Indian cooking decoded :) PART 1:CURRY DECODED

Indian cooking is easy, trust me it is. Baking is tough, you have to find ingredients, measure them right, preheat on right temperature, too much technical issues that always fail for impatient people like me. Indian is fairly easy to follow. I was a lousy cook, started off with bitter spicy vegetables, chapatis with holes. Well when I think of it, those days still come when in my head I am cooking tasting a 5 star hotel buffet and it comes out like a leftover meal all of which was left :P

Still there are a few ways to go about it which might help people. In this post, lets make 4 courses of indian meal. Obviously time will be more if we have to indian store and find ingredients. For every section there will be options you can add to dish to make it more tasty.

Lets start the clock.

1) INDIAN CURRY : 

There are two phases of curry making.

WHAT TO COOK
First one is getting vegetables ready to cook. Now some vegetables need boiling, some lentils need to be soaked overnight, some of them can be made in cooker, some of them taste better if you fry them after making masala which is second phase of curry making. Here is the chart to do what with which vegetable/lentil/beans.

2) GETTING MASALA READY
 Now you can start off with two types of masala making-

a) MASALA1 : This one is mainly used for dry gravies where you want less water and more spices surrounding veggies. 

1. 
   
2. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat; add the onion. Cook, stirring often, until the onion is golden brown, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and chiles and cook for another minute. Add the tomato, turmeric and salt. Cook until the tomato is soft, 5 minutes or so.

This here is classic example of masala1 type curries

http://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1014830-baingan-bharta

Sometimes you don't add tomatoes to make it more dry and spicy.

http://www.cookingandme.com/2014/07/aloo-gobi-recipe-dry-aloo-gobi-recipe.html

So you can add any vegetable to be cooked after masala1 preparation and after about 10 minutes you are done. Just see that you don't overcook vegetables. 

Examples what you can add after masala1- Cooked lentils, French beans cooked, Potato cabbage, potato cauliflower peas etc etc whatever you got in refrigerator.


b) MASALA2 : In this masala, we are looking to make gravy based recipe. 
Grind onion, tomato, ginger, garlic, and chile pepper together in a food processor into a paste.Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Fry bay leaves in hot oil until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Pour the paste into the skillet and cook until the oil begins to separate from the mixture and is golden brown in color, 2 to 3 minutes. Season the mixture with chili powder, coriander, powder, gram masala, turmeric, and salt; cook and stir until very hot, 2 to 3 minutes. 


Classic example of this masala 

http://www.khanakhazana.com/recipes/view.aspx?id=2291
(Step 10 before step7)

Always add spices after onion tomato mixture begins to cook a bit. If you add it before, spices will burn. 

That is it, yeah you just learned all indian curry cooking you need to learn. Rest comes from mistakes you make while preparing dishes :P



Now all the beans vegetables lentils in charts are cooked either of these ways. A few tips in end:

1) If you want your curry to be a little sour without tomato, add mango powder or anardana powder or tamarind paste. 

2) For a bit of flair, add cilantro in the end for extra flavor.

3) You can mix and match vegetables with lentils and cook together. Opposquash or bottlegourd tastes better with chana dal in it.

4) Salt tomato sour ingredients inhibit veggie cooking. For some vegetables like bottlegourd, potato add sour ingredients and salt after its cooked. If you already cooked them, its cool. 

5) For gravy based recipes, you can add mashed potato or portion of mashed boiled chickpea for chickpea masala recipe, kidneybean paste for kidneybean masala. 

6) While making lentils, add spinach or kasuri methi after tomatoes. Cook for 5 minutes and add lentil. It tastes better.

7) My favorite masala1 options- cooked french bean, raw or boiled opposquash, raw or boiled chinese okra, raw potato cauliflower peas, Cooked raw jackfruit, Roasted eggplant, Tofu capsicum, boiled black eyed bean

8) For cooking hard vegetables like potato, bottlegourd add these after onions. When they look cooked, then add tomatoes spices. 

9) My Masala2 options- boiled chickpea, boiled kidneybeans, boiled opposquash with lentil.


Simple aint it, just prepare masala, add cooked or raw veggies or beans or lentils, and then when it is done add cilantro. 

                                                                                                                                                  

Moving from India to abroad : What to expect in Seattle/US ?

From the moment you land in seattle, the very first week can be depressing for some of us. You are in a place with no friends nearby, no supermarket aisles you are used to, no car, no family, no cab services or roads you are used to. Its all new. So what do you do, don't panic. It happens to everyone, that sick loneliness gets us all. 

