The Search Marketing Summit was held at the ISKCON Temple Bangalore and I was fortunate to be included as a speaker for the event.  My presentation on video marketing was just one of the many that the attendees got to hear.  Topics like Social Media, Search Marketing, SEO, business planning and more were covered and in great detail.

Here is what a few of the attendees and other speakers had to say about the event…

Want to know more about the Akshaya Patra Foundation and it’s school meal program?

#feedachild

Please share this post (click the icon for your favorite site below) and help the Akshaya Patra Foundation raise more money and awareness for their cause.

The Internet Marketers of India got a real treat this past week. The Akshaya Patra Foundation held Bangalore’s first Search Marketing Summit to raise awareness for search marketers and for their amazing charity.

Currently, The Akshaya Patra Foundation feeds 1.3 million children across India with the hopes of feeding 5 million by 2020.
If you would like to participate in the largest school food program in the world please visit their website…

You Can Feed A Child For An Entire Year for Only $11

Here are some of my favorite pictures from this outstanding event…

Search Marketing Summit Bangalore 2011 #SMSIndia

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you liked this post please send us a bit of link love by sharing it on your favorite social networking or bookmarking sites.  And to help feed more children add #feedachild  to all your posts.

Make it a great day!

Erica

If you missed yesterday’s post here is the link to check it out…

The show is based on Jeff Schroeder’s attempt at traveling around the world for free and relying completely on the kindness of strangers to get him from place to place, feed him and give him a roof over his head. He gets to see what it’s like to live in all these strange countries and cities through the eyes of the locals.

So we were surprised to have him come and stay with us as we are expats and not ‘technically local Bangaloreans’.

But here is full story of their stay with us…

I sent the video email off to Jeff on the message boards at CBS.com/world and also posted it to twitter. Shortly after I got a call from Jeff asking if it was still cool to stay with us here in Bangalore. I told him no problem and I would pick him up if he could let me know when and where to get him.

I talked to him again later in the day when his ticket was finalized thanks to the group at All About Big Brother and made arrangements to meet him at the airport late the next night.

Because the traffic is INSANE here I don’t drive. And my family will tell you that I love to drive. That’s how crazy it is here. So with the help of my neighbor and friend Vinitra we organized a cab to take me to the airport and then back to the house with the guys.

At just after midnight I see 3 men, a lot of luggage and a camera coming out of the airport exit. At first it was strange to be greeted by someone that you have only ever seen on tv and the web especially with a camera pointed in your direction but Jeff was very casual and relaxed which really helped me out.

He’s just a regular guy – being followed around by 2 other regular guys with all kinds of camera gear…

We packed in the cab (full!) and made our way through the deserted streets of Bangalore. I have to admit we made it home in record time because of the late hour and the streets being so empty. I am going to the airport every time like that from now on.

When we got to the house it was a quick tour with hushed voices so that Kenny could sleep in the other room. 5 am comes early for a morning show radio host.

The guys basically took over the living room and the spare room with computers, backpacks and ethernet cables.

The cats didn’t know what to make of the guests and made themselves pretty scarce the first night.

In the am, it was time to stroll down to the radio station (it’s only a 15 minute walk) and get on Kenny’s morning show at Radio Indigo with the camera and Josh holding it, following us the entire way.

I have to give Josh a ton of credit for not breaking an ankle or hanging himself on a low wire on our short trek. There are some real hazards on the sidewalks here but he managed to avoid the traffic and all the dangers while still getting great footage.

Once at the station, Jeff took to the airwaves like a duck to water. Here is a link to check out some of the clips of the interview he did with Kenny…

After On Air With Kenny Jones and tons of great calls and funny hints left in the Indigo Chat Room it was time for more press…

2 newspaper reporters wanting to get the scoop on the reality show star and his adventures.

After the press junket was over we hit the streets of BLR and took the advice of some of the locals on where to have traditional Indian fare.

They all agreed the best Masala Dosa was served at the Ghandi Bazaar.  So Kenny (who escaped from the radio station to join us for lunch), Jeff, Zsolt (one of the intrepid camera men) and myself braved the Bangalore traffic in search of some tasty treats.

