I woke up around 3:30 am, not quite sure what time my body clock registered. I took advantage of my wakefulness to empty my luggage and go over the itinerary for today. Fortunately, I was able to fall back to sleep until 7:30 am, hopefully a sign of adjustment to the time zone.
The Seminar organizers had given us a relaxed schedule to start: breakfast followed by 11 am welcome session. I took the opportunity to explore the hotel a bit. I wandered to the pool level and walked out into a tropical morning. Uniformed staff tended the garden, and the cabana attendant already had towels and newspapers set up by the pool. The fitness center was as well-equipped as most full-sized gyms.
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| The pool and gardens in the back of the Taj Hotel. |
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| The gym was well-stocked and mostly empty in the morning. |
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Breakfast on the hotel veranda combined some of my favorite activities: all-you-can-eat buffets and reading the Sunday paper. The quantity of food was comical—whole sections of Indian cuisine plus made-to-order dosas, smoothies, and pastries. Although the salads looked tempting, I decided to avoid uncooked vegetables. I chatted with some of the other Fulbrighters, and then we all headed to a function room for the orientation.
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| Sign pointing us to our orientation room. |
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| Part of the group during lunch. |
For the orientation, Adam Grotsky, the director of the U.S.-India Educational Foundation (USIEF), and Reshmi Mitra, our academic guide, gave us an overview of the dominant trends in India. Despite very different higher education landscape, both India and the U.S. share challenges over access, equity, and quality. India's colleges and universities are subject to more government bureaucracy and less curricular innovation than ours, but they still struggle to recruit talented faculty, prepare students for scholarly success, and conduct meaningful research.
One goal of the Seminar is to encourage more students from the U.S. to study abroad in India. That fits with the composition of our group, the majority of whom are responsible for global education on their home campuses. 330,000 U.S. students study abroad every year, but fewer than 5,000 come to India, and almost none for a full year. I can see why undergraduates may prefer European destinations, but the gap just underscored the need to identify ways to strengthen relationships with the world's future most populous country.
After two hours, it was time to eat again. This time, the hotel had set up a multi-station buffet outside the conference room. I was barely hungry, but still sampled several dishes of meat simmered in pungent sauces. Then, to keep us all from going back to sleep, the organizers arranged a walking tour of Bandra, the neighborhood of central Mumbai where we are staying.
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| Colorful steps near the Basilica. |
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| A selfie-worthy sign amidst rushing traffic. |
Mumbai was originally several islands, which are now connected by landfill. Bandra is an affluent community built on the remains of an early Portuguese settlement. Their influence is still visible in the Basilica to Mary fronted by stalls selling amulets of devotion and bungalow architecture providing patches of shade in the afternoon heat. Alongside the historical commentary, the guide also pointed out a Bollywood movie studio and the homes of some celebrity actors.
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| A bridge connects Bandra to the commercial district of Mumbai. |
The tour ended at Bandra Fort, a former observation point at the tip of the island. On a Sunday afternoon, it was filled with young couples taking in the shade and breeze. At the highest point, we could see the Worli section of the city, where many companies have their offices. The cramped skyline was a reminder that we still have much more to see, even in this one city. Tomorrow we begin the formal visits to campuses in India.
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