{"id":874422,"date":"2020-05-11T06:41:04","date_gmt":"2020-05-11T10:41:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/?p=5749"},"modified":"2024-08-01T14:12:43","modified_gmt":"2024-08-01T13:12:43","slug":"unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\/","title":{"rendered":"Unexpected India – Insight Staff Stories"},"content":{"rendered":"

India, I have heard is one of those countries that either takes your breath away and leaves you profoundly changed, or a person has no desire to visit.\u00a0 I would say to the latter, give it a chance and you may surprise yourself.<\/span><\/p>\n

My husba<\/span>nd has always loved spicy food.\u00a0 I have never been able to tolerate the heat<\/span>, even though<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>I<\/span>\u00a0can appreciate\u00a0<\/span>flavor<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I grew up in the U.K. and our takeaway on a Friday night was always from the local Indian restaurant.\u00a0 I would consume many poppadum\u2019s while waiting for our order.\u00a0 Mine was always a mild chicken Korma and rice with an onion bhaji to start.\u00a0 This\u00a0<\/span>is\u00a0<\/span>what I thought Indian food was.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I was fortunate to visit India as part of a group of sales managers chosen to meet the team that would be escorting our clients on\u00a0<\/span>the\u00a0<\/span>first of many journeys around India.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Culture shock was the only way I could describe my first 24 hours in Delhi<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

B<\/span>ut in a good way. I\u00a0<\/span>came with<\/span>\u00a0no expectation and only my primitive knowledge of Indian food to go on.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The food surprised me and the rest of the group with the variety of dishes on offer and how they were tailored to what our tast<\/span>e buds could tolerate.\u00a0 I fell in love with \u2018Black Lentil\u00a0<\/span>Dhaal<\/span>\u2019.\u00a0 It was a choice on the menu not only for dinner but\u00a0<\/span>also at<\/span>\u00a0the breakfast buffet along with eggs, pancakes and sausages among other north American breakfast items.\u00a0<\/span>Most hotels generally,\u00a0<\/span>also provided the safety of familiar western foods<\/span>\u00a0if we chose<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The generosity of the people and their hospitality was overwhelming.\u00a0 Nothing was too much trouble.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Their attention to detail was astounding. Every hotel I stayed in had strategically placed incense or some diffuser with a beautiful (but not overpowering) scent in the hallway as you walked to your room.\u00a0 In the rooms, the scent continued.\u00a0 Some of the properties were converted palaces and were luxurious without being over the top.<\/span><\/p>\n

Through<\/span>out<\/span>\u00a0my stay in India,<\/span>\u00a0I found myself\u00a0<\/span>preferring to\u00a0<\/span>indul<\/span>ge<\/span>\u00a0in Indian\u00a0<\/span>flavors<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>–\u00a0<\/span>I\u00a0<\/span>still\u00a0<\/span>ate\u00a0<\/span>poppadu<\/span>ms<\/span>\u00a0but also<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>delighted in the taste of freshly baked naan bread, aromatic rice, and<\/span>\u00a0I\u00a0<\/span>found a new love for Masala tea.\u00a0 We call it Chai tea, but the process to make it there is very different. A former colleague of mine gave me a recipe and occasionally, I <\/span>still\u00a0<\/span>take the time to make it.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Recently<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0at work,<\/span>\u00a0I was asked to write my \u2018Why\u2019: Why do I do the job that I do.\u00a0 There needs to be more\u00a0<\/span>fulfillment<\/span>\u00a0th<\/span>a<\/span>n the usual \u2018because I need a job\u2019.\u00a0 My \u2018Why\u2019 was that it\u2019s important to me to work for a company that shows guest<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0more than just the tourist attractions.\u00a0 We immerse our guests in the<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>culture<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>introducing them to<\/span> local people and through the food that we introduce them to. This journey will always be my <\/span>favorite<\/span>\u00a0because I came back changed.\u00a0 I was introduced to experiences that opened my mind and my palate.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I still can\u2019t tolerate heat, but I look for more options now on a menu than just Chicken Korma.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Heidi Schnitker, is a Sales Manager located in our Canada office. She traveled to India with Insight Vacations.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

