(Almost) Never Alone

I haven't yet told you about my friends in Chennai. What a difference having them here has made. Alain (We say it "Alan"; it's better than butchering the French pronunciation.) is from Switzerland, but spent about a year working in the US before coming to Chennai nine months ago. Part of my role in the office here will be taking some of the pressure off him, as far as training and directing the Indian programmers in coding the systems we need. He's quite a techie, but very fun, and convinced that there's no point in living in India if you don't enjoy spicy food.

Steve is another co-worker, more mild-mannered, and the gracious target of much of the humor that we so enjoy together. His wife Mary grew up not that far from where I did in Ohio, but we never met until living in Orlando. She does not work in the office; people are more her specialty. God has given her a compassionate heart, adventurous spirit, and loads of practical skills. All of those have made her a great guide for my first week in Chennai.

As if that weren't enough of an advantage for anyone moving to a different country, I'm also the guest for a few weeks of the woman (and her family) who manages the offices we're working in. She's given me a lovely bedroom, complete with my own bathroom. Sometime mid-morning I head over to Mary, Steve, and Alain's apartment and spend time with Mary, and the guys when they're around, until one of the guys walks me back in the evening. Each morning there's a new adventure at the breakfast table of my hostess. She's breaking me in so gently, that it actually started with cornflakes, sugar, and milk. But food is a different topic, with details to come later, I hope.