LEARNING AND EMBRACING INDIA

Being a regular visitor, Sharon Sivalenka from the United States, President of the Overseas Women of Chennai Club, believes that her journey here over the years has been evolving and she has learnt to adapt to the challenges and embrace the uniqueness of India

What was your first point of contact with India – a person, place or event?

I came to India because my husband is Indian. So, for the first few years, I would come over for two weeks a year to visit my husband’s relatives and had no real exposure, outside of my husband’s home. In 2012, I actually started staying in India for three to four months at a time. I was on my own to discover India. I had a very difficult time because I did not know anyone who spoke English, besides my husband. Then one day, I was in a grocery store and an expat woman came up to me and told me about the Overseas Women of Chennai Club (OWC). That day she had me come to the craft group, one of the OWC activity groups, and that was how I finally found English-speaking women to socialise with and get into some fun charity work.

What is your impression of India before you came here, and now?