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August 3, 2022

Farewell India!! We will miss you.

Our last day, we were free to explore and finish packing. Some of us went shopping at the mall and then to visit the Lotus Temple, which we could see from the hotel. The white architecture was beautiful and meditating inside was very peaceful. We went to the Quran Minar, which is a tall intricately cut column surrounded by ruins. I really enjoyed the detail of the designs. For lunch, we found a nice South Indian restaurant by the Deer Park and ate some last Thali dishes. While we didn’t see any deer, we spotted some wild ferrets.

Our group had a final farewell in the lobby before parting ways. The general sentiment was how much we all enjoyed exploring India together and looking forward to seeing familiar faces in the fall. A few of us had a lovely final dinner in India at a restaurant with live music. We ordered so many dishes and enjoyed talking about our favorite India memories. 💞😁

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Time to say bye...

August 2, 2022

Leaving India is hard! Been an amazing Journey and can't wait to explore more.

To wrap up the course, we met India's star TV news anchor and journalist Nidhi Razdan!! She spoke to us about press freedom, politics, and national issues in India.

She met us for lunch and spoke with us with such ease and informality, it was truly incredible! She is a huge name here in India and yet so humble. Making sure each of us got a chance to interact with her and also let us click a photo with her!

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August 1, 2022

This is day one in the national capital!

Began our day by meeting our sweet guide Ms. Poonam at the hotel. She took us to see the Humayun's tomb, a precursor to the Taj that was built by the queen for her husband 'Humayun' k a Mughal Emperor). Blown away by how magnificent it was!

Delhi wouldn’t be complete without a bicycle rickshaw ride through the narrow lanes of Old Delhi. We street snacked our way through with samosas, jalebis, aloo tiki, dahi bhalla and kulfi.

Tonight we met with some ex Northeastern students who joined us for our last dinner as a whole group. Lots of laughter but also very emotional to say goodbye.

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HIPNO DIPNO DAY,

31 JULY,

Today was a fun day. It was an early start at 7am, and it was by far one of the longest days on tour, yet one of the most exciting because we were going to visit one of the world's seven wonders. After a long bus ride, we finally reached Agra around 1 pm. It was boiling outside, and everyone was frustrated until we saw the beautiful Taj Mahal. Then we spent most of our time on the bus traveling to Delhi, which was a little tiring, but it was fun to spend more time with friends in an enclosed space.

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Elephant day!

Today was one of the most eventful days we’ve had in India yet! We started the day off bright and early at 8am, where we met up with the other dialogue group studying in India. We all got onto the bus and headed to Amber fort. Once we got there, some of us decided to ride the elephants on the way up! When we got to the top, we all took pictures and explored the fort. After the fort, we headed to a carpet and textile shop, where we learned how they make carpets and rugs. It was fascinating to see the time and detail that went into creating each carpet. Some people even bought a small rug to take back home! From there, we went to the fabric shop where we tried on Saris and other clothing items. We all headed to lunch somewhere nearby which helped us regain some energy. After lunch, we went to the City Palace, where some of us got henna! After the city palace, we went to an observatory where we saw the world’s largest sundial. After the observatory, some of the group decided to go silver shopping while the rest headed back to the hotel to relax and get ready for dinner. We ate at a beautiful restraint which had a beautiful scenic view of the mountains. Overall, today had to be one of my favorite days in India! 

Best,

Kameela

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Happy Friday! We started our day off with our last class, in which we did some problem-solving based on some readings. After that, we were given some time to get ready for a wonderful tea party, hosted by one of our peers #MKT. Since his family has connection to the beautiful city of Jaipur, he invited us all to the Wind View Cafe. There we enjoyed traditional Indian food in a breathtaking building, where we took pictures after. We later went to Ladli, which is an organization that focuses on empowering street children, women, and youth by educating and teaching useful skills. We were able to buy some jewelry made by the organization, as well as buy some food for them to all enjoy and donate! Once all what was scheduled for the day was done, some people went to the market. Those who went bargained and bought items, and later we all ate dinner with view, and really took in the city of Jaipur! From pink buildings, to animals in the streets, to bustling sidewalks and music in ear reach :) One of my favorite cities this whole trip. I’m going to miss everyone here so much!!!

Camila Osorio

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July 28, 2022

It was a rather relaxed day for students of Northeastern. We just had a flight that we were scheduled to leave for by 12. Thus, giving us plenty of time relax, and sleep-in. While the drive to the airport was long, our journey to Jaipur was rather smooth. The night culminated with a fancy dinner for some of us, while the others were finishing up our last case study!

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Wednesday , July 27

Today was one of the most glorious days of the trip. We finished all our business lectures and visits. It was time for us to start having more free time. Everyone was very happy that they got so much free time. I’m the morning we made our product presentation to two fidelity executives. After that we had free time and got to explore the city of Bangalore.