What we ended up eating was not dosas – the restaurant that was recommended to us was closed from 12 noon until 2:30 (ahhh what?  Isn’t that lunch time?)  So we went down the street to the busiest place we could find and had thali instead.

Thali is an Indian plate full of different dishes complete with my favorite – naan bread.

The Gandhi Bazaar was great.  Fruit and vegetable vendors, flower carts, silk shops, crazy traffic and extremely nice people… lots of them!

After lunch we headed back for a little more time at the station, a chance sighting of a Ganesh parade and more press.  This time a tv interview.

Here is the interview with NDTV

Then it was back to ours to start editing what had been shot during the day and a little chill time.

Oh and some Papa John’s Pizza. I know- not very Indian but hey, it’s made here in India and the guys that take my order are very Indian and I am sure the pizza makers are Indian as well – so technically it still is ‘Indian food’.

But Jeff’s day wasn’t finished yet. At 10 minutes to 11 pm Jeff got on skype and did an interview with Rachael Ray for an upcoming segment on her show.

It was very cool to think that he was ‘live via satellite’ from my living room!

Ravi, my one cat thought it was great too and attempted to make her daytime talk show debut but jumping on the table and nearly walking across the computer right in the middle of Jeff’s chat with Rachael.

But thanks to my cat-like reflexes her plan was foiled!  What I was impressed most by was the way Jeff kept it together during the whole thing.

Here is the webisode that was shot that day so you can see some of what we got to do…

The start of day 2 was really about planning for the guys. There is a lot of thought that goes into how to make the show as entertaining as possible. They had a list of suggestions and offers to consider and more editing to do on the segment you just watched so after a few plans had been discussed Jeff, Josh and I headed out for a few hours to get out of Zsolt’s way and let him work in peace.

It was time to introduce them to the real India!  Time to ride in a rickshaw.

It was the first ride for both my companions in one here in India. And of course it was completely nutty! Traffic jams, near misses from trucks, scooters, bikes and other rickshaws. Then there is the pollution. I don’t notice it as much anymore but when you are stuck in traffic where you can count the eyelashes of the person on the 2 wheeler next to you, it becomes a bit overwhelming.

We ended up in the heart of the city at a place called MTR. It is one of the oldest traditional restaurants in the city. They served us thali again but this time the food did not stop! We paid less than $9 USD for 3 meals, 3 large bottles of water and all of us left feeling like we might never need to eat again.

In fact, we looked so full the auto driver wanted to charge us for an extra person!

After that, we took to the streets again, went to the oldest restaurant/ bar in the city and Jeff got to have his very first Kingfisher beer.

During our time at Koshy’s we got a call from Zsolt telling Jeff and Josh the plans had changed because the train they were going to take was not available and they wouldn’t be able to leave as planned that night.

That gave us the chance to come home, and head right back out to watch our friend Saggy and his band play at the Hard Rock Cafe. It was a great night out! Good food, music and even a rickshaw race home.

Day 3 started slowly with more plans being put together and with me making a sad attempt at breakfast.

We headed back to the station to chase up some of the leads and contacts they had from the message boards, from the callers on Kenny’s show and friends of the staff at Indigo. With, of course the whole thing being recorded for the next webisode.

With a couple of solid leads of places to stay in Goa under Jeff’s belt we took up an offer for another traditional Indian dish at Ammi’s Biryani.

The owner, Nawaz, greeted the guys at the restaurant and treated all of us to an amazing lunch. Again, we waddled out too many forkfuls later.

Then it was time to relax, pack and get ready to say our goodbyes.

Trigam, a great friend of ours, took them to the bus station and got them an overnight trek to Goa.

Here is the webisode that outlines some of day 3 and their journey towards the Arabian Sea…

It was an amazing experience for Kenny, myself, the staff at the station, our friends here in Bangalore and my Mom, who got to talk to Jeff and Zsolt during their stay here with us via skype.  It made a reality show junkie very happy!

You never know what people will come into your life and we are very lucky to have had the chance to become friends with these 3 intrepid travelers.

Thanks for staying with us guys and we will be watching your every move on CBS.com/World.  Safe travels.

Around The World For Free

Kenny, Jeff, Josh and Zsolt At Radio Indigo

In the Indigo studio with Sriram, Josh and Jeff

Kenny having a laugh

Jeff at the mike with Josh ready with the camera

Josh getting some Kenny footage

Hey- I am shooting you shooting me!

