My wife and I spent three weeks in late December/early January in Sri Lanka and India. As always, we had a fabulous time. This time around, I got a chance to give two talks. One at CUSAT (Cochin University of Science And Technology) on MOOCs and another at MOP Vaishnav College for Women on emerging technologies. They were well received and there were some great questions.

We spend a lot of time in Chennai whenever we visit, because that is where most of our family members live. When we are in Chennai, we rely on autorickshaws (the three wheelers with the top covered), or simply “autos”, and taxis. Whereas autos are very easy to find anywhere in the city, that is not the case with taxis. In other words, you can easily “hail an auto” but not a taxi. You basically have to call in a taxi. There are variations in the theme. For example, when you arrive at the airport, there are “prepaid” taxis where you pay a flat fee, but then there are the ones that go by the meter and then there are many who do whatever they want. Taxis are costlier than autos, so generally, the local population favors auto. When you go from the US, given that each dollar buys you 61 Indian Rupees, you will see that the rides are ridiculously cheap. For eg. the 13 KM (8 miles) ride from the airport to my in-laws’ home cost about $6 in a taxi.

Riding in the auto is an experience in itself! It is cheap alright, but the greatest advantage is it’s agility. The traffic in the city has become a nightmare and the best way to get to where you want to are two wheelers like scooters or motorbikes. Since we can’t do that, the next best option is Auto. The driver will squeeze you through in traffic, take the local alley ways etc. You will be breathing all the polluted air, but that you cannot avoid whether you ride the auto not! However, the auto drivers almost never charge by the meter, despite the fact that it is the law. Negotiations with them is an art. And no matter what you do, they know that you are not a local! They can sock it to you. I hate it when they try to cheat me and try to find an honest driver who goes by the meter, but then tip him so heavily for his honesty. The other advantage with the auto is that most of them know about the city and will get you where you need to go. Most cab drivers have no idea (they are not locals) and you better know your way. Thanks to Google Maps, I survived. Not that I don’t know to navigate the city, but with massive expansion and constant construction, there are one way roads that have popped up all over that I don’t know about. Google knows all about them, of course!  (more…)