Hello, may I take your order?

One of the benefits to living in Bangalore is that most people speak some English. This is the home of Outsourcing, most of your call centers are serviced here. This is very nice when you (an expat) are trying to navigate the streets, the mall or the airport. Certainly everyone speaks much better English than I speak Hindi. Today (August 23rd) was the kids first day of school and also William’s 14th birthday. We opted for Domino’s Delivery (yes it’s the fastest growing franchise in southern India) for dinner to celebrate making it through today. I called to order and was frustrated with my own inability to understand the clerk’s questions. I placed the order for one meatza (note only chicken as now beef or pork are available at most restaurants) and one lamb pepperoni with cheese. As I cannot get an Indian phone or cell phone yet until the local police station grants me my residency permit, I gave the clerk my US mobile number. About 10 min later the doorbell rang and it was Domino’s, however my without my order. Apparently they do not have any lamb pepperoni and since the store could not dial an international number, the clerk rode his moped to my house to clarify my order! I was flabbergasted. Seriously, I think the order would have never showed up if I were at home in Detroit. I reordered a double cheese pizza and 15 min later, both pizzas arrived for 976 Rupees. Now I have a menu and an Indian cell phone, I am hoping for better days ahead.