To help you with the few initial things, here are my tips:

1) Usually when you land, its past lunch time and airport in seattle has not much to offer. What you can do is order when you take cab. Install amazon app and get any restaurant to deliver for you. It could be the case you are fed up with eating in flight so totally cool if you want to go and sleep off  jetlag. 

2) Checking in : Most of my friends faced this problem, they were made to wait by aboda rivet. For us, they said your apartment is not ready and we could leave suitcases there, take our lunch somewhere in vicinity. Well, we just had a flight of 22 hours. All we wanted was a bed . Luckily, in 5 minutes housekeeping lady came with key. Just call them ahead so they keep your temporary house ready to move in. On reservation document, you will see passcodes for accessing room key. My pregnant friends waited for an hour in the lobby. If you are going rivet and asked to wait, just ask them to at least take you to community lounge where they have pool table. Every apartment has a place you can see tv relax and lie down too.  We all get hesitant but comfort comes first. Just be polite. 

3) What to do when you are off flight : Follow people, there is an immigration line, get in the line, keep passports forms documents ready. They will ask questions if you brought any food items. Tell them you got flour spices etc. They might ask for offer letter and just go with it. Don't be nervous, its just a process. Then go down, pick your suitcases from belt , take them to security line, again show passport. They will take suitcases and send them to the final conveyor belt. All you have to do is take the train that everyone takes , go to belt , pick up suitcases and head to cabs. There is directions everywhere, just stay calm and you will realize it was all nothing

Everyone is super courteous and friendly. You can ask airport officials and they will be happy to help. Or just ask co passengers. 

4) Fire alarm : We moved in, and just when were about to doze off, fire alarm rang. Go down, follow the stairs and just stand with everyone. There is nothing much you can do here.  

5) Rivet or others : Hmm, rivet has its pros and cons. Since I lived just here, I can tell you its good and homely. But they don't have gym, ac, fast internet. Sometimes I can't even buffer youtube videos here. Otherwise, its got nice rooftop deck with pool table and sitting area along with dog park and amazing views of city with lake and the best of all right next to amazon office. Also housekeeping is done once in 15 days which is pretty cool. They leave vaccum cleaner, mops in house so you can do it yourself too. The only downside is gym ac internet and our apartment faced rehab area so sometimes there were homeless people shouting in the middle of night. If you have a big family, ask for a bigger apartment at time of booking. See your options and decide. Post and dimension apartments are awesome with cool water views and fully functional gym. Ava queen anne has pretty cool gym with mind-blowing ocean view. If you are looking for indian friends, rivet could be the best bet. So weigh in, these friends are going to move in different apartments and your husband could walk or take orca card. I would have loved living in post apartment.  My apartment was 513 in rivet, it was well lit with lots of windows and direct sunlight but homeless and gym situation bothered me a lot.  But then we stayed for 3 months, as you live you kind of get accustomed to everything even if it makes you fatter. 

6) Use mailbox : You can change your address to rivet or any apartment by filling a form and keeping in mailbox. Then you will receive all mails there. This is important for ssn, license and bank documents. When you move to your apartment, change address in usps website. You can ask office people for more details. So get your cosmetics clothes delivered right there in apartment concierge. Keep checking mails for nice restaurant offers, coupons. All apartments have mailboxes. In some of them, they even have screens where you can see if you received any packages.

7) Housekeeping services : Every apartment offers housekeeping. You can ask them for cooker, mixer when they come to clean or you can just ask in office. For rivet, they came once every 2 weeks, they change towels clean up house and if they don't change bedsheets ask in office. We did and it seems they never changed so I just washed sheets. 

8) Trash chute : All apartments have trash chutes. Just find one on your floor and in some time you will be recycling like every seattle person. Trash chutes are like spaces on all floors marked trash, just go around the floor and find yours. Enter and follow directions. Some apartments need a key to operate them, some don't. Rivet needs key and trash chute starts from 3rd floor. 

9) Groceries : Well I asked my friends zillion times and they were just like go qfc or safeway. For your immediate needs, just on the left of rivet there is home deli, you can buy milk egg bread breakfast stuff from there. If you want to stock up, I would suggest safeway online delivery or instacart delivery. QFC is on mercer street, just 10 minutes walk from rivet or queen anne area. Find your nearest qfc safeway on map and walk to it. Safeway signature kitchen 15 grain bread is good. I like vegetables from QFC. Safeway is soooo goood for delivery. Then there is amazon fresh. General grocery bill for two people for 15 days is 150 dollars. You can even try whole foods which is totally organic. On your first order, order dishwashing gel for dishwasher, tissue rolls, paper napkins, salt, sugar, laundry detergent, dish scrub . If you are confused or overwhelmed, go QFC and see for yourself. Grocery therapy never failed. There is bartell drugs too near amazon office. 

