020 T-Minus 2 Days

Second last day in India...sad times. We had a really fun day today though, so for that I’m glad. Our morning started off relatively early. The girls and I have been managing to catch some extra sleep time in the mornings as we have decided to skip breakfast to avoid having to pay for it. That’s still a concept that I don’t understand and am most definitely frustrated with. I feel like patrons who pay for their rooms at their hotels, especially patrons who bring in a group of 20 people, should be afforded free breakfast. I understand the need to remain profitable, but isn’t it a generally accepted belief that businesses that treat their customers well will have repeat business? But I digress – the group collected at the IDSA lobby before heading out to the Makemytrip.com campus in Delhi. Makemytrip.com is the company that has been responsible for setting up most of the itinerary for our trip, utilizing suggestions from the group about places we’ve wanted to visit, as well as suggestions of their own. I think they’ve done a truly phenomenal job, especially for a group as large as ours, and for one with hardly any experience within the country. Our trip has gone smoothly, with some hiccups here and there, but that’s to be expected.

Anyway, we arrived at Makemytrip.com’s corporate office and were soon ushered up to their conference room where we were naturally provided coffee and tea and other refreshments. Indian hospitality to me is still an incredible experience, and certainly one that I hope to continue when I get back to the States. We were treated to a few very interesting and informative talks about Makemytrip.com as well as the tourism industry in India in general. I loved learning that a majority of India’s tourism sector is fueled internally, meaning that it is the local Indians who visit monuments and other sites within their own country. I feel that this is because traveling locally is so much more affordable. Also, when you have monuments like the Taj Mahal within your country, there isn’t much reason to leave. Another reason why local travel is so popular is because the country is so steeped with culture and tradition that I believe most Indians feel an innate sense of pride that they have so many monuments to call their own. In any case, after listening to the two talks, we had the chance to tour Makemytrip.com’s office complex, peeking in at their offices, cafeteria (no-work zone!) and call center. Just like WIPRO, having the chance to see these facilities solidified my belief that America and other Western countries are certainly not alone in the race to the top. With companies like Makemytrip.com who are now competing with other international companies and successfully carving a niche for themselves in a market of over a billion people, it is no longer a wise or viable decision for companies in the Western world to turn a blind eye. Again, I was so impressed by the level of effort that was put forth by yet another Indian company to be such gracious hosts to a bunch of college kids. You’d never see hospitality like that in the States unless you were a big fish guaranteeing a big profit for the company you were visiting – what a shame!

After leaving Makemytrip.com’s corporate office, we headed back to the Ambience Mall for lunch. Most of us went up to the food court to grab some food, as did I, and I was very surprised to see that there was a Sbarro there - how random. Most of us bought some form of Western food like burgers, pizzas and pasta…I did too, and I was definitely feeling bad about it, but at this point, I really was getting tired of Indian food, as horrible as that sounds. I don’t know if I could live here and have to eat it every day. In the beginning, it was awesome but I suppose too much of anything – even a good thing – isn’t always ideal. The group sat together and we talked and had a great time. After lunch, a few of the girls headed to finish up some shopping, while a few of us went to the arcade! That was a lot of fun. 

Aww, food with friends.

Random arcade in the mall.

I am very mature.

Ariel and I playing DDR. Nbd.

We eventually ended up back at the meeting point, on time of course, and I had the chance to grab some ice cream before we headed off again!

Yeah, I snacked a lot this day.

This time we went to the Walmart/Bharti India corporate office in Delhi, which we were all very excited about. Most of us work directly for Walmart or for a Walmart vendor or supplier, so to go to one of Walmart’s corporate offices in a different country seemed like it would be very interesting. 

Made it!

When we finally arrived, we were led up to a conference room where we were provided with a talk by one of the company’s executives who explained the Walmart/Bharti relationship, while providing some basic background about retail in India, and the changes and adaptations Walmart has had to make while there in order to cater to the needs and wants of the population. 

I thought it was a very insightful talk and I felt like I learned a lot. I thought it was interesting to see that even a retail giant like Walmart had to change the set up of its stores and the way it marketed its products to cater to a country that was initially ignored for being second- or third-world. It is intriguing to me to see that India truly is a dichotomy on so many levels…on one hand, you have a group of people who are so eager to embrace Western values and ideals and would welcome Walmart any day, and you also have people who could care less about the Western world and who have already found a way to make their worlds work without outside influence. I love that so strong are relationships and the need for interaction in India that the big store concept that Walmart so loves employing would never work in India. To me, it gives India so much character and personality and makes it so unique in that so many Western companies truly have to adapt to local culture in order to survive. At least one country is putting an end to the “McDonaldization” of our world! This can also be seen by the government’s requirement for companies selling more than one brand to partner with a local business. I can appreciate India’s want to remain in the global game while not being dependent on Western companies for capital and other investments. It allows India to maintain a sense of pride that the country is capable of succeeding without outside help, especially now it has gained independence from British rule.  

We learned that Walmart/Bharti is rolling out variations of the stores they have in the States to include smaller convenience-type mini-marts as well as the Indian version of “Sam’s Club” to cater to small businesses and restaurants within the area, and from what I understand they’re poised to do very well, so we’ll have to keep an eye on that. Side note: Not to be nitpicky, but one thing I definitely noticed was the lack of hospitality Walmart/Bharti displayed. Our hosts were gracious enough, but we weren’t offered tea or coffee or any refreshments (which is a staple here in India!) and once the talk was over, we were almost immediately escorted out, unlike at the WIPRO or Makemytrip.com visit. American companies apparently have the same corporate mindsets in India – and this needs to change. If college students who hardly understand Indian culture could tell they weren’t being treated as well at an American company, I can guarantee you that local Indian business will be able to tell as well. Again – an absolute shame!

In any case, after we left Walmart/Bharti, we headed back to IDSA to get ready for Pree and Afshar’s birthday dinner! We were originally supposed to eat at Bukhara, which is apparently the number one restaurant in India and/or Asia, but we couldn’t get reservations in time. I’m kind of glad we didn’t as I wanted to celebrate Pree and Afshar’s birthday with them, but I wasn’t too keen on dropping a hundred bucks for a meal. Eek! We ended up eating at the hotel where Dr. Anand got married or had his wedding reception and it was absolutely gorgeous. 

Paatra, the restaurant of the night.

Oh, how I'll miss you, Indian food.

The restaurant we ate at had wonderful food and we got to have cake after, which was definitely nice.

Caaaaake.

More caaaaake.

Oh, and in between Walmart/Bharti and dinner, Ariel, Varun, Alex and I took a car to South Extension market to pick up our saris, which was super exciting! We weren’t sure if the tailor was actually going to show up with them as he hadn’t picked up our calls all day, but eventually he did, and it worked out great. After dinner (anachronism much?), Ariel and I got to try them on, and let me tell you – I have a newfound respect for the Indian women who wear these things EVERYDAY. Ariel and I could hardly figure out how to put them on in the first place, and when we finally did, we could hardly wait to take them off – they’re not the most convenient things!

Got our saris!

I’m sure we’ll get it eventually… After trying saris on, most of the group hung out upstairs in our apartment, playing cards and talking and enjoying our last night in India. 

Yuuup.

Love, love, love these girls!

Sad day! It was a whole bunch of fun though, and I’m glad I got to spend time with everyone.