Happy Birthday Pratyush

Prakash invited me to join him and his family for cake to celebrate his son Pratyush's birthday. He turned 5 years old. It was nice to be included. The other little guy is Prajval, and he is 10 months old. Of course, the mom is Rupa.

Finally the Reception

Because the weather is usually nice here, the wedding reception was outside in a large open area with a stage on one side, and the other three sides were various types of food booths. There was plenty of variety in Indian food. It was an event where people strolled, mingled, and ate and drank. It was a lot of little buffets and "cook to order" stations. There were some tables, but most people didn't sit much. The bride came out in a cerimonial way to greet the groom, and then they sat on the stage together and received guests and gifts. When I gave them my gift, I was able to take a close-up picture. They are a nice couple, and their parents were very proud!

The Gathering of Men and The Parade

At our second gathering place a group of the important men from the brides family joined the grooms family and friends, and had drinks and snacks. These men are identified by matching scarfs that the grooms family provided to show their importance. From this gathering place the parade went,on foot, to the main reception where the bride "Priya" sat in waiting for the groom.

The Hindu Wedding Process

It's not simply a wedding, it is truely a process. the pictures start at a hotel where the grooms family assembled to see him get dressed up into the traditional Indian wedding attire. Saurabh is the grooms name, and his father Uday is the CEO of SIS. This event lasted for less than an hour, we then traveled by car to another gathering place where some of the men from the brides family met us, then a procession was conducted through the streets of Delhi to the Reception Facility. The wife, and her family were there waiting. The groom had a photo opportunity on the horse, but he actually rode to the reception in a car. All of the rest of us walked with a band, fireworks, lights, singing and dancing. The pictures don't begin to tell the storey. It was a lot of noise and merryment. There are a lot of pictures, and I will try to keep it organized and understandable. The picture of me is in the new suit that Prakash's brother "Harish" made for me.

Stormin' in Bangalore

Here are a couple of pics of the storm damage from the other night. It got crazey here for about two hoours. It rained buckets, and lots of wind. It was refreshing. It has been hot and dry lately.

The Electric Car

I got a chance to ride in a Reva electric car. It was pretty cool. Here it is considered a pretty expensive. It costs 4,25,000 Rs or about $8,500 to buy. However where it costs 2-5 Rs per kilometer to run the average car here, it only costs about .4 Rupee / kilometer to run this one. It goes 80 kilometer per hour and will go about 80 k between charges. Runs smooth and quiet, and is a good car for this traffic environment. It was a fun ride. Mr. Kishore is a coworker and he owns it.

Wedding Invitation

This is the wedding invitation that I was given to attend the CEO's son's wedding. Weddings here (Hindu) last for three days, and I am invited to the Public Reception. If the invitation is this ellaborate, I can only immagine what the reception will be like. I am getting a new tailor made suit for the occasion. The invite is about 10" X 4" in size, and is thick like a book cover. The decorations are attached pearls and pieces of glass. Pretty fancy!!

Back Yard - New Delhi

This is what it looks like if you go behind the buildings facing the main roads. This is the back view in Delhi. Nice alleys hey?

Party Like Yo Mama's Not Home!!!

It wouldn't be a proper Indian gathering if there wasn't some evening activity. One night we had a cricket match, and the other night we had a party. All showed up, and Prakash danced. He always does a wonderful job entertaining the croud. You can see, even R.K. showed up, and there was traditional Indian band. Mrs. R.K. Sinha is in the picture with him sitting behind him on your right with the brown dress.

The Palace Grounds

Pictures definately don't do the grounds justice, but hope you enjoy.

The Jaypee Palace and Convention Center

No doubt one of the nicest hotels I've stayed in. Easily the best I've stayed in while in India. Nickie, you would have loved it. A Palace!! One of the pictures is just me with a few of the SIS managers in the hallway.

SIS Annual Conference 2009

I spent a few days in Agra at the 2009 Annual Conference for SIS. It was a very unique experience. Each Branch Head and Regional Head was confronted publicly about their Annual Business Plan, and why they did or did not achieve it. Of course, if you made it,it was good, but if you missed your plan it could get ugly. Prakash and I gave a presentation, and I told a couple of stories that the group really enjoyed. We achieved 75% of our ABP. One of the pics is of the audience that I spoke to looking from the stage. The guy on the screen is R.K. Sinha, the "Promoter" (founder) of SIS.

Interesting Dental Deal

I needed to get my teeth cleaned, and when I went home last time, the dentist had no apointments available. I stopped in this little place by my house to enquire about an appointment, and they offered to do it right then. A Lady did it, and it cost 600Rs. About $12.00! The electricity went off three times, and we had only emergency lighting, but she calmly waited for the power to come back on so she could continue with the machine work.

Party Time a the Office

Had a party the other day for Uday, CEO of SIS, and Kishore, Customer Relations Rep. SIS. I think Kishore is the oldest. Uday is 60. It was nice.

Fred Comes to Town

A great friend, Fred, came to visit, and we had a chance to do some touring. Of course he is doing a lot more touring than I am, because I am working. We did make it to the Lalbagh Botanical Gardens and UB City. UB city is the home of Unite Brewrys offices and an exclusive shopping mall. The botanical garden is the home of the biggest tree I've ever seen.