10) Salon : As an indian, I need salon appointments every 20 days. For threading, I tried e brow lounge sola salon manita. It was good, the shape was perfect for eyebrows. Make an appointment over yelp and try her. Then there is tons of groupon deals for haircut and color. Search on yelp, make appointments and let maps guide you. Be on time. 

11) Walk : Seattle is perfect for walks. They have south lake union with museum and beautiful scenery for a peaceful tread. Also near queen anne is olympic sculpture park, gosh its perfect. You can run anywhere. Whenever you have to cross road, just find white zebra line, push button and when white walk sign appears, walk. Even if you want to observe people and follow, its cool. Everything takes time. Also,all museums are free first thursday so try them out. 

12) Gym : If you are a gym freak, join 24 hr fitness center near rivet. Or just google and find a good one. 

13) Bank : You can choose banks by taking recommendations from friends already  living here . Ask your company people and you should be sorted. We took first tech bank cards. While you are at it, get your social security number too from the office. Its all there on google. 

14) Phone plan : You can either join someone's phone plan as with more people joining on same line there are few discounts. Otherwise just take your number and go on. For india, they have 15$ plans for unlimited calling. 

15) Shopping : Downtown is good for shopping. Every brand is there. Take a stroll and you will end up with shopping bags. There's target, macy, forever 21, nordstorm, columbia every freaking store is in that area. I wouldn't ever go out, but once I did it was a weekly routine. 

16) Driving license : 911 driving classes are the best. Don't think about the money they will take, just take the classes. My husband had no problem driving around but when he went for test straight ahead, he failed because he was driving little slow somewhere and little fast in some areas. So you got to practice before you take test. Your indian driving license works for an year. Also if you take learners license here, you don't have to carry passport around with you. 

17) Use dishwasher : Use it, stack it up, put the dishwashing capsule or liquid and go for it. In a few days, you will use it like a pro. Its actually soooo cool, who wants to wash dishes when you can just toss them inside a machine that steams them up. Ohh, trust me use it. You can choose any setting, if the dishes are almost clean, use 1 hour option. I am posting few pics to give you the idea.

18) Making food on this new gas : It will take time to adjust to new gas. But you will figure it out. The glass one takes more time to heat up, you have to change settings from hi to lo when you cook chapati. With experience and trying, you will do it. Piece of cake. Gas can be cleaned easily, just wipe it after its cooled down. If you get open coils, put foil inside so it doesn't get messy. Tumeric stains go away easily in 2 days. You can use chopping board as base for keeping chaka belan for chapati which makes it easier to clean. 

19) Use apartment amenities, meet people : If you are in rivet, you will meet so many indians. Talk to them, me and my friends met in lift and then we would meet everyday in pool room. Friends in a new place are always comforting. Even if you are alone, its cool. If I was a bit more of a planner, I could have hosted lunches or festival gatherings in the pool room. On karvachowth, I saw at least 5 couples waiting for chand. 

20) Netflix : All of them netflix hulu showtime offer free first month subscriptions, try them to find out which your favorite one is. You can take one on your credit card, then cancel and take on your husband's and then on new credit card. Or just take subscription. They even have indian channels on yupptv. After sometime, you will be hooked to house hunters and kardashians. 

22) Restaurants : Keep exploring, there is grubhub caviar bitesquad amazon. Everytime you order from someone new, you get coupons. Just make sure you order one hour before. They deliver in one hour or more. When someone calls on phone, just accept and press 9 to let them in for rivet. Seattle eat guide is out there for download too. The portage bay cafe is the best for brunch. Indian places like chutneys, royal palace are all okk. Try and find out. 

23) Cab services : Everyone starts with uber. Download the app and they might have problems accepting cards from india. Enter US pincode. If it doesn't work, take yellow cabs or lyft. Best if you can drive, take zipcar. Amazon offers the option of taking rental car or cab. Even public transport is good here, keep maps and catch buses. You can either use orca card or pay when you enter in bus. If you don't know, just ask bus driver. 

If you have any questions, mail me baghel.archana@gmail.com

You can use towel to keep washed utensils so the counter is not wet.

Moving from India to US : WHAT TO PACK ??

Well, we survived the whole throwing trash game and we are left with what to pack for our US stay. Here is the list of things you should pack with you for the waiting time when shipment comes. which can be around 3 months. We stayed in temporary housing rivet apartment.

