Some things about living and working in India are ridiculously hard. But other things are ridiculously amazing.
I took the last week to write down all the ‘luxuries’ I experience – great things about living in India that I am very thankful for. My list could be a lot longer, but it would be great if you could add your own to this list!
- We had a friend stay with us for a few days and her mother sent her with a massive box of murukkus.
- We took a five-minute drive to the beach to have a picnic, and the kids had a blast playing near the waves.
- We rode in our small car with four adults and five children and no car seats.
- They sell Magnums right on the beach, as they will in heaven.
- I have six potential methods of transportation to get to my office that is 10 minutes away (walk, auto, taxi, self-drive, share auto, bus).
- While some rental and real estate prices are very high, we live in a fantastic place for much less that I would pay in the US.
- We have a great maid/cook who comes to sweep, mop, wash the dishes, and make food three times a week.
- Our maid’s son needed to see a doctor and my wife sent out a message on a Whatsapp group to ask for help from others on the floor. Within ten minutes, one of our neighbors was there, explaining to her how to get to a good doctor she knows in her area.
- I went with my kids to a shop to get a present for a kid’s birthday party. They gift-wrapped it at no extra charge while my kids played with their toys.
- At the birthday party, a Muslim friend asked, “Is Sarah a Christian name or a Jewish name?” We had a friendly discussion rooted in religion that was not awkward or had any tension.
- My wife called the grocery store while we were driving and arranged a home delivery of some items (at no extra charge). We left money with our trustworthy maid who paid for the items when they were delivered.
- The owner of the same local grocery store led my four-year-old son around his store as he read out his grocery list to the owner.
- Our flat arranged a dandiya dance one evening and we all had a really great time.
- I went for a long run with friends from our flat followed by some fresh tender coconut water (see photo above).
- Every Saturday, my family goes to Sangeetha, a nice south Indian restaurant where the sambar and chutney taste different every time. We order three to four rounds of food and it is delivered hot to our table within 10 minutes.
- I can put all of my shirts in a bag, give it to a lady as I drive out of my apartment, and she will return it with all the shirts nicely ironed and folded. All for about US$0.06 a shirt.
What’s on your list?
Image credit: mynameisharsha on Flickr
Great article. Made me smile as I’ve experienced many of these luxuries myself. I would add to your list: Having the opportunity to love on my grandkids who live in India!
You sound like a lucky man!
I have plenty, here’s a few:
– getting almost anything home delivered, eg a single pomegranate.
– having a maid and driver who are happy to do overtime, making it easy for parents to have date nights
– living in a city (in my case Delhi) with thousands of years of history, with seemingly endless historic sites to visit
– being amazed at the breadth of stock at my local market
Great ones!!
Yes very true I had same experience living a luxury life in Mumbai…
( Hey Neil,
Great content on your blog, I’ve been following it for a while. I moved out of India five years ago, and can potentially start my own blog at the other end of the spectrum from yours, and call it delearningindia.com.au 🙂 But its been very interesting to follow your blog and see the everyday work and living things in India from your point of view.
To come to the reason for this comment, )
here’s my list of things I cherish the most, maybe because I am deprived of them here in Melbourne!
1. Calling up friends and arranging for a movie catch up within the hour. Then watch two movies back to back.
2. Going out late into the Old City, play street cricket with the boys and eat snacks around midnight.
3. Zipping by on my trusty old Kinetic. The traffic that follows 100 rules while appearing to not follow any.
4. Drinking chai under a tree at a little tea stall with friends, discussing the solutions to all of India’s problems furiously, as if it was our job.
5. Having a season called Monsoon. The days and nights of rain.
6. Autorickshaws! This may well be the top luxury of India. Knowing a couple of rickshawwallahs personally and they would go the extra mile to help you transfer stuff, etc.
7. Historical places to visit (like the one time I found myself right at Ahmed Shah’s tomb, the founder of Ahmedabad, and could hardly believe it when the nearby shopkeeper told me whose tomb it was)
Fantastic! Thanks for sharing!
Neil, to add to the complexity of answering the question “Is Sarah a Christian name or a Jewish name?”Take the ‘h’ out of Sara and it becomes a Hindu name (Sara is the name of Laxmi).
Great post as always,
Amar
Wow, didn’t know that. My sister’s name is Sara (spelled without the ‘h’).