Indian Chicken Dance

Well, on the last day of the trip at work, the HR team runs somewhat of a presentation of the people. They would get up on microphone and describe themselves. They would talk about their education, experience, what they can offer to help other co-workers, but at the end, they would perform a talent. Now, most of the people, said they didn't have a talent or one fellow said he did sports(cricket, lawn tennnis or badmitton) well. One female worker performed an Indian dance, that one of my co-workers joined them. One of the male workers named Ashoka actually sang. Very interesting fellow, who made sure our accomodations and schedule of training ran smoothly. He told jokes and a funny story about his daughter. Finally, they had us go on microphone in front of about 80 co-workers and do the same. When it finally came to my turn, I told them about myself, I told them I enjoyed my stay and look forward to working with them. When it came to my talent, I couldn't resist. I told them that I wanted to show them an American dance that is performed at many weddings called the Chicken Dance. Now, I didn't have time to prepare music, but my fellow co-worker and I added some humming to go along with the dance. The best part its on video. The sound is not good, but the video is priceless. I am sure I will be receiving some comments.

If you notice in the beginning, when they all had their hands in the air, so it looked like a raid! They did give out prizes for the talent show and somehow I won. So, next time in India and if you happen to attend a wedding, don't be surprised if  someone yells out "Let's do the Chicken Dance!" Again, priceless...

Elephant Bath

I have received permission from my fellow co-worker, Tom to publish the following video of him getting a bath from Babu the Elephant. This was taken at the Spice Plantation in Goa, India. I asked Tom at the end How was it? His answer is classic! ENJOY!

Our hotel and other pictures in Goa

Here's our hotel in Goa. It had a pool that was very refreshing after a long day at the beach and on an elephant. The workers were very helpful, kind and considerate.

This was our hangout for adult beverages(King Fishers), Lunch and Dinners. The naan was out of this world. It came with mozzarella and garlic. It tasted just like very thin pizza dough.

I had the blue room. My blue bathroom.

My blue bedroom. Power was unreliable, so the generator had to be used more than once. The A/C kicked butt once we had power.

My tropical view from my room.

Goa beach. We did track across the water to the island.

Looks like the Jersey shore, but no seagulls!

A monument in the center of town.

More pictures from Goa

In India, dial 100 for police, 108 for ambulance and 104 for fire. This was an accident scene, which was amazing. Once one occurs, they all run to the scene, pickup the victim and move him and their motorcycle off to the side of the road to prevent traffic jam. Then, they walk away. Whether someone calls for help, it is unknown.

Here is an ATM that we used in Goa. They are usually protected my armed guard.

The 3 wheeler is called a tuk tuk. Its a 2 stroke engine, that dominates the roadway besides the scooters.

For those of you who watch Tough Cookies on the Food Network, this is India's version of Crazy Susan's cookies!

This was a flea market. This is no Township Farmers Market. Massive traffic jam.

Pride and joy of India. King Fisher beer! I actually saw a King Fisher bird on a wire, but we were travelling too fast for a picture. Very small bird with vibrant colors.

GOA Spice Plantation Tour

We were greeted with ceremonial flowers. I think they are Jasmine, but I don't remember.

Well, I had to show what a real outdoor Indian toilet looks like. Luckily, I only had to go number 1. Feel like a sprinter at the starting line with those treads for your feet...

Here's our tour guide showing us a bird of paradise flower. There was a butterfly there, but I missed the shot by mere seconds.

This is what they call a Tulsi (the holy Basil plant). They worship this plant every morning.

Interesting plant with flecks of colors that look like they were painted on their leaves.

A real working well.

This is red tail monkey tree.

A water snake that is trained when its feeding time. I used the maximum zoom on this shot.

Tour ended with a buffet lunch with rice, sweet rice, masala chicken. They gave us a taste of a drink called fenny or 'Goan Feni'. Powerful stuff made from Cashew peanuts! They told us not to smell or we wouldn't drink it. It burned like moonshine on the way down the hatch.

I got a TATOO!

Relax! Its only a henna tatoo. Pretty cool, eh? Got it for my son - PFC Kyle Gutkowski.

CONTEST TIME!!! Sorry we have a winner!

For all you that have been reading this blog, you will have an opportunity to win an official Indian trinket. What it is, I haven't figured out. But, the object of the game is to correctly identify both the fruit that is on the dish and in the juice. This was served to us for breakfast in Goa. Submit your answers by sending me a message in Facebook.

We have a winner - Karen Smith... She correctly identified the juice was watermelon and plate was papaya.