1) Clothes : Pack clothes for 15 days, most probably you will get washer dryer in your apartment. There is no need to bring more clothes. For those of you who work, pack 2 pair of nightwear and more office stuff. For those who have to stay in apartment all day, pack like 3 apartment wearable t shirts pajamas and 7 or 8 outerwear. 
If there is a festival in those 3 months, pack traditional wear if you need it. You can always buy more clothes from malls in US. If you are looking for something cheaper, try old navy forever 21 ross. 
You can choose shoes according to weather. I brought just 2 and it worked out fine. If it gets colder, you have to have boots, leg warmers, caps, gloves, socks, jackets. If its thanksgiving or christmas time, you can pick from sales here.  If its summer time, you can bring anything. 

2) Chargers, converter : Bring all mobile chargers you need, all digicam laptop chargers along-with converter thing. You can buy converter in any electrical shop. Buy at least 2 from india.

3) Spices and groceries : List of items I packed for kitchen
                 Kasuri methi
                 All basic spices( turmeric chili corriander)
                 Almonds etc nuts you want
                 Wheat flour at least 3 kgs(till u c indian store)
                 Pickles, Papad
                 Water bottles 2 empty for apartment
                 Tea strainer
                 Chyawanprash
                 Tea
                 Cumin powder, Mango powder, sambhar powder
                 cumin mustard dried badi, asafoetida powder
                 Maggi, Chana masala
                 Favorite biscuits
                 MTR idli mix with microwave idli kit
                 Whatever spices you need on a daily basis
                 General medication with prescription
                 ( Get your health benefits within a month)
                All chapati kit, wooden rolling pin with base
                Probably you will not need chimta, sansi( hindi) 
     
In short, keep the groceries you are going to need for a month.  My friends bought tamarind, coffee filter and rice lentils. Just avoid things that can turn into a plant. We didn't bring rice, lentils. All the supermarkets have lobia, rajma, chana, rice and some dals. If you don't get toor dal, you can try any indian store nearby. If you bring more packets of some specific product, they suspect you are going to sell it and remove everything in airport checking. So keep it minimum. Although there have been people who brought too much stuff and were not stopped but why take chances. Its difficult to get instant veg noodles in beginning. After a while, when you are adjusted to city, you can buy everything. This list is to let you settle you in and not make transformation tough.

4) Laptop : If you are going to get laptop, I would advise putting it in the suitcase. You can carry notebook around in airport. Trust me, you won't like hanging with that weight and bag on your shoulders.

5) Travel size vanity : Preferably buy travel size lotions shampoo conditioner face packs shower gel loofah hair oil. You can buy more when you come here. Obviously, quality is better in US. If you are getting a better deal, feel free to stock up. Same goes for jockey stuff. Keep an eye on body shop or whatever brand you prefer for deals and options. You can even order online and accept when you land here. Bring your razor as it might take time to spot the perfect salon for you. If you want, pack liquid sindoor too and two pairs of slippers.  

6) Bath rugs : I brought 2 thin bath rugs from homecenter. I had no idea they would be so useful here. Bathrooms here are supposed to be dry so bath rugs help a lot. Put one near washbasin and one when you enter washroom. 

7) Ps3 games : My husband packed ps3 in suitcase too. He got games preloaded into it. Ohh, best decision ever. In US, everyone comes home by 6 so to pass time this one was a good option. You will get a tv, just plug it in and you are done. I know shop in chennai that gives games for 100 bucks. 

8) Cooker, idli stand : You might not need cooker since most of the apartments offer rice cooker and mixer grinder here. Just ask for them in reception. It will be better if you pack microwave idli stand. You can make idlis, dhoklas in it. Just mail and confirm if they provide and you can pack accordingly. We packed tawa too. No need to bring any other utensils, you will get everything in apartment. Pack one indian knife and peeler whichever you are comfortable in. We all love our knives. 

Buy mixer grinder if you don't have and bring it by shipment. Get new utensils according to city and apartments there. Some apartments have gas, some have coils, some have glass over coils. I would suggest throwing away all the old unused stuff and get from US. Make sure whatever you buy is microwave safe dishwasher safe and flat bottom. 

9) No cutlery at all : You will be provided with a fully functional kitchen, everything you will need like plates, spoons, bowls, quarter plates, oven trays ladles. Almost all of it. They even gave cutting boards, knives and a starter kit with tea coffee sugar biscuits. All the cooking pans were there. If you want, you can bring 2 small bowls.

