Moving to India...Sort of....

One reason I have been totally MIA for the past couple of months is because me and the whole crew are planning a move to BLR (Short for Bangalore, India).  Dh works for an international company and this has been tossed around for so many years and my usual response is NO.  Its an expat assigment so it would never be permanent..but still...visits, yes, move...NO.

Honestly, I dont think I could handle it. Well last december, they said they really needed him to go..full red carpet treatment.  While I was enjoying my corona (with a twist of lime in it). I said NO.  Then my husband said it might be good for the kids (considering they will at least learn some hindi...maybe), we will get to see the places that would otherwise be difficult to plan vacations too (australia, great wall of china, maldives, bali).  And spend more time in Europe.  Children would go to great international school, plus you would have help....you would have help, you would have help...LOL.

See in this country, domestic help is expensive..most women dont have it.  My housekeeper was 100 bucks a week for 4 hours of work and that didnt include cooking..she was nice and switched the laundry..but its just more like "housekeeping".

India is a very big service industry.  A full time maid (from what I gather) is roughly about 100 bucks a month..IF that.  You dont drive (or at least I wouldnt).  So you need a driver another 100 bucks.  Cook (if you maid wont cook...maybe 50? All in all you can outsource your entire driving, cooking and cleaning needs for about 250 bucks a month.  Personaly, I really like to cook, so I will get someone to just do my cutting of foods...and still be a foodie and cook!  But you get the idea.

I am a very independant and active person....so I go to the gym..no problem, there is a gold gym (with cycle class! yeah).  Plus the area that we are going to would be in whitefield (no pun intended)..a posh burb with upper class and expats.

So I threw caution to the wind and said..Sure..thinking that the expat package would be okay.  It turned out it wasnt okay.....it was well...FANTASTIC!  I made contact with my brothers friend out in chennai(on the east side of india I think?) and told her the deal.

She said take it and dont look back..she has a similar deal and she said she isnt planning on coming back for a while now...and she is born and brought up here. 

Of course my biggest fear is that its India.  Poverty, Pollution, Power outages, be dependant on a driver to do the simpliest tasks to get anywhere....but she said that it does take getting used to..but since its not a permanent move..then you will adjust.  Its just "different" way of life.

Even Dh said (going in at a very senior level), that its funny to be in the middle of a meeting and you have a proper waiter with a serving cart rolling buy the board table serving chai(tea) and snacks, sometimes a full course gourmet dinner.

Its too bad reality hits you back in the face, the moment you step on the streets and realize that you are back in India.

I will have to say BLR is pretty high tech.  At least in pictures..beatutiful lush gardens, the Office parks are amazing.  And the school that we have chosen for the kids is great.  There was another american school that opened up called Stonehill, but we decided against it. It was an hour plus busride and it didnt make sense.

The school now we have chosen is Indus..I hope its okay. I have heard a couple of weird things..but honestly, I think its just the "new school to attend".  And its not worth the headache.  The positive reviews that I have heard.....so far are good.

I have three girls, so its important for me they are safe.

There is so much to write about...but that is where  I have been these past couple of months. I think we are leaving in late July or very early august.  The school said not to worry and they can start anytime in August.

I feel bad that the kids wont have alot break when we get there.  I am going to let them play hooky from school for a week or so, just to get them adjusted to the time zone and hopefully meet kids in their area.

We did pick a place.  The two that were really reccomended were a place called Palm Meadows or Prestige Ozone.  Both places had there plus and minuses.  Palm meadows looks like someone brought san diego home and the clubhouse is amazing.  BUT the houses dont make sense...just a bunch of rooms chopped up into pieces. 

Plus there is alot of transient traffic because there is a hotel on site.  While its probably the place to be because you have a bar and stuff and the ladies are wandering around in bikinis, its totally expat.  I wanted more house.

So we picked Prestige Ozone.  The previous tenants were american and the owners are live in the USA.  So they knew what we were looking for. 
All the appliances are americanized (at least for india).  And new.  So that is nice.  I like that there is a "Central park" in a couple areas of the development and one of them is across the street from the house.

Its quieter too and we have access to the mall right next door.  I have heard alot of kids in hear go to Indus, so hopefully making friend will be easy.

I  have decided on Neev Preschool for the baby. 

I got a call from the movers yesterday, and now the process of international moving begins.......more later.  I think I am going to journal my experience...its going to be an very interesting 2 years!