After the meetings and exploring the city we decided to go to a indian night club. Which was a great time and we got to listen to some bolllywood and western music. We later went back to the hotel to pack for our flight to Jaipur. It felt amazing to finally be done with all the school work and now we are off to the last part of our trip.

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Infosys dayyyyy

Another beautiful day in Bangalore! Started off my morning on a rather chaotic note as I woke up late and tried to squeeze in breakfast before making my way to our company visit of the day but all worked out well! Whereas the hotel breakfast buffet selection offers a variety of western breaks fast food in addition to Indian ones, I always try every morning to at least try one new Indian breakfast item in hopes of exploring the culture more. Today’s breakfast consisted of idlis and different types of chutney with a little fruit salad. Somehow managed to savor all that in the span of 10m then rushed to a rickshaw to get to Infosys campus. On the rickshaw ride the driver blasted Indian bollywood songs, added a few to my playlist:). Then, infosys! Definitely one of my favorite company visits so far. First we were greeted with golf carts to be given a tour of the company’s headquarters and its history (yes the campus is that big!!) Then we had the pleasure to meet with some of the company’s marketing and business analytic experts to learn more about the brand, it’s mission, it’s marketing and recruitment tactics, etc.. Finally, we were treated to an amazing lunch which consisted of a wide variety of Indian foods from which I consumed too many to name! Ended the day on a relaxed note with a walk around the neighborhood the group is staying in. Got some fresh fruit and did some cow watching.

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Visiting companies starting with F

July 25, 2022

Today we visited Fidelity, where the professor’s husband worked back when he lived in India. The professor promised us an interactive visit, and Fidelity delivered on that promise. First, we had a session with Vijay, the regional chair, who explained that although Fidelity’s customers are mostly from the older generation, the company is making new wealth management products appealing to people ages 18-35 who are beginning their financial journeys. Then, after a coffee break ☕️ 🍪, we did an interactive activity about multigenerational diversity. Maria, who coordinated our visit, had us rank several values (e.g. equality, family security, health, a comfortable life, etc.) according to most/medium/least important. Some groups of us ranked the values based on what the younger generation priorities, and my group ranked them based on what we think the older generation prioritizes; it was interesting to see how the values are similar and different across generations. After this activity, we had a few more discussions on managing multigenerational conflict in the workplace, and we had a presentation from Shankar, the head of diversity and inclusion.

Then, the fun part: we met some of Fidelity’s young (fresh out of college) employees and did an icebreaker. We went around in a circle trying to remember everyone’s names and corresponding adjectives that started with the same letter (e.g. I was “Joyful Jamie”) and if you didn’t remember the names of everyone before you in the circle, you had to get in the middle and do a task. I danced with one of the employees, and Jinit did some pushups! Once we finally got around the circle with everyone’s names, we had lunch with the employees. They were nice and gave us advice about good spots to visit in and around Bangalore.

After Fidelity, our bus took us to Flipkart, which is the Amazon of India. Flipkart is actually bigger than Amazon in India. Chanakya, the head of corporate development and strategic partnerships, told us about which industries the company has entered (he said grocery is the biggest) and how the company has grown over time. Then we did another icebreaker and introduced the person next to us, which was a fun way to show what all of us in the Dialogue program think about each other after knowing each other for a few weeks. Finally, we did a campus tour of Flipkart, which has several blocks of offices with nice architecture and somewhat of a college campus vibe.

We have a project coming up where we have to introduce a new product to India. So this evening, my project group went to a couple of stores in the mall near our hotel to interview store managers and customers as market research for our project. Now I am back at the hotel, writing this blog post on the roof by the pool. I’m glad we are staying in nice places :)

I thought my blog was done but then I went out to a fun Indian restaurant with a few people. The interior architecture was good and we had really good daal 😋

Jamie

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Somethings cooking! And I think it’s all of the professors favorite foods! Today we joined forces with Esther, who was Duane’s cook while he lived in Bengaluru, to prepare a traditional South Indian meal. South Indian food consists heavily of coconut-based gravies and airy breads. Esther’s friends hosted us in a beautiful home complete with that incomparable Indian hospitality. In a kitchen loaded with tomatoes, peppers, chicken, and a shit ton of onions, the chopping began! We all took turns receiving tasks from Esther and begging her for the recipes to take home with us. She was a very productive hands-off chef, giving instruction to get us going and then letting us carry on independently. She only offered her critique on some of our samosa folding skills, and if you saw the sad shape of some of those samosas, you wouldn’t blame her (but good luck trying to get one before they were snatched up straight out of the frying pan). We managed to put out a delicious meal. I actually had to turn down ice cream for what could be the first time in my life!

After the meal, we were feeling inspired on our day off. Some of us headed to Commercial Street, a never-ending marketplace and began our bargaining. The markets here are packed chaos, exactly what you would expect from a city of 11 million people. I particularly liked playing the devil on Morgan’s shoulder as she allowed my shopping addiction to rub off on her. Her first purchase of India!

