Week Three - Corkscrews, Coconuts & Tuk-Tuks

When we first arrived in Hyderabad, every day seemed to be about solving a new problem.

Where do we shop? How do we pay for things? Who do we call when something breaks? We spent so much of our energy simply figuring out how to live.

Somewhere over the past couple of weeks, though, that has started to change.

Not because of one big moment, but because of a hundred little ones. We’re settling into routines, becoming more comfortable navigating daily life and beginning to feel like this incredible city might eventually become home.

Gen has found a yoga studio and now goes three times a week. Together, we’ve also started squash lessons twice a week with a professional coach who just happens to be the second-ranked player in Hyderabad. There is nothing quite like being coached by one of the best players in the city to make you fully appreciate just how bad you are at squash.

Thankfully, he’s patient.

Gen has also embraced another new hobby by joining a pottery class. This week she proudly completed a flower-shaped tea-light candle holder and, perhaps even more importantly, was awarded an official Certificate of Awesomeness for her efforts.

We’re taking this achievement very seriously.

The certificate may eventually need framing.

One thing surprised me this week.

I headed to Bangalore for a work conference—a quick trip of two nights and one very full day. Before moving to India I wouldn’t have thought twice about a business trip that short. This time it felt different.

Leaving Gen and Jack behind, even for a couple of nights, felt strange.

It reminded me that although we’re becoming more settled, we aren’t completely settled yet. Home isn’t just the apartment we’ve rented in Hyderabad. Right now, home is wherever the three of us happen to be together.

Bangalore itself was fascinating. Everyone had warned me about the legendary traffic, but perhaps because I arrived late in the evening and left early after the conference, I never really experienced the worst of it.

What Bangalore definitely did have was an extraordinary number of dogs that looked like Leo—perhaps even more than Hyderabad.

Apparently Leo has dozens of cousins roaming the streets of India. The sightings have become so frequent that my colleagues from Toronto, whenever they’re visiting Hyderabad, are now threatening to curate an exhibition called Not Jason’s Dog.

To be fair… some of the descriptions are remarkably convincing.

Back in Hyderabad, life continues to provide stories that we never could have imagined.

This week we found ourselves trying to open a fresh coconut…

…with a wine bottle corkscrew.

Not a machete.

Not a proper coconut-opening tool.

A corkscrew.

It wasn’t elegant, it certainly wasn’t efficient, but somehow it worked. It also felt like a perfect metaphor for expat life. Use whatever you have, laugh at yourself, and somehow get the job done.

One of the week’s highlights was visiting Kothwalguda Eco Park. It was an incredible surprise. Beautiful walking trails, peaceful scenery and birds that would actually land on your hand to eat.

Standing quietly while wild birds ate from our palms was one of those unexpectedly calming moments that makes you stop and appreciate where you are. It’s hard to believe somewhere so peaceful exists only minutes from the noise and energy of Hyderabad.

We’ve also begun exploring more neighbourhood bakeries and restaurants. Instead of sticking to familiar places, we’re wandering into whatever catches our eye and slowly developing our own list of favourites. Every recommendation seems to lead to three more, so our restaurant list is growing much faster than our ability to eat our way through it.

This weekend also felt like another step toward becoming residents rather than visitors.

We stopped into Raymond’s, where I now have a tailored sport coat and shirt being made. Watching the measurements being taken and selecting fabrics was an experience in itself.

Meanwhile, Gen wandered into another shop and discovered kurtis. She came home with four colourful ones and absolutely loves them. It felt nice to buy something that belonged here rather than something that reminded us of home.

Gen has also connected us with Hyderabad’s expat community through several WhatsApp groups. They’ve become an invaluable resource. Need a doctor? Looking for a bakery? Wondering where to buy something you’ve never had to think about before? Someone has already asked the question.

Those connections also led to a wonderfully full Saturday.

In the afternoon we visited Isabelle and Yashi, a Swiss couple, for drinks and snacks. They showed us photos from an incredible hiking trip through Ladakh, introduced us to yak cheese and shared countless stories from their travels throughout India.

Let’s just say yak cheese is…

memorable.

More importantly, they gave us fantastic travel advice. They spoke passionately about places they’d visited throughout India and insisted that we absolutely had to visit Hampi. Listening to them talk about their adventures made us realize just how much of this country there is still to discover.

That evening we attended the Hyderabad Wine Society’s Asian Wine Experience.

The crowd was wonderfully international.

The wines were…

…let’s say educational.

The food ranged from surprisingly good to spectacularly questionable.

The charcoal truffle dumpling deserves special recognition.

People kept describing it as “to die for.”

After one bite, I honestly thought they meant it literally.

Thankfully, the company more than made up for the menu.

The highlight of the evening was meeting Annelies and Bjorn, a Belgian couple who have been living in Hyderabad for the past three years.

Like Isabelle and Yashi, they enthusiastically shared travel stories and recommendations. And once again, Hampi came up. When two completely unrelated couples independently insist that you absolutely have to visit the same place, you stop thinking of it as a suggestion and start treating it as an assignment.

Bjorn, in particular, fulfilled a lifelong dream by buying his own tuk-tuk.

Listening to him describe the process was hilarious. There was paperwork, bureaucracy and widespread confusion about why a Belgian expat would possibly want his own tuk-tuk. Apparently, the hardest part wasn’t buying one—it was convincing everyone involved that he was serious.

We were crying with laughter.

If you’re looking for a smile, his Instagram account, @john_thetuktukdriver, is well worth a look.

Spending time with Isabelle, Yashi, Annelies and Bjorn reminded us that there are two ways to live abroad.

You can spend your time comparing everything to home.

Or you can embrace the differences, say yes to the unexpected and collect stories instead of complaints.

They’ve clearly chosen the second path.

We’re trying to do the same.

Back at home, we’re still incredibly grateful for Momi, Vishal and Ganesh. They’ve become such an important part of our lives here. Whether it’s helping us navigate something unfamiliar, offering advice or simply making everyday life run more smoothly, they’ve shown us remarkable kindness from the very beginning.

We couldn’t imagine this experience without them.

Looking back over the past few weeks, I realize the biggest change isn’t that we’ve become experts at living in Hyderabad.

Far from it.

I still feel a little strange leaving Gen and Jack for a couple of nights.

We’re still opening coconuts with wine accessories.

We’re still collecting stories about dogs that aren’t Leo.

We’re still learning.

But we’re no longer waking up every morning wondering how we’re going to get through the day.

Instead, we’re waking up wondering what adventure comes next.

We’re building routines.

We’re finding favourite places.

We’re wearing kurtis and ordering tailored jackets.

We’re collecting imaginary exhibits of dogs that are definitely not Leo.

We’re earning Certificates of Awesomeness.

Little by little, Hyderabad is beginning to feel less like somewhere we’re living…

…and more like somewhere we belong.

Now we’re beginning to plan our first real adventure beyond the city. Kerala is first on the list.

Although, after this weekend, I have a feeling Hampi has quietly promoted itself to the front of the queue.

More to come…

Feeds birds at the Kothwalguda Eco Park…

Hyderabad Wine Tasting Society…