Peacocks, Palaces and Pavements

Two months before I left for Chennai, I stopped by the Man Who Sold the World, an antique store in my neighbourhood in Seattle. I go to this shop sometimes to look through the old-fashioned stereoscope. You peer through the device at two side-by-side photos, soften your gaze, and these two slightly different perspectives become one three dimensional scene. On that particular day, I set my sights on India. One scene is of a cow in a crowded Delhi alley. Another is of a larger-than-life stone carving of a Hindu god. It felt as if I was surrounded by those…

My time in Bengaluru is at its end. I could have never imagined how these ten weeks panned out the way they did. The fact that during this time frame I have ridden on the back of both a scooter and a motorcycle, played in a 63-year-old football tournament, and feel totally fine eating with my hands—although not as efficiently as others—is wild to me.  Even more wild to me are the things that I considered impossible or strange—like crossing the street without being hit or the fact that cows are frequently a traffic obstacle. But they are all things…

One of the things I had thought about before coming to Bengaluru was how I’d be seen as a Chinese American woman. The blogs I had read—mainly by white travelers—described the awkward staring that they experienced. Just a couple months before coming to India I visited a friend living abroad in Ireland. I stayed in a small sea-side town with her and her roommates who were all Irish. While her fair skin that I always teased her for and red hair made her blend in seamlessly, my black hair and tan skin stuck out like a sore thumb.  Being from…

Dirt covered cricket fields sprinkle Bengaluru. The sign of any football field—goal posts or otherwise are nary in sight. The lack of grass fields means footballers can get their fix by booking turf fields that have been planted in the midst of the busy city. Netting surrounds all sides of the field as cars, scooters, and autos zoom past the outdoor arena. The lights only went out twice during our field time and by the end of the two hours, I felt like I had found a bit of home amongst the craziness of India.  Since coming to the city…

I should have known better. After exchanging $70 I had in cash that I had received as a graduation gift less than a week ago, I handed over half of that to a man to help me get to my hotel from the airport. Unbeknownst to me, I had paid about four times as much as I should’ve for that car ride. But I was too distracted by the constant honking and what felt like at the time, one near-death traffic manoeuver right after another.  My plane dropped me in Bengaluru around midnight, Friday—I had started my journey from Seattle,…

As I was walking into the office on Thursday 21st December to bid farewell to colleagues I was feeling a huge mixture of emotions. I was hugely proud and happy to be heading to a new Zimbabwe but sad that my six months in Bengaluru had come to an end. Bengaluru has been one hell of a journey, one that I am so pleased I had the confidence to do (I can feel tears in my eyes as I write this). There is no exaggeration when I say the past six months have been life-changing. Since arriving in Bengaluru I…

I couldn’t sleep. I followed most news channels and am part of several WhatsApp groups, none of which has anything to do with politics; yet all were a flurry of news — real or fake. Family members on the ground were less sure of what was happening, while those in the diaspora were supplying the information. It was surreal. President Robert Mugabe, who had been in power for 37 years, was under house arrest. The military said they had taken over the country but it was not a coup. While the uncertainty was unsettling, there was reason to hope. I…

I am part of the Idex Global Fellowship Programme.The programme seeks to help social intrapreneurs from across the world secure the best possible start to their careers. I would like to share some of my experiences on the programme and explain why I think relationship-building is the one key quality every future leader needs. The Idex Global Fellowship Programme is, in my view, one of the most exciting opportunities of its kind in the world – but it is also one of the most challenging. I joined the Idex straight from Zimbabwe in July 2017; with no previous international work…

Two months ago, my life changed as I began my first ever overseas work experience. On 1 July 2017, I stepped off a plane at Bengaluru Kempegowda International Airport. I’d never been to Asia, let alone India before. I had no idea what I was getting myself into. However, over the past 2 months, I've learned and  experienced so much, that I'd like to share a few of my thoughts and reflections on 2 months in India.   The African perception of India is so far off. For example, it's not all massive cities with skyscrapers or rice paddies with…

Today marks my last day as an intern for Citizen Matters. It’s been quite the journey, one I started back in January of this year that led me to ten weeks of reporting in India. I graduated from the University of Washington on June 10th and arrived in Bengaluru on June 17th ready to start my international reporting experience and post-graduate life. I was given the chance to intern in Bengaluru for Citizen Matters through a scholarship awarded by an alumna of the University of Washington’s Journalism Department from which I recently graduated from as well. Each year this alumna…