July 29 -- Sharing a couple of videos

The video outside Gopal's restaurant in Patiala shows a round-about and typical traffic. The other roadside vendors is also a typical scene as we travel the byways. As for the bull in my 'hood, he looked pretty purposeful so I believe he was just passing through on the way to greener pastures.

Rob

	Roadside vendors and Bull in my hood.wmv
	7-9 Gopal outside A.wmv

7-27-2014 -- Catch-up e-mail

Hi all

You haven't had anything from yr hbl scribe for a couple of weeks so I thought I'd best bring you up to date. Believe it or not, things have settled into somewhat of a routine: we get picked up around 8am by the driver for the 45 minute drive to CIIS. Typically we'd stop next to pick up Gurpreet along the way; occasionally we take a side trip to pick up Kunal before Gurpreet. We arrive at CIIS, I go to my office (aka my cabin as they say here) and . . . In reviewing my daytimer where I jot notes each day, I find the following snippets taken from several days' worth:

• WWICS Branch training in Chandigarh followed by student counselling sessions (waste of time).
• Join Harpreet and Amandeep for discussions regarding further College tie-ups.
• Counsel student regarding Georgian Precision Skills program.
• Complete Hansi's Visa on-line application and gather required docs in folder; book appointment for Hansi at BLS in Brampton for Visa application.
• Locate course materials for classes I'm teaching this Fall: Pooja, Shweta, Vivek. NO textbooks?? What did they use here?
• Meet Col Randev regarding my contract problem (ie. they can't find my signed copy).
• Sat in on IELTS student skits: Teams of 5 students improvised a commercial "Sell a cell phone". Hilarious, glad I took the time.
• Pre-departure orientation session for students going to Canada this Fall: discussions with Gurpreet, Monica and Ameen.
• (Ed note: this session takes place before the main ceremonies on Investiture Day, Aug 1. Students are presented with certificates, visa documents, plaques etc. Basically a celebration of their completion of year one of a Canadian program and getting their visa to go to Canada to complete their degree/diploma. I was tasked with revamping this session which was basically a PowerPoint presentation containing 53 slides of dense text - a one hour, very boring session in which students were told what to pack, documents required, immigration rules etc etc etc in nauseating detail.)
• Revise pre-departure orientation completely and get approval for new plan.
• (Ed note: created a one-page checklist and three 5 minute presentations "What happens when you land in Canada?". One session for each of Vancouver (Kamloops bound Thompson River University students), Regina (SIAST students bound for Moosejaw) and Toronto (Georgian students bound for Barrie). This to be followed by a Canada/checklist quiz with fun prizes.)
• Ludhiana seminar trip; 6 students showed, 2 possible candidates whose English was very good.
• Monica feeling ill: Gurpreet will take her to family doctor.
• Family doctor diagnoses bacterial infection (bowel) from eating something; prescribes antibiotics, muscle relaxant for slight cramping and bland food.
• Finish up pre-departure stuff for final printing.
• Proposal for pre-departure sessions to be a 3-hour course each spring. Students to be teamed (groups of 5) to put on skits regarding checklist items to make it fun and force them to read through the checklist. Accepted.
• Locate textbooks for courses this Fall: got them from Vivek. Also got materials used by faculty last few times - not much there. Need plan for student materials - this weekend.

As you can see, these are sort of your typical kind of workdays in a college - except I'm in India which makes all the difference, believe me. I can't help but think about the impression a tourist would get of this country compared to mine - working with people day by day and sharing in family matters, jokes, frustrations and so forth brings home our similarities with a resounding "Hunh!" Tourists can't get the sense of the country that I get when I'm travelling: stopping for breakfast or lunch at a Dhaba, watching life in India pass by as we tour. Or, interacting with non-English speaking storekeepers and trying to explain a four-plug power bar to plug in the TV as well as the digital converter on a single wall outlet, being greeted by shopkeepers where we buy our sundries, being recognized by the street vendors outside the shops (they don't stare quite so goggle-eyed at the farenghis). Frankly it's starting to feel very much like my 'hood. (Even the bull strolling past the apartment!)

Hansi's visa came through (only 6 months, not the 9 or 12 months she'd applied for.) Hopefully she'll be here within a week - yippee!

Rob (vids to follow tomorrow at CIIS - apartment Wi-Fi data used up apparently)

July 21, 2014 -- Birds

Hi

Here's a photograph of what I am saying is a Shikra - bird book and the web agree with me. As for the House Crow and Rose-ringed Parakeet, I may have already sent them but, what the heck. Also, I believe I saw a Purple Moorhen this morning on the way into work (looks much like a purple Gallinule but maybe a little bigger).

Rob

Shikra

House Crow

Rose-ringed Parakeet

July 14 15 16, 2014 -- The Ladies 1

Hi all

As promised here is the first installment of the photos of the colourful ladies of the Punjab.

Rob

July 15-16, 2014 -- Transport

Hi all

Decided to take some shots of some of the various modes of transport of "stuff" that never cease to amaze me as we travel about - believe me when I say that this is just a very, very small sampling! Basically it comes down to using whatever it takes to get goods, people, livestock or ???? from A to B - this is as it should be be, of course.

We, in the "developed" Western world, have regulated ourselves to a fair thee well under a plethora of "nanny rules." To some degree, this has also regulated our ingenuity in doing what it takes to get things done. Yes, yes - there are valid safety concerns (riding ON TOP of the bus and ducking low-lying branches at 80kph, for example) but, still, I marvel and report (and am getting off my soapbox). FYI, the loads of greenery are mostly corn stalks being transported for use either as feed or for mulch in the fields.

Rob

July 14 15 16, 2014 -- The Ladies 2

Second installment of colourful ladies--

 

July 15, 2014 -- Jalandhar Lunch at HQs & Himalaya

Hi all

Back from our Tuesday/Wednesday marketing "overnighter" to Jalandhar, Amritsar and then Bathinda on the way back. Today we're here in the Chandiagarh offices to do some staff training in the morning (many are new and aren't familiar with the CIIS programs and how they work) and seminar this afternoon. The driver was our old friend Hardeep (he was here 10 years ago) - he's not nearly as herky-jerky and risk-taking as our driver Harpreet who is new and may not last unless he smoothes out his driving.

I never tire of the journey because there is so much to see that is different each time. I decided on this trip to assemble some photographs of the ladies in their colourful outfits. There are colour combinations that, on paper, sound unbelievably garish but 'in person' look wonderful. Probably the colours 'work' so well because the skin colours of many shades of brown with jet black hair set them off. In any case, I'll put them together in a separate note shortly. I suppose I'll have to assemble photographs of the many turban colours I see just to give the guys their due as well.

Of note, we could actually see the foothills of the Himalayas on Wednesday evening as we got back! Usually there is so much haze (dust in the air) that you wouldn't have any idea that there was a mountain range the size of the rockies starting about 35kms away. So, we revelled in the distant view and I took some pix - mountains never look as spectacular as they do in reality, however.

Had lunch in a place called HQ's - took a few menu pix to give you the idea of our choices. We all had sandwiches (I had the Egg Cheese Grilled sandwich). Sorry for the focus - blame the photographer. As for the "Tit Bittes," check the spelling before you print the menu. I was going to go for a Chocolate Turffal and the Rum Bolls looked tasty but, just too full for desert.

Rob

Rob