tpl

Hello,

My husband and I are considering a stay in Pune for 4-6 weeks with our daughter. She would be around 18 months when we are thinking of going (late fall, early winter). He would be traveling for work, so his company will pay for us to travel with him. The trip is optional, but it sounds like it could be a good adventure.

We live in the US and have traveled extensively in Europe, but have never been to Asia. In particular, I'm wondering about childcare, transportation and things to see and do. I have been told that the transit system in Pune can be difficult. I'm sure there are many other things to consider, so any comments are appreciated.

hobbes

Service apts are a concept new to India so pl find out where you will be staying. A suite in a hotel like the Meridien could be an option but with a chilsd you may want some kitchen facilities. Re transit. Cars with drivers are cheap in India and that should be your preferred mode of transport during your stay. Child care is an issue as there is little organzied baby sitting type stuff in India - people have live in full time help and creches do not really exist. However, you should be able to enrol her in a play school. Again ask the company to make inquiries.

Cicerone

For 4-6 weeks this sounds like a no brainer and I would definitely reccomend it. I am travelling today (on my way to India ironically) so I don't have any of my Pune info handy, but I think it would be a great place to live for a while. The climate is very pleasant and while it is a large city, it is not on the scale of Delhi or Mumbai and has many green areas. I think the transit issues you mention may be referring to traffic congestion, which is a growing problem; but for 4-6 weeks, I would not focus on that really, as it won't affect you so much and you will be gone before it begins to be a grind on your every day life.

Some suggestions:

1. Have your husband's company give you the name and number or e-mail of another expat family currently living in Pune so you can ask basic questions about housing costs and availibility, child care etc. For example, I would imagine you could arrange through another family to have a temporary nanny and maid for the 4-6 weeks you are there. FYI per Hobbes' message, a "creche" is a daycare facility. This are rather thin on the ground in Asia as live-in nannies and maids are very inexpensive and also because extended families tend to live together and so grandma takes care of the baby if mom is out working.

2. I agree with Hobbes that a serviced apartment or renting a short term flat would be best as you have a baby rather than trying to live in a hotel room or even a hotel suite with no kitchen or closet space. A serviced apartment is an apartment which offers maid service on a daiy or weekly basis and often has room service and other hotel like amenties, many are run by hotel companies, like Marriott Executive Apartments, which are run by Marriott. It is likely that there are short term furnished flats avaialable for rent in Pune as well that would not offer room service or maid service but you don't necessarily need that. Again, this is something your husband's company can and should be able to help with; they may alreay have one in Pune if they move people in and out of Pune on a regular basis. I am not aware that any of the major US hotel companies have serviced apartments in Pune yet, but check the websites for Marriott, Hilton and Sheraton who all have a number of hotels in India. Also try Oakwood and Ascott, both are operate of a number of serviced apartments in Asia.

3. You should speak to your pediatrician about what immunizations the baby should have for India. Also do some research yourself, try the cdc website, as your doctor may not be up to speed on tropical and sub-tropical medicine. Not sure what is appropriate for an 18 month old. Pune has good medical care by Indian standards, as it is a fairly weathly city, but India is India.

4. Would your husband's company pay to ship over clothes and baby stuff for the 4-6 weeks; or would they give you an allowance to buy new stuff. It would be easier for you to ship it (you have to do it 10 days or so before you leave if is is be shipped by by air, longer if going by sea) because you don't want to spend your first few weeks hunting down a bed/crib, car seat, toys, other large baby items and clothes. But this can be expensive to ship, and you could not take all this on the plane with you, so the company would need to agree to ship this stuff for you. A baby has a lot more baggage than just two adults would have. . . .

I have some website links at home which I will repost, places like the US Embassy in Delhi, etc that might be helpful as well as general expat websites.

tpl

Thanks for the information. My husband's company is really too small to organize anything very formal or do a lot on our behalf; we are all learning as we go, and will mostly get word-of-mouth information from those at the company who will have gone to Pune and returned by the time we are ready to leave. I think we will be in a furnished 2-bedroom apartment for our stay.

