"I can't get you, maam."

These are the words I hear several times a day, mostly from the hotel staff, but I am sure once we are out on our own we will hear it more often: I can't get you.  The American translation is: blank stare, "Huh?"  I have the blank stare often when someone tells me his or her name.  I try to listen closely and sound it out as they say it.  And repeat it (the blank stare is multilingual and multinational). And generally repeat it again when I say, "I'm sorry.  One more time?" with a hint of hopefulness that this time I WILL get it. More often than not, the conversation turns away from the formalities of one's good name and continues onto whatever it is the purpose of our meeting began with.  And that is generally when I hear "I can't get you, maam."  
Example:
Ring Ring
 "Transpotation."
"Hi, this is Nikki Grant from room 138. I need a car to the office, please. Can it be ready at XX time?"
   "Hello?"
"Hi, yes, I need a car at XX time, please?"
  "Maam, you need a car?"
"Yes. I need a car at XX time."
  "Maam are you ready for pick up?  Where are you?"
"I am in room 138 and going to Prince Infocity at XX time. OK?"
  "I can't get you, maam.  Can you please repeat?"
(slower and maybe a little bit louder) "Prince Infocity.  Maersk office."
  "Merk?  M - E - R - K?  Prince Infocity, maam?"
"Yes.  At XX time, please?"
  "What is your room number, maam?"
 - and Savannah is laughing in the background because this is almost every conversation.  And I hang up and sigh.  I wonder if the other participant in the conversation is bothered by my thick accent?  Like I used to be when I called a service provider for help and couldn't understand the person on the other end of the phone... Or if it doesn't have any impact on them at all, other than needing me to repeat myself so they can get the necessary information and do the needful.  
There is a lot of doing the needful around here.  I thought it was a "Maersk thing" - like Thanks & rgds at the and of a telex (yes, that's right... telex for all you non-Maerskies out there.  We are in e mails, now but that's a recent jump into last century we made). But, no, it's an Indian thing.  And the SOP following.  I called for some soup for my kiddo a little bit ago.  It was 12:24 PM.  Lunch begins at 12:30.  The in-room dining attendant who took my call said she would check with the manager to see if they could accommodate the early request for lunch menu items and would call me back.  She did, and they did... But it's just another example of a shift in mindset Savannah and I will be working to understand and appreciate.  Different for sure.
What else?  Oh!  Last night in the office I participated in the first birthday celebration here.  I was plugging away on the computer and a young lady came over with a basket of Kit Kat candy bars.  She handed me one with a smile.  I thanked her and said "how thoughtful."  I thought it was just a Friday treat, maybe.  I haven't had a chance to meet much of the staff, so did not know this girl, but appreciated the thought and continued with my e mails.  A couple hours later, Asif, who I had met the night before, walked over and asked if I would like to come to the "cake cutting celebration for the girl's birthday" - "Sure, what girl?" - "The one who was passing out candy bars earlier. It's her birthday."  So we went to the cafeteria and the entire team gathered around a table with a beautiful cake and everyone was laughing and smiling and taking photos.  I decided I better introduce myself so I wished her a happy birthday and asked her name (bet you think you know where this is going...).  She said, "Marcy."  Blank stare.  In my head - Did she say Marcy?  That's too easy.  Surely that's night right.  But I'll go with it. "Ok, Marcy.  Nice to meet you and thank you for inviting me to the birthday celebration" - hoping I said her name right so as not to offend the birthday girl.  A warm smile and "Thank you" relieved my tension.  I guess I got it.
So the cake is out of the bakery box and Marcy is ready to cut it.  But everyone is taking photos with their phones.  I want a photo, too!  So I asked the girl in front of me to snap one real quick because I see it has her name on the cake and I can confirm if it really is Marcy! 

So it wasn't Marcy, but that is how it was pronounced, and that is close enough for me.  I will tell you quickly about the cake cutting celebration.  I am more intrigued with the culture each day.  The birthday girl cut the first slice of the cake and then began to hand out bites - yes,  just bites - to the managers, myself included.  Hmm, ok, I will eat this bite.  Oh, and it was yummy, too.  Moist and fresh.  Anyway, she waited for each of us to eat our bites and then proceeded to cut slices.  And serve them on little cake plates.  But only to the managers, again. I really wasn't hungry, so politely declined. She stood there holding it for me. "Just one?" she asked. "Oh, really, no, thank you." "You did not like it?" "No it was delicious. Ok I will have it."  Sigh.  I can't refuse anything for fear of offending someone.  I just THOUGHT I was going to come over here and lose some weight LOL.  So the managers all had their cake on plates (I had a spoon with mine - figure that is my western heritage they noticed) and then the staff began taking pieces from the cake plate almost all at once. Everyone was in a hurry to grab a piece - no plates - and eat it up.  The cake was devoured in under 2 minutes.  I know the Olympics started and if cake eating was a sport, this team would have a gold medal.  It was neat to be part of the celebration and to see how happy Mercy/Marcy was to have everyone there enjoying the cake in her honor.  I am glad I was invited.
Today Savannah and I will go find fabric for the curtains in the new flat and a modem and a land line handset.  And probably a couple towels and dishes to tide us over until our container arrives (hmm I should check on that, as it was scheduled to load yesterday.  Maersk better not have rolled it! haha).  Our driver is here so I will go now.  Hope you all have a wonderful weekend and can't wait to tell you on Tuesday or Wednesday that we are in our new place :) 
Hugs and love from Sholinganallur (a section of Chennai).  Try to say that!  hahah