Not that I got to see much outside the hotel, as we were trapped in sessions all day and dinner events each evening. I might have well been in Basingstoke.

The winning pumpkin

 

It was a Halloween-themed event, and I was lucky enough to win a box of chocolates in the pumpkin carving competition. I was accused of having an advantage, since I was the only one who comes from a country that actually celebrates Halloween, and therefore was the only one who had ever carved a pumpkin before.

Drunk pumpkin, sadly disqualified

 

I was particularly disappointed that they disqualified my “drunken pumpkin” on the basis of using non-pumpkin props. I thought it was a good effort.

Another city, another hotel room. In this case, it’s the Four Seasons in Mumbai. The room was nice enough, on the top floor of the hotel, with a view overlooking Mumbai. The bathroom was lovely, with a big soaking tub that looked out over the city. I imagine it would have been nice to use, if only I’d had the time to use it.

View of Mumbai from the hotel room

 

View of Mumbai from the hotel room

 

The view out the window wasn’t as picturesque as some other places I’ve stayed. But this is pretty much the extent of what I’ve seen in Mumbai. (I suppose I could add some pictures of the office to give a totally comprehensive report, but you get the idea).

Anyone who thinks corporate travel is grand, or a great way to see the world, hasn’t done much of it. I’ve seen an awful lot of hotels in my career (particularly recently), but not much of the rest of what the cities have to offer!

My pictures pretty much sum up my trip to Hyderabad. I saw a lot of the hotel, a lot of the office, and not much else. The city itself is sprawling, and it took us several hours to get into the various offices each morning. The one thing that is constant is the noise: traffic, people, and the constant honking of just about everything on the road.

Quick trip, just two days and one night, hardly long enough to get a feel for the place – but the industry here is everywhere, with huge service centres housing thousands of technology workers clustered together in technology parks. You have to see it to understand what a powerhouse India is positioned to become, to understand the sheer potential of what’s possible when you have a huge, educated workforce this big.