This Friday is Republic Day in India (not to be confused with Independence Day, which is celebrated on August 15th). On Friday, most public and private institutions will be closed for the public holiday to celebrate 57 years since India became a republic. This is especially true in the capital of New Delhi, where the massive Republic Day Parade will close most of the streets in Central Delhi for the entire morning. I actually tried to attend the full dress rehearsal of the parade yesterday, but I was turned away at the security gate because I was carrying my cell phone. The tremendous amount of security here, from train stations, to shopping centers and even movie theaters, is worth an entry of its own.

Now back to holidays. Monday is a regular work day, but Tuesday is also a public holiday. This means that many people will also take off on Monday and enjoy a five-day weekend. There is no lack of holidays in India. It seems that every few weeks, the government, schools and private companies are closed to celebrate yet another holiday. India’s religious diversity is one of the main reasons for the plethora of holidays. Although nearly 80 percent of the Indian population is Hindu, Muslim and Christian holidays are also widely observed. And many states and regions observe additional holidays on top of the national ones.

On Sunday evening, I traveled to Pune, a city in Maharashtra state, for several days of meetings with my client from London and some of our partners in India and South Africa. You might have heard of Pune because this is where Brangelina stayed for a few months at the end of last year when Angelina was filming a movie here. Their presence was the talk of the town, the country and the world, for that matter. Once, the cover story on national paper included a photo of them taking a rickshaw ride around town.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with rickshaws, they are two- or three-wheeled vehicles that provide a convenient, cheap and (relatively) fast way to get travel. This is how I travel around town on a regular basis, however, if I need to travel great distances, I do take a taxi. There are several types of rickshaws: auto, bicycle, and ones that are pulled by people. Auto rickshaws are the most prevalent, although you do see cycle rickshaws in some parts of cities, particularly in areas that are congested and have narrow lanes. Here's a photo of me and some friends in a rickshaw.

Hello! Welcome to my Accenture Blog! I look forward to sharing with you my stories and experiences about what it’s like to work for Accenture.

I started with Accenture right out of college and have now worked here for just over six years. My career has taken me to a variety of clients and places and I’ve had the opportunity to work with some amazing people along the way. My current project has even landed me in Delhi, India, where I am working on a six-month assignment with Accenture Development Partnerships (ADP). You can read more about ADP on my bio and I’m sure I’ll be telling plenty of stories about the program here on my blog.