Kenny, Sriram and Jeff outside Radio Indigo

Shagufta with Jeff

Jeff taking in the Gandhi Bazaar flower market

Flowers everywhere!

Oh look- more flowers...

The kamikazi cameraman Zsolt in the middle of the round about... nuts!

Michelle and Jeff outside the studio at Radio Indigo

Jeff and I ready to feed our faces

The huge platter that was completely full after I had finished my lunch! The food never stopped coming.

They keep coming by with sliver buckets full of tasty Indian dishes- most of which we had no idea what we were eating.

All vegetarian at this place though

After lunch with Jeff and Josh

The gang at Hard Rock Cafe

Wha' up????

Hugs for me and Vinitra

Jeff, Vin and Zsolt loving the music and fun at the HRC

The boys and the guest singer for the night

The HRC marketing manager and the boys... not sure if she made the right choice putting us on the guest list for the night!

Crazy times in the rickshaw home

Kenny's taking up a second job... moonlighting as a rickshaw driver

Outside Ammi's Biryani with very full stomachs yet again

The guys with the owner of Ammi's

We learned a hard lesson this week.  Not one that I didn’t know already but one that I needed reminding of.

For those of you that don’t already know, we are suckers for animals.  Friends to anything that walks, crawls, slithers or flies.  And because of that we try to help those that can’t speak for themselves.

When we were in Dubai and in Jordan we participated in animal welfare and adoption programs and adopted 2 cats off the streets.

This is Ravi our one eyed lunatic…

And Little Man (who is not so little anymore)

And this is Burtie- my furkid and trusty Canadian sidekick for over 11 years now…

But here in India we are constantly shocked by the amount of dogs on the streets.  While many of them look well fed, there are many that are not.  They may even be injured, have missing limbs or other maladies.

Which is why we carry a supply of dog treats and rawhide bones with us at all times.  While we know it’s not enough, it’s at least something to brighten the day of a street dog.

There is one family of dogs that has been living in and around a construction site beside our apartment complex.  When we first moved in Mom looked tired and haggard with 5 puppies following her every move.  We found them to be friendly and extremely sweet.

Over the next few months we made a point of dropping food off to them everyday and making sure they got their shots, flea and worm treatments and even told the family watching the construction site to tell us if they ever needed anything for the puppies.

We ended up taking one of them into our home after he was hit by a car.  While his leg wasn’t broken it was in bad shape but after 2 and a half months with us he was ready to be adopted into a family.

During that time 2 of the others got homes as well.

But 4 weeks ago, we realized one of the puppies wasn’t around anymore.  She had been hit by a car as well and needed medical help right away.

Her recovery was faster than her brother’s and was just about ready to find a loving home as well.  We took her in for a final check up on her injuries and got her the next round of vaccinations.

2 days later she started acting strangely.   4 days later she passed away.

She was a wonderful dog and made our lives better everyday. And quite possibly one of the sweetest creatures ever to be put on this earth.

It amazed me at how quickly something so wonderful could be gone and it forced me to remember that your life doesn’t start after you find success.  The best times aren’t when you have all the money in the world or the nice car that you dreamed of.  It isn’t about the gourmet kitchen, the designer wardrobe, the exotic vacation or the expensive bottle of wine.

It is about enjoying the little things that make up everyday of your life – both good and bad.  And taking time to be thankful for every second that you get to spend with someone you love very much.

So take just a couple minutes today to tell the people and pets that brighten your day what they mean to you.

Make it a fantastic day- for you and for someone you love!

Cheers!

Erica

Our weekend away in Coorg was fantastic!  We stayed at the Orange County Resort.  A coffee plantation that produces over 98 tonnes of coffee each year!  They were in the middle of sowing rice while we were there. It looked like backbreaking work.  And the off and on rain showers made it look even tougher.

Just one more reason I love my job!

Our only complaint about the entire trip was that it wasn’t long enough.  What an amazing place.  That and the fact that I didn’t have 2 stomachs to eat all the food they wanted us to have.

Here are some of my favorite shots from the trip.

Orange County Resort - Coorg Karnataka, India

Where are we - exactly?