Sincerely,

The best chef in the kitchen

[nuinindia2022]

July 23

Hi guys! It’s Adina here. Today was one of my favorite days on the trip because we got to go to an Indian brewery called Toit! Toit was super cool and fun. We got to try so many different kinds of beer. My favorite was called “Tin-Tin Toit”! At the brewery we also got to meet with the Professor’s past students that are now working in Bengaluru. They were all super nice and it was really fun talking to them.

After the brewery we got to go to a store called Varnam Craft Collective! There they sold really unique gifts that are a 200 year revival of Channapatna toy crafts. Some really cool things I saw were handcrafted board games such as Ludo, spinning tops, and toy dolls. They were all really nice quality and well painted. It was so fun getting to shop around and explore. I even got to buy a button-down t-shirt there!

In the evening, we went to a hip restaurant called Suzie Q. There we had a blast dancing to music and meeting new people. Overall, it was a great day! :)

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7/22 - Fitness is fun!

Today we spent a great day at Cure.fit!

Cure.fit is a start-up and can be described as the Peloton of India. Since it was founded in 2016, it has become the leading fitness company in India offering online and offline classes as well as services in mindfulness and wellness.

We got a really comprehensive overview of the company’s history and its operations. We learned about the fitness culture in India and the challenge to motivate people to pursue it. The company has an interesting model where there are no titles or hierarchy system for its employees and the only subscription model for customers is a yearly subscription. While we initially questioned the yearly subscription model, this makes it harder for customers to back out and not pay the subscription fee as it is payed up front before the subscription begins. Their office also has a very unique set up in the sense that there are monkey bars, ellipticals, massage chairs, and bats and balls for cricket on every floor for employees to use throughout the day.

While Cure.fit is the over arching company, they have smaller divisions within called eat.fit and care.fit that focus on providing customers with nutrition and healthcare consultations. Cure.fit also has a start-up within a start-up called sugar.fit which specializes in helping those with chronic illnesses such as type 2 diabetes and hypertension. Through the technology of a CGM (glucose monitor) and an app, sugar.fit has features which allow users to track their blood sugar, have doctors provide real time advice on the food they are eating, and insight into how exercise and food can effect ones blood sugar.

We ended the day with Cure.fit by doing a Bollywood dance fitness class. The instructors were super enthusiastic, the music was upbeat and fun, and everyone had a smile on their face. Overall a really great day with Cure.fit!

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Holy Cow,

July 21,

I can’t believe that we are already in Bangalore! We started our day with an amazing breakfast spread in the Radisson Blu City Centre hotel. We then headed out to explore the city and started the day by visiting a Shiva temple. We saw these beautifully decorated plates with all the religious things on them. I took the liberty to buy one plate and offer it inside the temple. It was a calming experience as we ended up meditating outside the temple. We then visited another temple and had the pleasure of seeing a fully dressed holy cow outside. After the temple visit, we saw some main attractions in the city like the parliament building, some gardens and the high court.

After the city, we had the opportunity to go to the IIMB campus which is one of the biggest business schools in India. We met with some entrepreneurs there and discussed their startups which gave us a lot of insight into the startup culture of India. We ended the day with an amazing dinner and had lots of fun conversations.

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July 20

July, 20

Bangalore

This morning, we had an early wake up for our flight to Bangalore. After one last breakfast at the Sea Princess, we headed to the airport, excited to arrive in Bangalore. When we landed, the sky was party sunny and already the weather is warmer. The boulevards are much larger than Mumbai, and we had to bargain greatly with the auto rickshaw drivers on the driving price.

Soon after we arrived, many of us headed to the tailor for custom made suits and dress shirts. There were so many fabrics to choose from and every question you could imagine about how many buttons you wanted or how the pants should fall. I’m looking forward to seeing everyone’s custom-made tailor suits next week. Around the corner from the tailor’s is a shopping street, where some of us went to look at the jewelry and shawls. I worked on my bargaining skills, even though he only lowered the price a few hundred rupees. 

For our group dinner, we got traditional south Indian cuisine with lots of coconut curry dishes and rice. My favorite dish was a spicy lamb soup that came highly recommended. Afterwards, we walked around Bangalore in search of ice cream and some local street desserts. We even got some playing cards to bring back to the hotel. 

A very fun first glimpse into Bangalore! 

Thanks :)

Grace Wilson

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July 19th 2022 

Today was the day of our test. The cohort was divided into groups of four, and we were presenting to Mumbai’s hottest marketing agency, Glitch. Two of the teams were presenting about improving the fanfare of an OTT platform (Disney Hotstar). The other two teams were presented on an Indian beauty company Lakmè. They pitched ideas in ways the brand could retain its huge marketing share and stay relevant with the younger customers. Fortunately for us, all the pitches went very well, and the team at Glitch gave us insightful feedback that helped us look at Marketing from an interesting perspective, especially for emerging markets. After this eventful day of classes, we went to the Juhu Hotel, a seaside restaurant, to celebrate our success and the end of our Mumbai Adventures.