A few of his co-workers are Indian citizens, so I expect they will be a great resource. The suggestion to ship things out beforehand is a good one -- I'm sure that will be no problem.

Thanks again, and any other suggestions or links are greatly appreciated.

Cicerone

First, I highly recommend the book "Culture Shock! India" which gives a fairly comprehensive and in my view accurate picture of culture and customs in India. The books are part of the Culture Shock series of books published by Graphic Arts Center Publishing Company. You can buy them on line from Amazon or your local bookstore can order it for you.

I have a large reading list of recommended Indian authors for fiction and non-fiction as well if you are interested, there are numerous authors writing in English. English books by these authors are plentiful and inexpensive in India, you should be able to find lots these and others. As a start, if you have not already read it, I would recommend Salman Rushdie's book "Midnight's Children" which will give you a good background of some recent history of India (at least 1947-1975 or so). You can find that in any library.

You should probably take a look at the website for the US embassy in Delhi at http://usembassy.state.gov/delhi.htm. Look especially at “American Citizens Services” in the left-hand menu. I would also suggest you take a look at the website for the American Women’s Club of Bombay at http://www.awcbombay.com/ . There is no Pune branch of the club, but the Bombay website has info and links to Indian sources and you can post questions. I belonged to similar organizations in Hong Kong, Singapore and Zurich and find them invaluable in getting a realistic view of what it is like to live in a country. Below are some boards on expat life in general which might be helpful

www.expatexchange.com
www.expat-essentials.com
www.expatforum.com
www.expatnetwork.com
www.escapeartist.com/expatriate1/expatriate1.htm
www.outpostexpat.nl
ebusinessnomads
http://www.expat-moms.com

Some other thoughts have occurred to me with regard to a short posting:

1. Currency - I would assume your husband would continue to be paid in US Dollars during this short posting. To avoid "losing" on the currency exchange, you might ask the company to pay the rent, utilities, car and driver directly in Rupees; if you have to pay them yourselves you will have to convert US currency to do so; and if the Rupee is gaining against the Dollar during your visit this will cost you more money (of course this could save you money if the Rupee is losing against the Dollar, its a crapshoot, I always prefer to let my company have the risk and any gain). The Indian economy is a quite robust right now, and it is hard to tell where the currency exchange rate is going. You might also want to get a stipend in local currency to cover daily expenses rather than you have to convert Dollars; this is up to you. You will find ATMs through which you can access cash, many places like trains, airlines, hotels, departments stores, etc will take credit cards so you can keep your cash needs down, but you will probably use more cash on a daily basis than you do at home, as you can't write checks at all and small local shops won't take credit cards. Use credit cards and ATMs, whenever possible as you will get the best exchange rate through them, better than money changers. (Plus you get all those frequent flyer points. . .) There are no restrictions on the exchange of Rupees, these were lifted several years ago.

2. Insurance - You will need health insurance coverage for you and your family while you are in India. If you are covered by an HMO plan in the US, you will have to make sure it covers you outside the US, or add a rider to the HMO for coverage outside the US. If you can't get a rider, your company can buy temporary travel insurance to cover you outside the US, this is not expensive and would cover major medical expenses. Finally, make sure that your and/or your husband's life insurance plan covers you in India and other countries you may be going to for work or pleasure (many plans, like the one offered by my company, exclude coverage or require a rider for people going to certain countries i.e. Pakistan and parts of the Middle East.)

tpl

Cicerone,

Thanks much for taking the time to follow up on my post with such helpful information. "Midnight's Children" is indeed an appropriate book -- I read it a few years ago, and it gives a good historical background. I will take a look for "Culture Shock! India" next time I'm in the bookstore.

