Friends of Cinnamon

When I first met her, she was a client and I, a recruitment consultant. What began as a professional relationship over 10 years ago is now something that I can proudly call “friendship”. Meeting Shilpi and getting to know her during my professional relationship was always endearing. When she decided to move from Mumbai to Gurgaon, I understood that I was not just losing an excellent client but would be missing her chirpiness and enterprising temperament.

No sooner had she moved to Gurgaon, she excitedly told me about her journey towards being a hospitality entrepreneur. She launched Cinnamon Stays. When her entrepreneurial venture started to see success, I was extremely happy to see her grow from a single homestay in Gurgaon to a silver startup in Varanasi.  As luck would have it, I too moved to Delhi albeit only for two years and we could catch up more often. I paid her a visit and the full day that I spent with her in Cinnamon revealed to me much more than I thought I knew about her and Cinnamon.

Cinnamon has a soul, it is not just a place you go to stay. It’s a place where you “Sense” and you “feel”. It is a community of guests, travelers, small entrepreneurs all of whom rely heavily on the social media. I was amazed to see that magic of being connected via social media with interesting and like minded people who walk in as guests and walk out as friends.

One day, as we were on a usual chat up call, she excitedly told me about a program called “Friends of Cinnamon”. She told me that this was a unique initiative started by her to acknowledge all her friends who had been a support in making both Cinnamon Stays and Granny’s Inn where it is today. She explained that her friends played the role of evangelists and somehow contributed in making the business flourish.

“Friends of Cinnamon” kick started with an aim to create a safe and reliable network of people who would be guests at both the homestays purely on the basis of referrals and word of mouth.

As she unfolded the initiative, I could not help but wonder how important the safety of her guests was to her. As a friend, I have always spoken so much about her and her work that, invariably some of my friends have booked in her home stays and have had a wonderful experience. In order to acknowledge the same, she decided that for every referral that would walk in as a guest, I would be rewarded monetarily. My work would be very simple and informal. Much of it I was already doing, being the storyteller for Cinnamon and Granny’s Inn. Only, I needed to do it in a structured way, over social media, over my network - personal and professional, connect with travel bloggers and carry out small curated events to spread the word. This seemed like such a fun idea to me. This was no hard sell, only pure sharing with like minded people.

It has now been over a year since I formally became an FOC! I have had the most interesting interactions with other FOCs, have met people who I would never had in the normal course and built “friendships” with some who share the same interests as me. FOC has recently extended its scope as the business also extends. The Unhotel group as they are called is now seeking new properties to bring under their umbrella from Corbett to Goa, Ladakh to Coorg. Give them the same soul that they have. In case we come across any property fit to be an Unhotel (Cinnamon and Grannys), we can just drop in the reference to Shilpi and she will work her charm.

In case this sounds exciting to you, do go through the websites www.cinnamonstays.in, www.grannysinn.in and write in either to Shilpi or Manish at cinnamonstays@gmail.com for more details on how to enrol in the ‘Friends of Cinnamon’ program. Believe me, there is a whole new world out there for us to seek and grow

Gupshup with Granny - 9th July 2016

There was a distinct buzz in the morning of 9^th July at Cinnamon as we went around getting ready for a very heart to heart “Gupshup with Granny”. Granny Asha was amongst us from Varanasi and as all grannies come, she came with lots of hugs, smiles, gifts and goodies.

Granny Asha wanted to meet all the lovely people at Cinnamon especially some of her guests who had stayed with her at Granny’s Inn. Needless to say, Radhika, Kavita and Gagan were one of the first to walk in!

The buzz increased as the clock struck 11.30 am and people starting trickling in. Granny Asha, dressed in her quintessential homely saree welcomed all in her true spirits. As 20 odd people came in and started chatting, we realized that friends were with their mothers and mothers-in-law.

The beauty of the conversation was around life, reinventing it, hope and happiness- the last being the core of every individual.

Grandmothers are excellent story tellers and we couldn’t stop ourselves from nudging our Granny to tell us about her life. And like all grandmoms, she was more than happy to share her experiences to an awe struck wide eyed audience that rekindled their own childhood memories of “Nani ki kahani”.

Granny Asha’s life and her start up built curiosity amongst all and it had everyone asking her questions. She graciously and patiently answered all.

“Asha ji how was life before Grannys Inn and what has changed after?”

Granny Asha’s eyes went far beyond her past as she narrated that life before Granny’s Inn was a purposeless life. Like any woman, she was a dutiful person. Hardships were fought but at some point in time, she found herself pushed into depression. It was then that she decided that no matter what her age is, she had to overcome depression and lead a more meaningful life.

Starting Granny’s Inn was the best decision she took because it not just gave her purpose, she was happy to spread love and positivity.

“How do you deal with day to day operations? Isn’t it difficult?”

Granny smiled denying that it wasn’t tiring at all. Infact it kept her healthy and active. She finds it extremely energizing to engage with her guests who she connects with easily. After all, who wouldn’t love to discuss more about home made facial scrubs, saree draping, local food and all things so true to a typical Indian home.

