Wrapping My Head Around It All

Last night was my first night in a while trying to sleep without Ambien. It went remarkably well, considering we leave in two days. I still woke up a few times, but managed to go back to sleep pretty quickly.

There is just so much to think about, and I'm only now starting to wrap my head around it all.

There's just so much to do! The property managers came by today. In preparation for that, Hubby suggested that the Little Guy and I head to my parents' house for the weekend while he cleaned and got rid of some clutter. In the process, he discovered just how much clutter managed to accumulate in the closets, the attic, and the basement. It's amazing how it multiplies, and we've only lived there for five years. I have a feeling many things will be donated or stored. He also tidied up the lawn, shampooed the family room carpet, and strategically rearranged furniture to cover stains. There's still so much to do, and I have no idea how we'll manage considering our time here is limited.

Now that our property managers have seen our house, there are a few new items added to the to-do list. In addition to emptying our house of personal effects, we also need to get our kitchen painted and consult a roofer about water-stained cracks on the kitchen ceiling by the skylight. High-end renters are picky, we're told, so it's best to fix obvious problems without breaking the budget. I did make it clear that the less we have to manage ourselves the better since we're going to be busy enough as it is.

I'm starting to wonder if I'll crash into massive culture shock once the frenzy has slowed.

The Sister with the Traveling Pants

One of the more superficial things that has been a concern was my wardrobe. Call me crazy, but I like to try to fit in when I travel! Maybe it's a hangover from my childhood days when we'd wear Hawaiian shirts and Bermuda shorts during our summer vacations, and I feel that I somehow still have to prove to the world that I'm not a dork. So, when my Mom bought be the linen drawstring capris from Talbots for my birthday, I was thrilled! I put them on with a longer top from New York & Company, and when Hubby came home he said I looked "very Indian".

Having an inappropriate wardrobe is brilliant justification for going way overboard with clothes shopping. At least now I'll have something to wear with all those fitted "Favorite" t-shirts that I have from the Gap and Old Navy. (You'll have to ask Hubby how much "overboard" is because I'm not telling!)

Thanks, Mom, for the pants. They are just perfect!

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We've gotten our travel plans for the flat-hunting trip figured out. We decided that flying from New York to Kolkata via Heathrow is just too grueling if you try to do it all in one day, and we're taking the Little Guy with us. We're going to spend an extra night in London just to recuperate both on our way there and on our way back. It's tough enough flying with a toddler, so anything we can do to make it easier is worth it. Besides, Hubby's company is paying for it!

We found out some new details regarding the apartment in Alipur that will be coming available. It's not one unit per floor like we were originally told, or at least it doesn't appear that way from the way units are numbered. They are fairly large, though, since they are 3 bedroom units. We've been told that the other expat's unit will be converted to the company guest house, so it's not actually available for us to use. However, there are other vacant units in the same building. Hubby and I would still like to consider it, since it's close to his office and people we know, but we'll look at other flats to lease in addition.

I'm looking forward to that trip! I think lots of my questions will be answered then, and I'll get a feel for what our new surroundings will be.

That's all for now!

Emotionally Drained

Moving, especially moving overseas, can be all-consuming. It's no wonder that it nearly tops the list of major stressors. Not that it's necessarily bad stress, but it can be draining if it's not managed.

When I first tell acquaintances that I'm moving, I usually get a reaction akin to, "That's cool!" While I appreciate such comments, it's usually uttered by someone who has no idea what really goes into implementing this kind of change. Those people might think they want to be me, but probably they would gladly stay put when they find out what it's really like. You don't want to be me right now. I'm exhausted all the time!

Yet, I still have trouble sleeping. My mind is always racing, and I have to take an Ambien CR every night just to get some much-needed shuteye. Even then, I'm up 7 hours later.

It's really a myriad of thoughts and emotions that run through my head. I wonder what our flat will be like. I worry that I won't be able to get along with the household help or the nanny. I worry that the other expats will hate me after a while. I worry that my son will dart into traffic and get hit by a car. (We're not used to city life.) Most of all, I hate leaving friends and family behind, even though I know I'll make new ones. I want to just be able to enjoy the moments we have and not waste time being maudlin while I'm still here.

I did have a wonderful lunch with a friend yesterday. We took our kids had a nice time chatting over food. When I talk about appreciating the time we have, those are the kinds of things I'm talking about. It was really refreshing to not have to think so much and just enjoy ourselves.

It's not all negative thoughts. I'm also curious about what it's really like over there. I'm excited to be taking on this new adventure. Reading about India is fun, but it isn't the same as actually being there.

