WHEN IN DOUBT, JUST GOOGLE

It was our first ever on-site stay. My husband, Anuj, a software techie, was given a project in Shanghai, China. Language barrier- the first concern popped in my mind, the moment he broke the news to me. Staying and surviving was going to be tough, but “we will manage”, Anuj assured me.

Being an internet freak, I thought of using Google Translate for all the communication in the foreign land. And, voila, things were so much easier. We were using Google Baba almost everywhere.

On one of our shopping days in Walmart, I had this printed list of the commodities to be needed, in English as well as Chinese. We were looking for a conditioner, but got confused between the similar bottles containing shampoo. Since everything was written in Chinese, except the brand names, which was in English thankfully, it was hard to differentiate which bottle contained shampoo and which one conditioner.

Tired of playing who’s who, we approached one of the staff members and pointed at the item on the list- Conditioner. He took us to the electronics section of the store and we got a bit baffled. A moment later, Anuj laughed at me, saying your list did not mention which conditioner- Hair Conditioner or Air Conditioner! I was bewildered. We had a good laugh and I sheepishly thanked the staff member. I went back and picked up the bottle that was kept vice-versa of the shampoo bottle.

Ahh, victory!

From then onwards, I always cross check to ensure that I have asked the exact question from the Google.

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Author’s Bio: Preeta Bhatnagar is a homemaker and a mother. Professionally, she comes from a diverse background, having experience in jewelry designing, merchandising and teaching pre- primary children. Academically, she holds Masters in Commerce and Business Administration, along with PG Diploma in Pre-Primary Education. Writing is her hobby and apart from articles, she also likes to compose poems.