The first travelers from my husband's office will be going to Pune in the next couple weeks. Even though I don't think anyone else going from the office will be bringing young children, many of them are parents, so I am looking forward to hearing their impressions. If not for bringing our daughter, I would have a much more relaxed approach to the trip. By December or January, when we are thinking of going, she will be nearly 2 years old, and have different needs than she has now. I want to get my expectations in line and make sure I have some support systems in place. Your links are much appreciated.

lordofthejungle

hi
am sure you will have lots of info about pune by the time you get there. it is a conservative society but also has a ''happening'' overtone. from pune there are several maratha forts on day trip distances, check them out. pune is a growing city with dreams of becoming banglore (it lost out on the race, although IT boom started there first)....people are generally friendly, but rest of maharastra consider puneites to be aloof....u very much need to get into the inner circle quickly....local indian colleagues would be helpful
cheers

sfmaster

I don't have information on Pune but just wanted to offer encouragement. I spent 1 month in India with my 2 year old and 5 year old in Feburary and we had a lovely time. I have been before and we were visiting family - my in-laws - so it will all be very different. But I would say that you can go and enjoy yourself as long as you don't expect to get too much done. Just relax, soak up the atmosphere, talk to people, don't try too much in any one day.

I think for such a short stay you need either a hotel suite, or a real service apartment. Things like getting gas lines to work and back-up generators are not worth the effort for a short stay.


I wouldn't worry too much about the gear for a short trip like this either, Bring a stroller, maybe a travel eating chair. If you MUST a pack and play but by 2 they don't need a crib, but really you can get by without too much extra gear at that age. You will find diapers and wipes everywhere easily. Few people seem to use car seats and we didn't when we went. Toys are easily purchased so you only need a few special items.

Having a car and driver would be very very nice - you won't want to drive, public transportation will be too cumbersome/incomplete. A car and driver is a key element to arrange.

I find Indians definately treasure children and are very patient and welcoming.

There are some immunizations you will need, and some decisions about which meds you will want at this age.

The concept of babysitting isn't widespread. You may be able to find someone who can lend you there "nanny" occasionally or let your child join in with their children being watched.

Sounds like a fun adventure - you can click on my username and find my mini trip report on India (I posted in March)

tpl

Thanks for the additional information. We are starting to get more information as my husband's co-workers return home. Everyone has enjoyed the trip, but no one has gone with small children yet.

I am still waiting to learn more about the setup and location of the apartment. I am mainly wondering how my daughter and I will spend our time, and how difficult it will be to get around. I work at home while she goes to daycare 3-4 days a week. My husband works at home a couple days a week as well. In Pune, he will be in the office every day working on a project, so we will mostly be on our own during the week. There's nothing I expect to get 'done', but I am wondering about ways to spend out time. If it were just me, I wouldn't have any worries whatsoever.

We will definitely have a support system with the local employees at my husband's company, a few of whom have babies and toddlers. They seem to be a very social group, so that will help a lot.

Thanks again for writing. SFmaster, it must have been great to have family to visit in India.

Sonik

Hi.I have second home in Pune and have spent a lot of time there. You should try to get a serviced apartment, then you won't have to worry about house keeping and doing dishes! Try Seasons, www.seasonserviceapartments.com -
which has apartments of various sizes and is located in Koregaon Park, the upmarket area of Pune, close to restaurants, shopping etc. You should find out where your husbands work place is as well, commuting can be hellish if you are too far. Pune is a growing city and there are lots of activities...yoga classes, cooking classes, nice play school groups for little tots...I agree that a car and driver wud be very helpful and quite cheap and a safer way to get around in Pune.

