Global meets local: the westin hyderabad shuttle

As an air-conditioned jet-lag-friendly activity, Rupa suggested that we go to the new western mall in Hyderabad. We asked at the concierge if they had a shuttle, since the mall was relatively close to the hotel, and they said yes and showed us the timing on a printed placard at the concierge's desk. They asked us how many people, took our names and told us to be back at noon and that the shuttle only ran on the schedule.

This seemed pretty standard as I envisioned a van or mini-bus organized to carry 8-10 passengers on the hour. However, just when I thought I was doing the most western thing in India - taking a shuttle from a hotel in an office park to the mall, India threw back an awesome Indian curveball that made it so awesomely Indian that I had to sit back and remind myself that no matter how western it seems, India is India.

Here I am in the "shuttle" or, more awesomely, the official auto-rickshaw of the Westin Mindspace in Hyderabad. Even looking at this picture brings a huge grin to my face because it is such a beautifully obvious yet ingenious combination of globalization and localization. 

To set some context about why this is so awesome, you have to appreciate the ubiquitous presence of the auto-rickshaw in India and the typical level of comfort (or lack thereof) that comes with riding in one. Here is a picture I took from the top of Charminar, the most famous historical monument in the center of the historical islamic city of hyderabad from the 16th century. All of those cute little yellow cars with black canvas tops are auto-rickshaws, and you will notice the ratio of auto-rickshaws to other forms of transportation (in this case 22:0 which is slightly exaggerated compared to normal, more often it would be about 10:1).

As cute as they are from afar, riding in an auto-rickshaw often involves a complicated and extended bargaining session, an assertion of your awareness of the area and a polite clarification of "don't mess with me" attitude, followed by a harrowing ride of weaving in and out of Indian traffic (including between giant trucks, pushcarts, cars, motorcycles and other aggressive auto-rickshaws), while you sput sput along, breathing in some unpleasant fuel exhaust and road dust. It is sometimes worth this effort because auto-rickshaws are very easy to find (they are absolutely everywhere and very enthusiastic about your business) and especially in smaller streets, they are much easier to get around in than cars are.

The Westin auto-rickshaw beautifully marries the convenience of the auto-rickshaw with the comfort and peace of mind of a fancy hotel including leather seats, no bargaining, and responsible driving. Looks like they really did need to regulate the number of passengers on our shuttle ;).