  And GM sold over a million vehicles in 2008 – so maybe they do have a viable future, given how fast the Chinese market is growing.  If you wait long enough, anything can happen.

Last time I was in Shanghai, I stayed with buddy Craig and his family while I was arranging my Mongolia trip.  Almost exactly one year ago – how things change.  Back then I had no idea I’d be returning to work anytime soon – and I was on the cusp of an incredible tour spanning Mongolia, Russia (by way of the Trans-Siberian Railway), Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Ukraine, Turkey, Jordan, Egypt, India, and Israel.  The beat really does go on…

Got to the glorious JW Marriott, one of my top hotels in the world.  Haven’t stayed here in years, not since I left work.  Good being back.  Went for a run…sat in the bathtub and soaked for an hour…had a fancy dinner at JW’s California Grill.  Then I walked off dinner on Nanjing Road, all the way to the Bund.  No shortage of touts en route – I could have opted for a watch, roller blades, or a sexy massage.  But I wasn’t in a buying mood so I just smiled and kept walking.

Busy week in the Shanghai office – we rebooted our pharma initiative and assigned accounts.  Our little team is very good – besides George, my old partner in crime, there’s a Chinese project leader who has a medical background and seems excellent.  We also have a few people in other offices helping us, and I’m optimistic we’ll succeed.

That night I worked out – great gym and I felt strong on the treadmill.  Then met former colleague Derek, now with Corning, for a beer.  He’s doing well, work isn’t that bad and his wife is expecting their second child any day now.

Next day, we finalized our strategy and worked on a couple proposals.  I’m still settling in, but it feels fine and things should soon be in solid shape.

Went over to the Hilton that night and walked around nearby, there are some good bars and restos in that area.  Had a beer at Cat Bat across the street, the waitresses there are fun and they place this oddly enticing dice game.  You usually lose and owe them drinks.  More fun than it sounds.  Walked around some more, went into a little café and had some local food, quite good.  I could eat Chinese food everyday, I swear – I know Japanese food and other cuisines are in the ascendancy, but I’d never sell Chinese food short.  For my final supper I’d likely opt for a Chinese banquet…

Wednesday I caught up on my reading, had gotten loads of documents and needed to work through ‘em.  Even read for a few hours that night at the hotel – didn’t feel like going out.

Saw friend/colleague Torsten on Thursday, he was in town so we caught up.  We mused about how people like us were still able to have an impact in China; years ago it was thought that by now the Chinese would have ramped up in terms of both business sophistication and English capabilities, and we lao wai (foreigners) would be obsolete.  But not yet – the locals have gotten more sophisticated, but are still hungry for overseas knowledge/exposure.  They’ve predictably gotten better at English, so they can speak directly with us much of them time, making it easier to exchange info.  The upshot is that there’s still plenty of need for the right foreigners in China.  I do mean to learn more Chinese, but for now I’m language-impaired…

Huge rain/hailstorm around 4 p.m.  Skies went dark very fast, reminded me of the crazy electrical storms they have in South Africa.  Skies eventually brightened, but it rained for a few more hours.  And I’d forgotten my umbrella.

Had dinner that night with my team – excellent Shanghainese food.  It had been a long but productive week and we were where we needed to be at this point.

On Friday we found out that we got a workshop project, but it needs to be on June 16-17 in Shanghai.  So we need to scramble to prepare…and I will need to return to China a week earlier than planned.  In the interest of maintaining my sanity, I will make this trip my final one to India, so next week will need to rush to close up shop.  I imagine some things will drag on a bit, so will keep HSBC account open and will need to stay in touch with several people to ensure things get taken care of.  As usual, nothing will be as easy as it should be, but I’ll do what I can.

Met fraternity brother Jake at The Fat Olive for drinks after having dinner with George.  He’s been here for 3 years but is heading back to Boston soon – too bad, I really enjoy hanging out with him.  We moved on to the Long Bar for a final drink.  Great seeing him – might get in one more drinking session before he departs.

Saturday morning we had a call with a Los Angeles-based colleague, took the call in the office at 8:30 a.m., necessitating an early morning packing/checkout sequence.  Finished a few things, then caught a cab to Pudong Airport, I’d fly to Bangkok again for the night, then on to Mumbai early Sunday morning.

Stayed at VP Tower, where Bob stays.  We went out again to Soi Cowboy, had a few beers and discussed the vagaries of life till around 2 a.m.  Went to an outdoors place near Soi Rangnam for some tom yum goong and rice, then hit the sack around 4 a.m.  My flight was at 7:50 a.m., so I’d need to get up around 5  and go to the airport.  I set two alarms, but was somewhat concerned I’d sleep through them.  The front desk guy was asleep when we got back to the hotel so I didn’t bother with him.  I’d have to get up on my own.

Crashed hard.  And at some point I awoke and wondered what time it was.  Worried, I leaped out of bed and checked my watch – 5:23 a.m.  Gulp.  I took a 20-second shower, packed my stuff, and raced out of the building.  Luckily a taxi was letting someone off (I love Bangkok) right outside, I got in and we raced to the airport.  Got there around 6:10 a.m., no problem.  I was very lucky my 6^th sense had kicked in – I suspect I’d heard the various alarms but ignored them – they served the purpose of slowly getting me up.  Not something I mean to try again anytime soon, it was a risky strategy.

The airport was pretty warm – I’ve noticed that airports around the world have gotten a little steamy, I suspect they’re cutting back on the aircon to save $$.

Now I’m back in Mumbai, will crank away there till Friday, then will head to Bangkok for the weekend and on to Shanghai on Sunday.  My new China mobile # is +86-136-2169-2825, go ahead and give me a ring there next week (after June 14^th).  Apparently this # is quite lucky, there are no 4s and there’s an 8.  And my Chinese surname is “Si-leung” which translates to “Gentle Dragon,” also quite a lucky moniker.  So I’m well-positioned for success in China.  Wish me well.  And on that note, here’s a pic from my recent 20^th Tufts University reunion – my Chinese-American (mostly American) buddy Bryan and I at The Burren in Davis Square, Somerville.  Over and out.

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