Speaking of books, I'm really getting into Sarah MacDonald's Holy Cow. She's got such a way with words! The book is by an Australian author and tells about her experiences while living in Dehli. I highly recommend it! Of course, it's really helpful as a guidebook if you're going through a similar experience, but it's also just plain fun reading if you're not.

I must go for now. There will be more later!

Pre-Settling In Efforts

It seems my husband made some progress in the settling-in department while he was on his last business trip to India. Apparently, there's a colleague of his who will be moving, and therefore vacating his apartment, at the end of the month. From his description, it seems like it's a nice place, at least by India's standards. The electric needs upgraded, though, as light bulbs blow out with some regularity. Luckily, they'll have a month to do some work.

The apartment (flat) is on the fourth floor in the Alipur neighborhood, and is company-owned. There are four floors and four units, so it's one unit per floor. According to my husband's colleague, the higher up you go, the fewer mosquitoes. That's good to know! (One might also assume that there's also less pollution, smog, and road noise, but those specifics weren't mentioned.)

Alipur is in the trendy part of town. According to my husband, the streets are tree-lined and wider, and it's not far from the Tollygunge Club and lots of shopping. I can live with that!

We also made arrangements to be introduced to some other expats in the city. There aren't many, but it's a tight-knit community. There's also an international "baby club" for expat moms of preschool-aged children. It'll be good to get a head-start on social networks before we go. One of my biggest fears is of being lonely. I'm already starting to miss my MOMS Club and playgroup friends, and I haven't even left yet! Here, I'm a member of two different mom's groups, so it's safe to say that I like to keep socially active.

Another good thing that came from my husband's colleague is that we get to hire his cook and driver. At least the driver speaks "acceptable" English. I didn't ask about the cook. Unfortunately, their nanny, or ayah, was already hired elsewhere, so we'll have to look for our own.

We also found out about nursery schools. There's a place called Kangaroo Kids that seems pretty good, from what we've been told and from what I can tell on their website. It's locally-run, so we'll have to see when we get there what it's really like and what language they hold classes in. I'd hate for the little guy to be "behind" because he doesn't speak Hindi or Bengali!

That's enough rambling for now.

A Short Introduction

I guess I should explain why I decided to create this blog.

My husband works for a global company in the industrial gases industry. In a nutshell, he sells large industrial gases plants to customers in the steel industry. Because steel has grown so much in Asia, and particularly in India, my husband has traveled to India about 20 times in the last 2 years on business. Frankly, the travel gets old! I miss my husband, and my husband misses his family, including our 2 year old son. So, when an opportunity arose in April for us to relocate our family there, we jumped on it. Since then, we've been scrambling to get our affairs in order since the post begins in early July.

While there seems to be large expat communities in cities like Mumbai and Bangalore, that's not at all the case in Kolkata. In fact, the American consulate there reports about 10 or 20 expat families, and they are only now opening an international school which begins this August. (It'll be Kindergarten through second grade with two teachers and 10 students. That's not a bad student-teacher ratio!) I figure with such a small number of "peers" in that environment, it might make for interesting fodder for a blog. I'm sure there will be lots of stories to tell.

We are slated to go on our apartment-hunting trip in late May and should be back in early June. In my opinion, since we couldn't bear to leave our young son behind, the flight over should be an adventure in itself. Fortunately, we plan to spend an extra day in London both on the flight over and on the return to make things easier on the little guy. Otherwise, the flights are grueling!

The stress of getting ready is taking its toll on me. I've been resorting to "retail therapy" to cope with the stress. Besides, at least according to my husband, buying the entire National Library of India, I've also been clothes shopping. With that, I've been running into lots of headaches as it seems that most Western clothes are either too casual or too low-cut for what you see on the streets of Calcutta. I've been searching high and low at trendy, yet more sophisticated, clothing retailers, and have only found a handful of outfits that are appropriate for the style and climate. Even these push the boundaries of acceptable. I may have to buy local. (As if I'll have the time.)

For now, I need to take my Ambien and go to bed. It's getting late! More rambling later. Happy (early) Mother's Day!

Books, books, and more books

I think I cope with the stress of moving to a new country by buying a million travel books. At least, that fact was evident from the number of guidebooks on the shelf under my bay window. My husband, just returning home from a ten-day business trip to India, was shocked at the pile. (I noticed this morning that he had them neatly stacked upright as if they were on a proper bookshelf.) Among them were Lonely Planet's India, DK Publishing's Eyewitness Travel India, Lonely Planet's India Food Guide, Holy Cow by Sarah MacDonald, and City of Joy by Dominique Lapierre. That list is only the location-specific list. Since my husband and I have a two-year-old, I also bought two books about parenting abroad, Raising Global Nomads by Robin Pascoe and Third Culture Kids by David C. Pollack.

Is this obsession? You decide. I've got to get busy reading!