INDIA!

After twenty hours of traveling and checking into our luxurious abode for our first five days in India at the Hyatt Delhi, our first activity outside of breakfast (for those of us for who plan out our daily regimen centered around meals) was an afternoon presentation in the hotel conference room by Atul Tandan, or Pat, as he requested we call him. Even jet-lagged, I believe we were all mesmerized by his slideshow. An advertising veteran with children in American universities, he has complete access to the Indian consumer mindset, as he is an Indian consumer himself. But, as he so eloquently presented to us, he recognizes the differences between Indian consumers and American consumers, and can explain the roots of such curiosities to us. What is so, so hard for visitors to this beautiful country to understand is that though we stand out with our white skin, long legs, and (some of us) lighter hair, there is no one prototype for an Indian. Amongst the wealth of knowledge he gave us about the diverse people of India, Pat gave us the eye-popping fact that research revealed that every combination of DNA present in the world was found in Indian people. Crazy, right?

Since then, we have had a day full of sweating, I mean touring, around tourist attractions here in Delhi in our air-conditioned tour bus, a delightful visit to Wieden + Kennedy’s Delhi office, an Indian mall experience (which are new and therefore a big, big deal here), and a day of shopping at local markets, which I will post my blog entries about tomorrow upon our arrival to our hotel in Agra.