India, I have heard is one of those countries that either takes your breath away and leaves you profoundly changed, or a person has no desire to visit.\u00a0 I would say to the latter, give it a chance and you may surprise yourself. My husband has always loved spicy food.\u00a0 I have never been able […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":51,"featured_media":5750,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1167,1823,1830,1148],"tags":[828,253,105,1034],"class_list":["post-874422","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-asia","category-food-drink","category-insights-advice","category-travel","tag-culture","tag-food","tag-india","tag-staff-review"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nUnexpected India - Insight Staff Stories - Insight Vacations<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Heidi Schnitker, a Sales Manager with Insight Vacations, traveled to India and was profoundly changed by the food.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Unexpected India - Insight Staff Stories\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Heidi Schnitker, a Sales Manager with Insight Vacations, traveled to India and was profoundly changed by the food.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Insight Vacations\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-05-11T10:41:04+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-08-01T13:12:43+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Heidi_Schnitker.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"960\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"640\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Alex Allen\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Alex Allen\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Alex Allen\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cade8967fa4ea6a004ba769d5b50022b\"},\"headline\":\"Unexpected India – Insight Staff Stories\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-05-11T10:41:04+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-08-01T13:12:43+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":567,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/05\\\/Heidi_Schnitker.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Culture\",\"Food\",\"India\",\"Staff Review\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Asia\",\"Food & Drink\",\"Insights & Advice\",\"Travel\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\\\/\",\"name\":\"Unexpected India - Insight Staff Stories - Insight Vacations\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/05\\\/Heidi_Schnitker.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-05-11T10:41:04+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-08-01T13:12:43+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cade8967fa4ea6a004ba769d5b50022b\"},\"description\":\"Heidi Schnitker, a Sales Manager with Insight Vacations, traveled to India and was profoundly changed by the food.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/05\\\/Heidi_Schnitker.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/05\\\/Heidi_Schnitker.jpg\",\"width\":960,\"height\":640},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Unexpected India – Insight Staff Stories\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/\",\"name\":\"Insight Vacations\",\"description\":\"The Art of Traveling in Style\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cade8967fa4ea6a004ba769d5b50022b\",\"name\":\"Alex Allen\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/11604a6d5d7811d2e9e584030a066fcca2acf1922576687cefe4f158b100acc0?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/11604a6d5d7811d2e9e584030a066fcca2acf1922576687cefe4f158b100acc0?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/11604a6d5d7811d2e9e584030a066fcca2acf1922576687cefe4f158b100acc0?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Alex Allen\"},\"description\":\"Alex is the Editor of Insightful, and has over 10 years' experience as a writer and editor within the travel industry. In his professional travels, he has been all over the world \u2013 from road-tripping in Australia and New Zealand, to eating his way around the Canadian Maritimes and criss-crossing Italy from Sardinia to Emilia-Romagna.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.linkedin.com\\\/in\\\/alex-allen-0604934a\\\/\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.insightvacations.com\\\/blog\\\/author\\\/alex-allen\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Unexpected India - Insight Staff Stories - Insight Vacations","description":"Heidi Schnitker, a Sales Manager with Insight Vacations, traveled to India and was profoundly changed by the food.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Unexpected India - Insight Staff Stories","og_description":"Heidi Schnitker, a Sales Manager with Insight Vacations, traveled to India and was profoundly changed by the food.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\/","og_site_name":"Insight Vacations","article_published_time":"2020-05-11T10:41:04+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-08-01T13:12:43+00:00","og_image":[{"width":960,"height":640,"url":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Heidi_Schnitker.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Alex Allen","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Alex Allen","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\/"},"author":{"name":"Alex Allen","@id":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/cade8967fa4ea6a004ba769d5b50022b"},"headline":"Unexpected India – Insight Staff Stories","datePublished":"2020-05-11T10:41:04+00:00","dateModified":"2024-08-01T13:12:43+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\/"},"wordCount":567,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Heidi_Schnitker.jpg","keywords":["Culture","Food","India","Staff Review"],"articleSection":["Asia","Food & Drink","Insights & Advice","Travel"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\/","url":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\/","name":"Unexpected India - Insight Staff Stories - Insight Vacations","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Heidi_Schnitker.jpg","datePublished":"2020-05-11T10:41:04+00:00","dateModified":"2024-08-01T13:12:43+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/cade8967fa4ea6a004ba769d5b50022b"},"description":"Heidi Schnitker, a Sales Manager with Insight Vacations, traveled to India and was profoundly changed by the food.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Heidi_Schnitker.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Heidi_Schnitker.jpg","width":960,"height":640},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/unexpected-india-insight-staff-stories\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Unexpected India – Insight Staff Stories"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/","name":"Insight Vacations","description":"The Art of Traveling in Style","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/cade8967fa4ea6a004ba769d5b50022b","name":"Alex Allen","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/11604a6d5d7811d2e9e584030a066fcca2acf1922576687cefe4f158b100acc0?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/11604a6d5d7811d2e9e584030a066fcca2acf1922576687cefe4f158b100acc0?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/11604a6d5d7811d2e9e584030a066fcca2acf1922576687cefe4f158b100acc0?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Alex Allen"},"description":"Alex is the Editor of Insightful, and has over 10 years' experience as a writer and editor within the travel industry. In his professional travels, he has been all over the world \u2013 from road-tripping in Australia and New Zealand, to eating his way around the Canadian Maritimes and criss-crossing Italy from Sardinia to Emilia-Romagna.","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/alex-allen-0604934a\/"],"url":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/author\/alex-allen\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/874422","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/51"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=874422"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/874422\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5750"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=874422"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=874422"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insightvacations.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=874422"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}