10) Refrigerator boxes : Keep a few tupperware storage containers for storing dough, oil, extra flour left after cooking chapati. If you don't want to, just order food through amazon or any other food delivery service and you will get your extra containers. 

11) Lighter : Buy a lighter and pack. You will need it for candles or pooja. If there is a festival in that duration, you can even get all items you will need. Or you can just go to a friend's house to celebrate. I managed with dough diya and internet aarti. Its all in faith. God doesn't care if you put 100 poris or just one as long as you offer yourself unconditionally. Ooh, satyavachan. 

12) Diary, pen : If you are like me, you probably make notes of all events. So yeah pack it. 

13) Masala dabba : This is probably an extension. If you have space, pack it or just 4 small plastic cups from grocery store will work. Also, salt pepper will be provided by apartment authorities. You can pick bigger packs from nearby supermarkets. 

Well, if you have any questions feel free to mail me baghel.archana@gmail.com

Also I have written  3 other detailed articles on moving from India to US. Check them out on blog. Thanks all. 



                 

Moving from INDIA to US : How to plan packing moving?? What to buy, what to do furniture ?

What wife or husband or whoever has time should do ??

1) PAY bills : First of all, you got to clear bills. Now your apartment dues will be settled in end, keep like third last day for it. In most of the apartments, you go downstairs, they tell you the current water bill, electricity bill blah blah and you pay through portal or cheque. Last day for this. 
     If you have a broadband connection, call them 15 days ahead and enquire about the bill payment procedure for when you want to move out. If its the middle of month, normally they want you to call one week ahead, broadband guy comes and takes landline away after a week. So you are never in no wifi zone. 
     For gas reading or submitting cylinder, go when you can to agency and return it. It takes like 15 minutes to return. Just call them in advance, take cylinder and book with you.
     

2) Fix house : If you are renting the apartment, there must be something you have to fix like a light bulb or balcony which is dirty because of the plants. Anything you think that will take up time needs to be finished 2 weeks early. So you have peaceful 2 weeks to just arrange the stuff you want to pack or shop for. 

3) Maid issues : I had the best maid ever and still there were problems in the end. Get her something like a saree or money in the end. Make sure she expects nothing more. My maid wanted a refrigerator so yeah keep them grounded and in service till you leave. 

4) Sort your stuff : Well all those tshirts skirts you have grown out of, leave them for charity. Carry only the stuff thats new or can be worn in house. Why? Because US style is different, clothes are amazing. If you are not wearing those clothes in india, they are just gonna be taking up more space here. Sort it out, one pile goes to be packed with you in flight, another one to be shipped to you after a few months, and the last one is charity. Freely give away. Trust me, you won't miss anything. Do this at least 2 weeks in advance. 

5) Meet friends : Take out time for friends and meet them as much as possible. You are gonna miss this sunshine first few months in any other city. Keep your last days free so you can say bye properly. Get them gifts if you want to. Go for lunches. Enjoy your life there.

6) Bedding pillows : We all have those bedsheets that are never used. They are just there for when washing machine overflows we can use them. Only bring the ones that are new or look new. Don't bring the whole new old bedsheets in shipping. US has better quality linen. So be a charitable person, give it away. If you have used pillows enough, throw them too. But then, if you are going to have in laws coming in, keep them for that room. Again, at least 15 days before so you only use throw away bedsheets and all the new ones can be packed cleanly. 

7)  Selling stuff : Decide what you want to sell when you move, if you have a bike or car you want to sell, start the process like a month before and hand over the stuff when you are comfortable to. Don't leave things for last moment. If you want to send them to your hometown, be in touch with person who's gonna use it. Take the insurance and xeroxes of sale copy, rc copy and you are done. Send it off when packers movers come. If you decide early, it will be convenient to tell packers when they come for inspection. 
8) Tell everyone you got it : Worst case scenario is some one coming over to help you. So unless you trust the person completely, you and your husband make sure you don't get stressed and even if you do get stressed, don't tell it your parents. They will come over, try to help, get to witness fights . Trust me, not cool. Its just a phase, you can do it yourself easily. 

9)Plants : Well, plants are like kids. I know its hard to part, but you have to. So in advance ask friends if they want plants. Or you can give them to gardener or just replant them else where in a park or cemetry. This way, they don't die and you feel happy . Do this at least a month in advance. 

10) Trash out a week before : If you sorted all your clothes, give them away like a week before so you have more space to pack the final clothes. All trash, all selling stuff that you are not probably needing should be out like a week before. 

