NATHAN GOLLAY
Compassionate ∩ Curious ∩ Persistent ∩ Innovative ∩ Collaborative
My life in India
This a glimpse into my time and life in India- where I was at a university in Bangalore as a student and researcher, managed a mobile application team, and represented the United States in the Federation of International Students Association (FISA).
I was afforded the incredible opportunity of spending four months in India during my undergrad. Along with three other students from different states in the U.S., I attended Christ University- a first rate, secular, Hindu majority university in the heart of the “Silicon Valley of India”- Bangalore.
While there were some facilities in place to help us adjust to life in India, for the most part we were trusted to fend for ourselves. All four of us took up residence in the Indian version of an off campus college dorm- a “PG” or Paid Guest house, among local college students. Besides travel on the weekends and few longer trips like trekking in the Himalayas and chasing swells in Chennai, this place was home. Even now as I write this, I remember my dilapidated little room with its boarded up window, swelteringly hot constant state, and semi -functional bathroom, with an odd nostalgia.
I also of course remember the fear of arriving there at 5am at the beginning of my trip with an open mind, a small surfboard (bodyboard) bag stuffed with my clothes, and uncertainty of whether I was capable of spending the months there I had set out to. From the very first ride from the airport to the PG, I was having my eyes opened. People talk about the traffic in India, but the pure chaos on the roads is not readily described by words alone. At one point on that drive (at 4am), the little uber sedan was about four feet under the cargo truck in front of us, the rear of the truck inches from the windshield… and neither driver batted an eye- which to their credit, we did not make contact.
Owing to some lucky encounters with members, I learned about an association of international students in Bangalore called FISA-B. Mostly postgrad students from a diverse range of countries through Africa and the Middle East, this program was a course in cultural pluralism in its own rite. I was the only representative of the United States in a body of students about 2000 strong and rose quickly to make influential votes and eventually lead the app development team. I made a ton of friends in this program. It was rare that in a group of ten students, any two of them would be from the same country. Indeed, I was able to visit some of them in their home countries after my stay in India was over.
The idea of trying to describe all the little things that made up my experience in order to portray a better picture of the whole of it is tempting, but I think I’ll just limit it to one of the FAQs: what’s the food like day to day?
I had all sorts of little novelties all around me that quickly became part of my routines. First and foremost- coconuts. Indian coconuts and their salesman who ride on bikes with their merchandise in their basket were a staple of my time there. For around fifty cents, the salesman picks a coconut, chops the top, adds a straw, and then when you’re done drinking, chops it up and gives you access to the coconut meat inside. There was a coconut salesman who always parked just outside the PG who I went to just about everyday. Our daily micro interactions (though largely nonverbal) with eachother provided me with a bit of structure in an otherwise chaotic life in India. Indeed, he sort of began to represent the transition from PG to going out into the city and vice versa, being stationed so close to the door. And, when I left, I was sure to say goodbye and give a very large tip. Some of the other staple snacks included sugar cane juice with lemon (great for after a workout or basketball), hot peanuts roasted in sand (sand not included), chicken momos (Chinese-Indian fusion sold on the street corner on certain weekdays), and of course chai.
Larger meals were much more diverse. They ranged from curry dishes with Naan, to spicy rice dishes, to Southern Indian seafood, to hearty Southern Chinese food. And yes, my spice tolerance was made to be very high.
I travelled a lot in India- mostly on the weekends and for longer when the term rapped up. Some of the travel was by overnight busses, other with short, cheap flights, and some via rickshaws (tuk tuks) and Ubers. There are too many places to talk about, but some highlights were staying with the founder of surfing in India and surfing with the Indian National Surf Team in Chennai, trekking in the Himalayas (documented further here), and on a brief excursion out of India- taking a moped across the coast of Sri Lanka with only what I could fit in the seat compartment. Here is a bit of a video summary.
The four months I spent in India were truly like no other. I made such deep and interesting connections with people and different ways of life that I would not have thought possible. There is of course much, much more to say- but as the intended audience of this portfolio is seeking to hire me, I’ll close off on a practical note: I will work abroad- put me in an interesting place with a coast or mountains nearby if you want to sweeten the deal.