TECHGUYCHEN

I knew the path after college would take me on many adventures, but I never expected a business trip so soon to literally the other side of the world. But here I am now in Pune, India, the ninth most populous city in the country with a growing IT and automotive industry.

Being a business trip, I won’t really have too much to say (which is why I’ve waited a whole week to compose this post) since I’m in training sessions for most of the day on weekdays and I have two weekends open to traveling. I didn’t have much of a chance to use my GoPro either while traveling, for reasons among which include convenience and security, but I’ll definitely be trying to record more footage now that the luggage dilemma is over as well. Frankly, not having our luggage was the only bad part about this trip so far – bar a few bouts of sickness I personally have been (surprisingly) fortunate in avoiding.

Hi There, I’ll Be Your Captain for the Next 16.5 Hours

In total, it takes almost 22 hours to get from Los Angeles to Pune – a 16 hour and 20 minute flight from Los Angeles International (LAX) to Abu Dhabi (AUH) with a two hour layover before a three hour and 15 minute flight from Abu Dhabi to Pune International (PNQ). We were wheels up from LAX at around 6:30pm GMT-7 on Thursday, July 14th (over an hour late due to mechanical issues) and finally touched down in PNQ at 4am GMT+5.5 on Saturday, July 16th (also an hour late).

The Etihad Airways flight (EY 170) was for the most part bearable. I’ve flown for 15 hours straight on EVA Airways from Newark Liberty International (EWR) to Taiwan Taoyuan International (TPE) multiple times so being stuck up against a window for that long didn’t bother me terribly, although it’s been seven years since I last few that route and the most recent long-haul flight I’ve flown was 13 hours from LAX to TPE in 2014. It has changed my views on my preference for window seats on the wing, as I was too embarrassed to trouble the couple between me and the aisle to get out of my seat. But I had two meals (both for which I managed to be awake), plenty of Western and ‘foreign’ films, and a few good hours of sleep to fight jet lag to take up the 16 hours.

I think the best part was being able to use the messenger service built into our in-flight entertainment systems, as my five colleagues and I were scattered throughout the cabin and none of us had thought to download a Bluetooth or Wi-fi messenger, like FireChat prior to the flight. It wasn’t the easiest to use, but it was something and beat screaming across the aisle and above the cabin noise.

The layover at AUH was terrible, mostly because we were cut short an hour and had to sprint through the terminal to reach our connecting Jet Airways flight to Pune (which was later delayed anyway). Jet Airways is the only major operator that flies directly to PNQ from AUH; most other major airlines fly out to Chhatrapati Shivaji International (BOM) in Mumbai, but it would be anywhere from three to eight hours along the Mumbai Pune Expressway to reach Pune due to the monsoon rains. The key problem with Abu Dhabi is that it’s an expanding airport that’s experiencing heavy growing pains. I got to walk on an airport apron for the first time, but it meant being shuttled by bus to a terminal, running through said terminal, and boarding yet another bus to wherever our Jet Airways flight was parked, taking almost 30 minutes to get from plane to plane – sprinting included. I’ve never seen an airport with so much apron traffic – whether it be shuttle buses, catering trucks, tugs, or the random airline service car.

As a result of the apparent chaos and the layover shortened to just one hour, none of our checked baggage made it to Pune on our flight much to our horror at 4am in a foreign world. Fortunately, one of my colleagues grew up in India and was able to help our team get through much of the ordeal, including being able to claim INR 2000 (US$30) for each of us from the airline to buy some clothes in the meantime. Quite honestly he’s helped us so much and it’s made our trip 100 times more smoother than had he not been here, even though I constantly remind myself I need to try and get by without his help. I’m not one to like getting help; male stereotypes aside, I like being able to function independently and without the baggage of owing someone.

Culture Shock – The Lack Thereof

For the most part, I had already come to expect most of what I saw in India, mostly through a thorough scouring of the internet for guides and what to expect, as well as quite a bit of information from journey and experiences by Rooster Teeth’s Bernie Burns and Gavin Free. The constant honking, chaotic yet efficient traffic system, lack of clean tap water, modern rickshaws, unfortunate pockets of poverty, and all-around friendly people. It was quite reminiscent of Taiwan as well at times, from the summer rains to the mopeds, except with far less development.

There are plenty of Western-fusion restaurants to ease your stomachs into the local cuisine and some larger chains such as KFC, Domino’s, Pizza Hut, Papa John’s, McDonald’s, Chili’s, Burger King, Starbucks, and Dunkin’ Donuts all with their own local twists. Dunkin’ for example sells burgers. Crazy, right?

Of course, I’ve had the privilege of having accommodations at the J.W. Marriott Pune so I can’t say I know what it feels like to live like the people of India in India. Every day the hotel staff provides us with water and food our stomachs can handle, and conveniences that make us feel at home bar the incessant honking that permeates just about everything.

Uber works here as well, although it became an issue of chasing after spotty free wifi hotspots once we left the hotel. On Friday I had the pleasure of riding a rickshaw, which wasn’t some person drawing a cart as I had originally imagined, but rather an auto rickshaw – a three-wheeled scooter with a bench for two to three people to sit across somewhat comfortably. We went about 1.3 miles (2.1 km) for 10 minutes and the fare was just INR 21 (US$0.31) with an additional INR 19 (US$0.28). In comparison, it’s about the same distance from USC to the Staples Center, but costs eight times less.

A short clip from today’s rickshaw ride.

Traffic is the most interesting thing here. All the cars are smaller here – I doubt any private civilian vehicle has an engine larger than 2.0L, excluding the rare Audi, Porsche, or Mercedes-Benz we see only because we’re at the JW Marriott. The most common sedans here are Maruti Suzuki Swifts and Tata Indigos (neither of which have engines larger than 1.4L), and Toyota Innovas as MPVs (multipurpose vehicles, but more so mini-minivans). But you’ll only see them lost in a sea of motorcycles, mopeds, and auto rickshaws with a few unkept buses here and there. The craziest thing of all is how traffic flow works – lanes are a suggestion and unlit intersections are the norm. Yet the accident per vehicle is probably many times lower here than in the U.S. – everyone honks not to tell people to get out of the way, but to be aware. High beams are also the norm, just to help people identify vehicles better. It’s mind boggling to imagine who actually has the right of way should an accident occur, but it’s really just an efficient way to allow so many people to move.

I’m going to abruptly end this post here because I don’t want to ramble on forever and I’m sure some topics I want to elaborate will come up in later adventures. But stay tuned for another post of some sort by the middle of next week, if not the end of this weekend. Alvida (goodbye) for now.