11) Utensils out or in : In US where we moved, most of the gas is induction based, all i needed was induction range of utensils. I have 75% of the cooking utensils, I have to take back india in installments. So make sure you have the right things to cook. Also cutlery plates are a lot nicer and dishwasher safe here, so if you can, try and buy in US. Don't bring extra utensils like those old steel ones or plates you never used. Send them back home or give it to a homeless. 

12) Buying Furniture:If you want to buy furniture like tv stand, dining table start browsing furniture stores weeks ahead to see what kind of shop fits your needs. Lifestyle has most of the new designs and affordable prices. Order and get it shipped last week. So when you throw all the trash clothes utensils etc , you will have extra storage to keep everything intact in boxes. My friend insisted on opening and checking so they made them assemble furniture and then packed it again. Whatever works for you. We didn't buy any in India, the prices are a little bit higher here but you do get warranty quality where you buy from. Personally, I would have preferred selling all furniture and buying new in US. All the furniture that you get here is easy to pack while heavy furniture is difficult to manage. Most of the people here do their own packing moving so for sure I should have avoided all junk clothes furniture utensils we brought. And top of it, apartments are small so avoid avoid.

13) Shopping for groceries and travelling stuff : Go to a big store like big bazaar or saravana stores and buy packs of spices, almonds, nuts, atta whatever you are going to need on a daily basis. One of my friends was stopped for carrying rice and lentils. Avoid carrying these or anything that could sprout, that could be considered a seed. Buy one wooden rolling pin, wooden base for less weight.Get this all one week ahead. Also buy travel packs of lotions shampoo conditioner hairserum etc. Get a mixer grinder if you dont have. 

14) Jewelry : Carry your favorite things with you, if its expensive preferably in hand baggage. For all the gaudy gold you never touch, leave it with your mother's when you visit them. As much as I have seen, normally delicate jewelry is what people wear here. There have been indian specific robberies here where they specifically went in indian houses looking for gold. Keep them safe.

15) Your EAD : Keep all documents you are going to need to apply for jobs. All your certification that you might need. If you want, take experience certificate from employers. Take 2 by 2 photos and check on this site. Then print and bring with you. You can also get it done here but in india, everything is cheaper and familiar. 

http://travel.state.gov/content/passports/en/passports/photos/photos.html


16) Airplane shopping : Its going to be a long flight. If you have been travelling , you must have all the accessories otherwise buy these. Plane pillow, woollen shrug, comfortable trouser preferably cotton, loose fitting shirt,socks, flat sandals or shoes and noise cancelling headphones. Ohh those monster kids and people pushing seats to maximum limits. Airports are pretty cold, carry like a light jacket with you.

17) Electronics : Well, find out which one has dual voltage option. The ones that don't have, feel free to send them home or sell them. Yeah that includes toaster sandwich maker hair dryer too. 

18) Relax relax : Dont do everything in one day. Distribute work evenly and finish off calmly. There is no need to hurry, just start off early and you won't be running around in the end. Those last 2 days in hotel, utilize them to return to sanity. 









    

Moving From Amazon To US Seattle: What to How to plan packing?

This has been the most stressful transformation ever. I  mean literally I could have gotten a divorce. So my friends yeah it is going to one hell of a exhaustive demanding month when you  move. Then as soon as you are here, emotionally it could be a little wrecking too. So embrace yourself, keep repeating I will get through it , just jump take that leap and hopefully within a few weeks you will be over it.

My husband worked for amazon office in chennai, like every other amazonian we also decided to try out US after 5 years of hot chennai. I loved Chennai, I had friends I could count on, went out for lunches birthdays pubs. In short, it was kinda amazing. Something called a perfect social mental physical tranquility. We lived in one of the posh ceebros societies with gym pool. Trust me, it was pretty awesome what we had there. Relatively, it hurt more when we moved because of all the friends walks gym trainer swimming classes yoga I was leaving behind.

Lets begin the process of shifting. Well, amazon handles it all. You get your visa interview date, go get your visa , then inform them like 1 week ahead as soon as you receive stamped visa. Pretty procedural and works out smoothly.

So what bummed me out so much. I am going to write all of my experience here. Also what you should and should not carry in your suitcases. How to handle reservations, flight tickets, family visits, packing stuff etc etc is gonna be covered.

What your husband should do on his side

1) Sort up office stuff : Well, my husband seriously messed it up. He kept working and there is so many forms to fill, so many formalities to go through with. He just wasn't paying attention. When he did, it was late and I had to work with packers movers all on my own which isn't so bad. Still, its good if you can finish all of those things at least 3 days before packers movers come. They can always resume work when they start in US office. The whole give up laptop thing can be done end day.

