Happy & Healthy in Mumbai

Hi Loved Ones!
What a whirlwind it's been -- but I've made it through the Governor's Mission, sent (most) of the group on their way home, and am enjoying the weekend with a combination of touring, work catch up, and even a little bit of spa time (today). I'm sorry I wasn't been able to keep the blog up to date very well last week, but I really found that every spare moment not spent in a meeting was required to prepare for the constantly evolving schedule and never ending to do list related to my seminar. But, it's over and it really, in the end, went very well. YAY & PHEW!

Above all, I have to say that it is SO MUCH MORE FUN to be here when I'm healthy -- and so far, having been here just over a week, I'm doing great with not a single "gurgle"! (And I haven't even been eating my poptarts.)

So, to start the process of catching up on my adventures, I thought I'd run through a quick summary of what last week included:

Friday, the 20th -- I arrived very early in the AM, with 6 of my fellow travelers. Then, I spent most of the day having a typical work day full of email and phone calls, largely focused on reconfirming and adjusting our week's schedule in light of the Governor's decision not to travel. I had a meeting in the afternoon which finally got me out of my room, and out of the hotel to a local Indian coffee spot -- their local answer to the Starbucks phenomenon (as Starbucks is not yet here). That evening I very happily met up with my Indian family -- Parmeet, Nina, and 4 new friends (including Parmeet's brother in law, who lives in Mumbai, and who I'll be having dinner with tonight!).

Saturday, the 21st -- I had a full day of touring Delhi with my friend Sudhakar, who grew up here in Delhi. We went to the "South Ex" mall, which is apparently the premiere destination for the Delhi locals, and then over to Connaught Place, which is a huge market in the middle of a massive roundabout with hundreds of tiny shops as well as street vendors. We had a yummy Chinese lunch, and I was very well behaved with only a few minor purchases (for which Sudhakar proved a formidable bargaining force). That night a group of 12 or so of us met up for dinner at a wonderful place called Bukara in the hotel next door to ours, the menu is entirely Kebabs, and apparently all the heads of state that have visited Delhi have eaten there -- Clinton, Blair... and now the Virginia delegation too! It was a fun night as I met a number of the delegates that I hadn't known before -- mostly from Northern Virginia.

Sunday, the 22nd -- The mission officially began on Sunday, as most of the group arrived early Sunday AM. We met at 9:30 and took 2 buses full of merry travelers on a turbo tour of some of Delhi's touristic highlights -- we had about 40 people with us, and I found it lots of fun (of course, we all know I'm a tour junkie -- I just eat up all the juicy tidbits of info/trivia!). We had a really good guide, Sunny, on our bus and I learned alot. The weather was hot, as expected, but very pretty -- blue skies and lots of green & flowers. I enjoyed the excursion very much. Upon return to the hotel, I took a small group back out to do a quick bit of shopping based on my previous day's experience -- it was a bit rushed, but at least everyone came home with a purchase. Then, we had our first official "team briefing" with Secretary Gottschalk, Secretary Chopra and the Deputy & Assistant Secretaries, along with Paul, Rick, Vince and I from the VEDP team. We reviewed the plan for Delhi, then adjourned for the opening reception -- more than 100 people had arrived -- and then off to a really lovely dinner hosted at the Imperial hotel (the photo of those guys in the turbans and orange outfits was taken there).

OK -- I'm going to stop here for now (realizing I haven't actually shared anything NEW ... but merely recapped what I'd already shared with you) because I'm about to run off to my YOGA class! This has really been something I wanted to do -- yoga in India -- and today it's working out that I can do it here at the Taj spa. So, I'm off for some much needed stretching. And I'll continue the travel update when I get back.

Love,
Kim

Quick Check in -- The Race Begins!

Hi All,

Sorry to be a bit slow on the postings, things have been BUSY! All's well, and I'm having fun! Friday was like a regular day at the office in Tysons' -- on the phone and doing email all day to confirm and adjust the meetings for this week in light of the Governor's change of plans. Then, I had a fun dinner with my Indian "family" -- and learned from them about Sanjaya getting voted off, pretty funny! Saturday I spent with a friend on the delegation who is from India originally, he took me to a bunch of fun shopping spots (where I showed ENORMOUS restraint), but had fun. We also gathered with a bunch of the delegates for a wonderful dinner at Bukara -- which is apparently where all the heads of state have dined in India, yummy! Sunday the official stuff kicked off with a tour of delhi -- 2 bus loads of us, and while it was really hot, it was really fun (I'm such a sucker for a tour... just love all the juicy tidbits!), and saw lots of stuff I haven't seen on earlier trips... only to know there is so much more! Then, a quick shopping excursion with a few folks who had been told to look to me for guidance on such things! (again, I was restrained). Then, our first team briefing, then the opening reception -- we really area big group, about 100 of us, and then off to a really nice, fancy dinner where I took this photo of the musicians and tiny dancer there to entertain us -- more news & photos tonight. Hugs! Me

Safe & Sound -- I'm here!