riyapaul

Hello, I moved to Pune from the States in January with my husband and two kids (ages 6 and 4). Though I had visited India many times before, this is the first time I've tried living here, and it is QUITE an adjustment. So filter my reply through that culture-shocked-newbie lens ... First, about your daughter. Yes, people look puzzled and confused when you inquire about babysitters, and then say something about how you should never trust anyone like that, etc. Its just not done here. BUT, families with kids still go out to nice restaurants (and very late, too -- 10 or 11pm). As a result, its just normal to have little kids making noise, running around, etc., at restaurants, and no one minds. We kind of like that! The staff at every restaurant we've been to has been so considerate of our kids, giving them special attention, etc. And no one minds when your kid starts to fuss.(Though we still tend to put our kids to bed way earlier than our friends here, and are the first ones in to the restaurants.) About play schools.... Indians will tell you that Pune has marvelous schools and tons of great play schools. I have yet to find one. When we moved here we looked everywhere for a play school for the kids for the few months before summer break (Jan-March). Compared to the preschools that my son attended in the states, the playschools here are pretty dismal. Dirty, very few toys and the ones they have are usually broken and filthy, extremely uncreative crafts, and a completely bizarre (from my perspective) preoccupation with penmanship. I searched everywhere and finally settled on one that seemed slightly more creative and interesting. However, all my kids did was write letters and numbers over and over and over -- even the four year old. And this was at supposedly one of Pune's "best" play schools. The teachers would arrive unprepared for the day so that much of the time the kids sat just waiting for her to get her stuff together -- and the whole day was only 2.5 hours, since the bus arrived late and left school early! My older one, who LOVED every minute of his previous time in preschool, hated it. The younger one, who hadn't experienced preschool in the States (and who would endure anything to be with other kids), liked it. Though he did tell me that he got "whacked on the head with a pen" once by his teacher since his writing was too sloppy. He didn't seem to mind. Anyway, since your daughter is two, hopefully no teacher would start making her write -- but you'd have to check on that! And DON'T have high expectations -- in fact, start with very low expectations and maybe you'll be pleasantly surprised and find a gem of a place that I missed!
I agree with the get a car/driver advice. We've been getting by with rickshaws, which my sons think is the funnest thing ever. Most of the time its fine, but I wouldn't recommend it to everyone.
What to do during the day? We are very much missing the plethora of fun kids things in the States -- the nice libraries, science centers, museums, etc. When I ask people where they take their kids for fun, I often get blank looks. Then they talk about the gardens (i.e. parks)- here is a link about them:
http://www.punediary.com/html/gardens.html
But people don't go to these often for fun -- seems to be a special outing/picnic thing. We haven't yet visited these, but I'm sure they are pretty. We did take the kids to the Snake Park, which they loved, but don't know if your daughter would like it. We live in a large apartment complex (called a "society" here) which has its own fairly nice playgrounds and some community-wide lessons for kids -- rollerskating, tennis, martial arts, etc. So we've been enjoying those. If one of your husband's co-workers lives somewhere like that, you would have access. Actually, just being a foreigner may give you access to some societies! Just walk in like you belong there and the guards may let you by. I'd recommend our own, but they recently demolished the little kids playground. I do recommend meeting some Indian moms and not just hanging out with expats. A playground is a place to do this (though you may have to go there often to meet a mom and not just an "iyah" -- nanny, who probably doesn't speak English). I don't know of any public playgrounds that are decent (i.e. the slides aren't rusted through, etc.).

The weather here in Dec/Jan is WONDERFUL. Sunny and mild (only 80s in the middle of the day), getting cooler (like 60s) in the evening. I'm eagerly waiting for that time again -- this time we're settled and I can enjoy walking around a bit more. Oh, bringing a stroller is a good idea, and you'll be able to find some places (like the big gardens I mentioned) where you can go for some nice walks. However, don't expect it to be easy to walk everywhere with the stroller -- only some areas have place for this, and even the main shopping areas are pretty rough terrain for a stroller (broken concrete, garbage, sleeping dogs, etc. will hinder you). I'd have the car just drop you off and pick you up everywhere -- at least when shopping. And it would be best if your husband (or maybe one of his co-worker's wives?) could watch your daughter sometimes so you can be freed up to wander the shops alone. I'd be insane by now if my husband didn't do that for me!!
Good luck!

sfmaster

The penmanship comment cracked me up! I went to visit family with my 5 and 2 year old in February. We checked out a storytime at a nice bookstore in Bangalore (maybe they have in Pune). There were probably 20 kids there, it happened every week and there were stories and a little bit of art. I was totally amused by the focus on posture and a very directive attitude toward art (don't you need more colors). From USA we are used to a different type of public children's learning and exploration (kids museums, art centers, preschools etc.)

I also agree that Indians are quite accomodating of children, they are often at restaurants (late) and included in many things.