2) Sort his stuff : When we move, there are so many clothes husbands never touch. Shirts, trousers, ties, sweaters just sort it all. Here I must tell you though, US has awesome stores and the prices are almost same. There is no need to buy jackets shirts jeans from india. You can always get some for the first few months. But not like for an year. Ask your husband to sort his clothes, make 4 racks, charity stuff, US stuff ( new nice), Dryclean stuff ( jackets sweaters ), Tshirt pyjamas ( wearable ). Feel free to give away more clothes for charity. The shirts you never wear there will probably be just taking up more closet space here. If you are aiming for 1bhk, there is just 2 closets in most of the apartments. Choose wisely. Besides here you will see more plain shirts, black grey tones of clothes. Leave the color check shirts with your mom in law if she insists on saving money. Finish this 2 weeks early before packing.

3) Don't call parents : Well, it gets kind of emotional for parents specially guy's parents. They want to come and help them out with moving. Its the worst idea ever, number one reason you can't really exercise free will at throwing stuff. Secondly, u will fight more while packing and then it won't be cool if there is an audience to witness the sheer fights. Thirdly, no one can really help anyone with their packing. Its your stuff, you know what you want. That goes for guests too, no guests who want to stay in house for a month. It messes up the schedule if someone wants to stay in your house, book a hotel for them. It would be the best money you ever invested in peace.

4) Follow all indian govt rules : It sounds absurd, but yeah do follow all rules. Wear helmet, seat belt and don't break any rules your last days. We got caught without helmet like half km away from home and what followed was frustrating. They took away the driving license, said we will set up court date. In short , stay away from trouble n police.

5) EAD for your job :  For EAD, you are going to need 2 by 2 passport photos with white background. In India, its way easier to get them done. In US, it will take a little time to get used to getting all these services. So just get these photos from there. As soon as you land, fill up the form and you can start interviews. Even if you don't want to work, its always good to have the option. 

6) Documents sorting : There is a list of documents that you need to keep with you all times when you travel. Buy 3 folders, keep most important documents like passports, tickets, forms, amazon joining letter, marriage certificate in English, birth certificate in English, hotel or company provided accommodation booking on top. In second folder, you can keep all the educational qualification documents of you, in third folder keep everything that is your wife's. All done and sorted. Whatever is not required, keep in international shipment in a suitcase or folder. 

7) Accommodation booking : As soon as you get visa, you can ask company to book tickets, your temporary housing and fix packer mover date. While booking tickets, its always better to choose flight that takes 10 hr 10 hr break. Emirates has uncomfortable leg space seats and too long flight. For temporary housing, if you need AC or gym, tell the associate you need it need it. We got aboda rivet which is okk for location but we wanted gym and air conditioning as when we came, it was really hot here in September.  They have dimension, alto, post, ava apartments and loads of more. Insist on your needs. Also if you have a family of kids, tell them you are going to need more space. Don't take 513 apartment or any on this side, there is homeless people shouting swearing in middle of night. Also, their internet speed sucks. The only positive thing about rivet is its full of indians you can be friends with.
Dimension, post,ava, alto are pretty awesome with water view and gym.
  
When packer mover comes before for estimate, make a list of all the house items you want to send home and others you want to send abroad in ship. Tick off as you tell them everything. We told them we wanted to send air conditioner to hometown and they kept complaining we never told their agent. Thanks to the list we made, we weren't confused. Always ask for extra boxes. 

8) Hotel booking : Well, the worst mistake we did was trying to run off as soon as we packed. You are gonna be exhausted when you are done with everything. Take your time in hotel, relax in pool, order room service. Then catch your flight after 2 days of peace and tranquility. Again, no guests no dinner no friend house stays just hotel and alone time. 


In my next post I will add

What wife should do?

What to pack for US?

What to do when you land in seattle?

Where to look for apartments?

Donts for Guests

Its such an obvious post to start with and pretty much every married woman has zillion inputs to give. But here's my version of what counts as a boundary cross. As an indian, we are expected to entertain guests no matter how distant how uncomfortable it makes you. So lets start with our list:

First of all, my kitchen is not yours

Until you really ask me what I would want to eat cook or even order, you really have no mom card here. I hate it when people come and they own the kitchen, cook potatoes which i hate, veggies i never eat, oil i couldn't have finished in an year gets finished in a week. Its not about the money, its just you feel no power in your own customized kitchen. I mean everyone has a diet regime they are used to. Frankly its rude just plain rude.

Second, no judging.