Hi All,

Despite a somewhat inauspicious start, I'm here safe, sound, happy, with my luggage and a red dot on my forehead. Our departure was delayed 3 hours due to ominous sounding problems with the hydraulic system which were satisfactorily resolved, with some relief to me, in an equipment change (new plane). The good news is that we had an extra long layover in Frankfurt which really paid off... we made the connection with no trouble, and still had time to freshen up in the Lufthansa lounge before the last leg. There were 6 of us together leaving Dulles, and we picked up a 7th in Frankfurt -- a really nice group, all of whom I already know quite well -- and it really is such a treat to have travel companions to watch luggage and chat with. So far so good! In fact, I've already started documenting the journey with this (inexplicably blurry) photo of all of us with our dots and our flowers, in the Taj Club where we were welcomed and checked in, in typical Taj luxury -- I LOVE THIS HOTEL!

Meanwhile, there has been sad news with regards to the Governor's plans -- we learned just before departure that he had made the decision NOT to travel to India. Certainly all can understand the reasoning, but it really is simply heartbreaking for many of us who've devoted so much time and energy to making this trip a crashing success... of course, we'll still go ahead with most of the plans, but it feels like we're throwing a very big, long, and multifaceted party, knowing that the guest of honor can't make it -- it just takes the wind out of oh so many sails. The Governor sent a very nice note to all the delegates -- many of whom will be very disappointed, and some of whom will undoubtedly cancel -- but we'll sally forth and see how it goes. Tomorrow I'll spend much of the day updating my contacts here and making the necessary (or as they say here "the needful") to adjust.

Finally, just because we're all far away, we certainly won't forget the horror that seems to continue at home -- the video and photos from this monster are just beyond awful. It's simply hard to imagine how very completely broken a mind can be, while the body looks still so normal - -this individual was so clearly detached from humanity, and yet he walked to the post office looking like any other person, until he unleashed his madness. It's just so hard to take.

Friday will be an official day of mourning in Virginia -- those of us over here will be certainly keep the VA Tech community, and all of the affected friends and family, in our hearts. In closing, my friend Tom Garnett sent along this beautifully written article commenting on the impact and reaction of the VA Tech family -- and I thought it was worth passing along.

http://subscr.techsideline.com/news_archive/showArticle-2824.php

Good night!!

K.

A Somber Start

Hi All,
The tragedy at Virginia Tech yesterday has undeniably cast a pall on the excitement that had been surrounding Governor Kaine's mission -- we are so very shocked, stunned and sorrow-filled for the loss of innocent life in such a senseless, random act of violence. It is very hard to believe that this has happened at all, and even harder to accept that it happened to us here in Virginia. For those of you wishing to stay apprised of the news, I recommend the Governor's website: http://www.governor.virginia.gov/

At present, we remain hopeful that the Governor and First Lady will be able to travel to India at the end of this week in order to maintain as much of the Trade Mission itinerary as possible. Of course, we will all understand if this does not prove possible, but we will continue with the mission in light of the tremendous participation and extraordinary amount of planning that has been done to promote the ties of trade & investment with Virginia. A summary of the Trade Mission's goals is presented in the press release issued on Friday: http://www.yesvirginia.org/About_Us/NewsArticle.aspx?newsid=856

I leave tomorrow at about 6:30pm... with Bobby away in Denver, I'm thankful to Megerly and Ryan for taking me to the airport. We're going to meet for a late lunch -- if I get everything done in time -- and then I'll start the journey, via Frankfurt to Delhi.

I'll check in when I arrive.
Til then!

Returning to Incredible India - April 2007

Hi Loved Ones,
I'm 10 days away from my return to India, this time as a member of Governor Kaine's Trade Delegation. I depart on Wednesday, April 18th and return on Friday, May 7th. During this trip, I'll visit Delhi, Chennai, Mumbai and Calcutta . We have over 110 people traveling with the Governor's Delegation and a jam-packed schedule of events -- this week will be the final push to get all the remaining preparation complete, and it will take every moment, but I think it's all coming together well.

Thanks to all the kind feedback to my first blog, I thought I'd give it a second try for this trip -- with a few modifications. I THINK that you can now sign up somehow to be "pinged" when I post an update so you don't have to check it everyday to see if I've written anything new. I'll try to figure this out to give you some "quick tips" on how to do this. Stay tuned!