PuneXpat

For me, the 12 days of Christmas began yesterday. Twelve days of counting down until I leave India. I literally can't wait and I am yearning for it with every fibre of my being. Now, my darling husband is going to be reading this and internally cringeing.  He will be feeling a crushing guilt and will be trying, right about now, to formulate a plan to 'fix' things.  That's him, and one of the many reasons I love him.  However, what he perhaps doesn't fully appreciate is that my current, somewhat negative, frame of mind is perfectly normal.  In fact, it is even documented and has a name. And I have been there before. I am undoubtedly experiencing true culture shock right now. Being a teacher, I love a good visual aid, so I put together my own version of what this is like in a graph. Stage 1 - Preparation Getting our visas, packing up our home, parties & celebrations, saying goodbyes... this phase was a rollercoaster of emotions.  For...

Living Room & Balcony View of living room from front door. Living room from dining room. Living room. LOTS of built in storage all along the wall behind the living room. Looking towards the front door from the dining room.  Built-in storage and a 'secret door' to the maid's room. LOVE our balcony! Dining Room There is an 'extra' space between the dining and living rooms that we have set up for the kids to watch TV & play Xbox! Beers of Texas!  :-) Two little 'sick' boys home from school! Master Bedroom & Bathroom Obviously, the climate of India lends itself to having a fur blanket on our bed... not!!! We've hidden our Texas cowhide rug in here in case we cause offense to visiting Hindus! Huge shower! Twins' Room & Bathroom Thankfully the boys are happy to share a bedroom... we needed the 4th bedroom to replace o...