The bathroom in our Private Pool Villa

Looks a bit chilly for a swim KJ!

Our self portrait after arriving and being blessed

One of the many gorgeous flowers around the plantation

Erica on our private veranda

Rain rain go away

Can you tell we're happy to be out of the city?

Kenny eating his desert before his lunch!

Kenny looks small beside that palm!

Birds of Paradise everywhere!

Some of the plantation locals. They were extremely vocal with their greeting

Outside the Peppercorn restaurant where we had dinner the night before

On the deck of the Peppercorn restaurant. That is our villa behind us over the lake.

No idea what kind of flower this is but it was too gorgeous not to take a picture of

One of the thousands of Anthuriums they grow right at the plantation.

The Scarlet Anthurium

Another one of the locals. He was still cock-a-doodle-dooing after our bird watching trek. Very glad he wasn't hanging out beside my room!

Kenny ready for our jungle walk in his very 'hot' leach proof socks

I can't believe no one wears these to the Oscars!

Another beauty

There were butterflies everywhere and it's not even butterfly season.

These trees were inside the coffee plantation. The vines you see growing up them are all pepper plants.

Our trusty guides for our jungle walk

Kenny and I in the middle of the coffee plantation

Kenny looking super relaxed while we waited for our guide to climb a tree and search for elephants

No elephants but it's still a great excuse for a stroll in the India jungle

The leach proof socks make us look rugged don't they?

The Carvery River. It is just a trickle of a stream in the summer months

A dragonfly friend we found along the way

Yes- there were lots of spiders in the jungle. This species can grow to the size of my hand and spin a web 1.5 meters wide

Kenny happy to feel the sunshine on his pale face

Me taking a quick breather while we waited for the guides

Another resident of the jungle

Erica peeking out from behind one of the hundreds of thousands of coffee bean plants they have at the plantation

Back to the resort safe and sound- no elephant sightings but it was still an amazing walk in the jungle

A gorgeous caterpillar

You can feed the fish and take a little tour around the lake from this boat. And you can see our house (for our stay) in the background

Who wants to go for a ride? Wait. Where's the motor for this thing? A pole- forget it!

Kenny and some of the registration staff at Orange County

Packed but not ready to go home!

Yesterday I was finishing up some work in my new apartment in Bangalore India when something caught my eye outside.   Much to my surprise I saw 2 monkeys running across the rooftop of the building across the tennis court from us.

I dashed inside to grab the camera and caught them on film as they were making their way down the side of the building.

Here is the video I took of my new furry neighbors…

Oh and it’s not always that loud!  The kids were taking full advantage of the tennis court for a rowdy game of soccer- excuse me football before the rain started.

Hey Gang- I finally got a new camera- mine was on it’s last leg or in this case last pixel and needed to go.  So I took my new Nikon for a walk to the fruit and veggie market by my house here in Bangalore, India.

Here are some of the shots I took with it…

A cow taking in the sites- yep in the middle of the road!

His friends chillin’ out watching the traffic go by.

The view from the opposite side of the street

Even auto rickshaw drivers get a craving for grapes- kind of like a drive thru grape shop

The crowd waiting for the bus

Just a tiny sample of all the fruit available

Flower garlands for worship

That hill is garlic and so is the one behind it!  The green pile is chilies and the bags are filled with ginger- spicy!

Some dried fish- we passed this cart quickly!

Onions anyone?

This shot gives a new meaning to ‘banana hammock’

I love my new Nikon- so look out for more shots from our Indian adventures!

Have a great day guys.

Erica

Anyone who knows us knows, we can’t stay still for too long.  So we made a move to the amazing city of Bangalore India.

Know as the Silicon Valley of India we are surrounded by IT companies and people from all over the world.   It is the 3rd largest city in the country and is the home to more than 6 million people.

It is also called Bengaluru which is it’s official name.

It is located in the South Eastern part of the country.

So far it’s been a fascinating adventure and stay tuned for more posts about our life here.

We wanted to wish you and yours the hap hap happiest Christmas since Bing Crosby tap danced with Danny F’in’ Kaye (thank you Clark W Griswold for that quote)!

We always send a video message out to the friends and fam from where ever we happen to be in the world on Christmas and this year we were in India so we went a little bit bollywood…

Hope you all enjoy it!