When I ask my kids if they like living in Mumbai they find it hard to answer. They still miss their neighborhood friends in Germany and...

What diplomats do? Well,  there are two types of diplomats... Never DC'ers Those who try to avoid serving a tour in Washington at all...

I ponder that question sometimes, for different reasons. Sometimes because I wonder what else I would be doing if I weren’t a diplomat....

There’s a new Netflix show that will almost certainly be watched by all diplomats; the one where Keri Russell is Ambassador to London and...

Dharavi is one of the biggest ‘slums’ (now a politically incorrect word) in Asia, population one million. Orangi Town in Karachi has more...

Increasingly, I’m doubling down on a travel strategy that involves staying in a single place for at least five days, or a week if...

I just returned from a week in tropical island paradise: Havelock, which is part of the Andaman and Nicobar archipelago, which is part of...

For the past month, I’ve been part of coordinating a massive visa surge in Mumbai. The demand for visas here is enormous, and because of...

I’m feeling very spoilt as I’m looking at my winter calendar. No more long cold months like I had in Berlin, Washington, Armenia and the...

Last weekend I went to a major music festival for this first time in... forever? It was the first edition of Lollapalooza in Mumbai and...

I joined another book club! I think at every diplomatic post so far I've had the chance to join one and this is the third time I did. I...

The past week has been all about the Tata race, where in ran a half marathon today along with 55,000 other runners. It’s the largest run...

I’ve been living in Mumbai for about six months now and I feel ready to make a bit of a pro-cons list. It’s only a subjective snapshot in...

I became a tenured Foreign Service Officer this month! It was unexpected, which made it all the more sweet. It was the first year I was...

I’m not really a sporty person. I don’t enjoy repetitive activities or making myself physically uncomfortable and besides I’m too short,...

After sightseeing in Mumbai, a weekend getaway in Lonavola and a work trip to Delhi, we wanted something even more adventurous for our...

The week before Diwali was an exceptionally busy week at work. I was on regular duty at the consulate but all the work had to be crammed...

Last weekend I finally felt like India embraced me, and I was hugging it right back. I spent a weekend in India’s capital for work and...

Since arriving in Mumbai a month ago I've had a lot of days off: Labor Day of course, but also Indian holidays like the Ganesh Chaturthi,...

One of the most repeated cliches about Mumbai is that it’s “an assault on the senses.” It’s true that none of the serene, polished images...