Ohh judging part is the worst. Do you even cook, why dress like this, how much did you buy it for, comb your hair seriously i mean how about mind your f***ing business.  I forgot the most used one, she's still sleeping. So if you sleep till 7 you are sleeping till 9, never understood that math. In your own comfort zone, you feel watched over like judged constantly for waking up having tea not making tea eating dinner cleaning plates or not. Almost every single chore is like written in daily diary and given ranking like a reality series. Some people are too nice to say but everyone is constantly doing it.

Third, don't wait up for lunch dinner breakfast snacks etc

You are not doing a favor by waiting for us to eat. Every  meal is not supposed to be taken together. I handle like a million things at home from buying groceries to paying bills. We will eat when it fits our schedule or just on the go. It just wastes more time and you feel guilty for making a hungry person wait which by the way is a sin. Is that what you are putting us for, sinning for carrying out our regular schedules. So please, eat up grownup children.

Next one is take me everywhere

This might not happen to everyone but every single time anyone visits, they want to accompany me like to gym, market, walks, apartments visits. The point of an outdoor activity is to get out of the routine , not to bring routine with you. I hate hate hate it when a slow walker wants to walk n talk. Its super frustrating and no that is not quality time. You kind of ruined my peace. There goes that hour of serenity. Don't you dare ask where I am going and why.

Give people space

Everyone needs space, its just natural to some of us for others its beyond comprehension. Super irritating when someone stands with shoulder rubbing against you or just talking in your ear and guess what most of the oldies relatives do it. Don't do it, its just like a throbbing pain in the brain. Damn annoying. Sense the space part. If you can't get in your own home, where will you get it. Also, ask people if they have room for you before arriving alone or with friends family. Tell them in advance how long you intend to stay. 

Never ever pick remote

You are in someone else's convenient comfortable adobe, like you they have favorite shows  to watch for. Be a good guest, do not touch the remote. I have seen crappy old movies or news or stupid soap operas, I have witnessed home invasion like anything. I just mumble to a corner, it is somewhat like a homeless feeling. Like aliens take over the whole space you ever knew. Yes, it is that traumatizing.

Clean up the mess

Well, everyone is messy for some clean freak. I might not be one of those proud sparkling kitchen owners, but yeah my home my way. Make some efforts. What I have seen is some people cook like they wasted half of the flour on kitchen platform, all the yellow spots veggie scraps are just not pretty to clean up. Ask and follow. Also, no one likes to clean your bathroom. Don't leave those filthy hair balls and toilets after you give us the pleasure of you gathering your belongings and leaving home. Clean up the bedsheets you used, scrub the toilet so we don't unfriend you from every possible social media.

Dress Up

Its not a beautiful sight to wake up to. Most of the older guys are used to like wandering around in their lungis and white vest. In your home, its pretty comfy but in my home, its just plain vulgar. Yeah I used the term. I am not a fan of dressing up too, hell I am dressing up for everyone when I could have just gone around in t shirt shorts. Just see it as like respecting someone's morning. Also women, don't want to see your jiggly bums out of that high school nightwear. Cover up while you are in my space or just leave.

Hotel Booking

If you call the person whose house you intend to stay , by any ounce of courage if they drop the word "hotel", Book it. I know the motto "atithi devo bhav" but that was when people couldn't afford staying in hotels. Now hotels are cheaper, houses are smaller, hearts are way too small and trust me those 10000 bucks you just saved will be like 100 bucks in future. 

Don't make people wait

Yeah If someone offers to drop you on their way to office or help with apartment hunt or even make you tea, never ever make them wait. Just hop in or tell them you will figure out something on your own. I am telling you, just like you have an office or college timing everyone else has too. If you mess with someone's morning office time, you fucked up the day for them. No one likes the family that thinks they are way too chilled to stick to timings.  Mornings are chaotic , its extremely rude to put your own comfort over others in their life space.

I am sure there is a thousand other ways these intruders can damage your peace and ruin your days. I am not angry, just wondering why always hosts are given the eye and guests just walk on rosy bed. So to be a gracious guest, call ahead make your hotel bookings meet for dinner or  just be as nice as possible if it comes to sharing space. People make conscious efforts like cleaning up house, cooking in advance , sending cab details, washing towels sheets as soon as you announce you are going. Be thankful and appreciative by acting in a civilized manner. Those old old times when 3 families could lay mattresses and sleep or just hang out peacefully are gone. Everyone loves their space life and routine, respect and be courteous. Its a favor, acknowledge it.

P.S. Don't buy gifts for people unless they are expensive dates or fragrances