June 30th, 2009

So I realize now I've yet to write about the actual reason why I'm here in India and what I do for most of the week. I guess I think about it all day so I'm a bit sick of writing about it on my own time but it has so far been very interesting.

I interact with DFAIT-employed diplomats regularly, including business lunches, regular meetings, transitioning with headquarters in Ottawa, and editing the write-ups they've had me doing.They pile up the work faster than I can do it, and my desk is already a mess. I've taken pictures of office and the Embassy grounds, I'll attach them when I have internet at home.
So far, I've written up two drafts for a pamphlet the Canadian government will be distributing at Indian universities and business expos. It deals with Canadaa s an innovating partner with India in the field of science and technology and experimental development. I do my rough drafts in a notebook and will bring it home, so when I am back in Canada people can thumb through and get a more concrete idea of what I do. T

he second project I'm working on is an informative pamphlet concerning Canada and Bhutan (a small Himalayan nation in which Canada is only one of twenty-two nations who share relations)'s history and present. Our CIDA contract ended with Bhutan in Dec. 2009 and the media is portraying it as Canada pulling outof relations, when in fact it was simply contractual. My job is to remind the media with this writeup about all the great things Canada has done for Bhutan, including introducting a secular schooling system there and direct bilateral aid.

Then... there are about 3-4 other projects waiting to be done. The thing is, it's not like once I'm done a draft it's sent to the presses. First, my superior in Public Affairs tears it apart, once I edited that, it's sent to the head diplomat in the Political/Economic section, and is then sent to a translator for fine tuning back in Public Affairs. This is the stage I'm atn ow. After I edit it again, it is sent back to the head diplomat who edits it again, then I edit some more. Then it is sent to Ottawa for further evaluation, then back to the head diplomat, then back to me. Then, we have a meeting to go over the document with a fine-tooth comb, literally picking apart each word. Since it represents the government of Canada, they are very picky with absolutely everything. This process has to be done for each project, so I will have 4-5 projects simulataneously in different stages of editing/evaluation.

If you're not asleep by now, I'll end it with saying holy shit, where are people getting the idea that government jobs are cushy? I didn't take any breaks my first week, but this week I enjoy a chai tea break for 5 roupees for 10 minutes of time in the morning/afternoon. 5 roupees isabout... 10 cents.