The gupshup lasted for a couple of hours and one could see how much people loved having Granny Asha around. All loved their chai and bihari pakodas and Granny Asha’s special touch made everyone ask for more!

If you would like to know more about the silver start up Granny’s Inn, please visit www.grannysinn.in and should you plan to visit with your mothers, mothers in law and family, do drop in a mail at namastey@grannysinn.in . After all, Granny Asha is nurturing Granny’s Inn with the same love, simplicity and warmth that we associate our grannies with.

Medical Care At A Home Away From Home - 2

Hello there! Thank you so much for your kind words. Your words are encouraging and a huge support to both my mother and I. I was in the midst of telling you, why I chose a homestay. Taking this further, I realized a few more points why even you should do so if you are looking for long term medical care.

1.   Moral Support by the hosts

My mother’s illness was a trying time for me. I was my mother’s support but I yearned for support too. My friends and the rest of the family were far and I needed to people to talk to. In such a state of mind, the hosts were very helpful. The kind of moral support they provided me with was like a warm blanket on a cold night. Sure enough, they soon became like family to us.

2.   Coping and Adapting to the new city

In our case, I was so new to Delhi.  A person from a small town, I considered myself brave enough to face Delhi. No matter how I managed, I was always a little scared and tensed. Coping was getting difficult but our hosts helped me with a lot of advice about the city and the culture. It made be “ready” to move around the city comfortably.

3.   Local people, local advice

Moving in with the locals, I not just felt safe but they were like my “Wikipedia” or “Google”. Any query, any doubt was just a shout out and I would get the best advice on transport, food, deals, pharmacies and also how to unwind.

 

4.   Network

My experience with the homestay was one of a kind. I met with a lot of people. My stay being longer than usual, I bumped into other guests and increased my network. Strangely it was good for my work too. I even bagged a contract for supplying Sikkim Tea to Nagpur! Thinking about it, I don’t think I could achieve this had I continued staying in a hotel!

5.   Emergency Services

With a number of people staying under the same roof, I was convinced that had there been an emergency I could count on the hosts and the caretakers. No one would deny me! I felt safe, secure and wonderful being with them.

My experience at the homestay was incredible. When I was leaving, as much as I was happy to take a healthier and more positive mother back home, I was engulfed with a lot of sadness of having to leave behind a home that I had started to think as mine. 

If you are wondering, where did I actually stay, I have to say that it was Cinnamon Stays run by the most adorable couple Shilpi and Manish, who helped me tide through my life’s toughest times. In case you are looking for a medical care homestay that can give you the best, I suggest you should visit www.cinnamonstays.in or write in to bookings@cinnamonstays.in

Take my word for it…after all we pahadis never lie !

Medical Care At A Home Away From Home

Guest Blogger Manisha Pradhan writes to us from Gangtok. She shares her experience with home stays in her post. Introducing today is Part 1 of her blog - "Medical Care At A Home Away From Home". Do read on!

Sipping my cup of tea and leafing through the morning newspaper, today was the day I had to make a few decisions. Living in Gangtok was like living in utopia- amidst nature and friendly people. Whilst everything was going smoothly, my mother had not been keeping too well lately. A train of visits to the doctors and I knew I had to move her to a bigger and better city for her to be under proper care. I finally made up my mind to move her to Delhi. 

Little did I know, that this event in my life would make me realize how much I needed a ‘home”. Having booked ourselves in a decent hotel close to the hospital for over two weeks, I increasingly found myself being stressed over things. I could never point out why I felt the way I did until one day I realized that the problem lay not in the hospital but where we were staying. I shared my concerns with my friends and it was then that one of them recommended a home stay. I was not very convinced that someone would let us stay at their place especially with my ailing patient. On the other hand, we were spending a lot on post operative care and it was not advisable to undertake the long journey back home. 

I started looking at the range of homestays and talking with some of them. I was convinced that if I had to survive the turmoil of long term medical care in a new city, I just had to move my mother to a place that is “home”.

Our stay lasted for two long months and needless to say I never regretted my decision. I want to share a few points on why I chose a homestay over the hotel closer to the hospital. To anyone looking for a homey place for a patient to recover, this is what I discovered:

1.   Cost Effective

Medical treatment is not easy and the first thing that affects you is the cost. As much as I tried to budget, I would always find myself being a little short of money. A decent hotel was the primary reason that was eating into my pocket. A homestay on the other hand is more economical and viable. I saw a large chunk of savings having moved to a homestay.

2.   A home is a home after all

A hotel can give you comfort and luxury but these two were the last things on my mind when it came to bringing my mother back home after her surgery. She needed a place that could support her new diet plan. A place where she could move about at her own pace and still have the privacy. Most importantly, she did not want to be seen as an ailing person in a place full of strangers. The homestay covered for all of the above and more.

3.   Cleanliness and Care

Cleanliness was of utmost importance to us. Luckily my mother did not suffer too many side effects but when she did we needed to clean up the mess as soon as she felt unwell. This was something that came to us promptly at the homestay as compared to the hotel where housekeeping had to be called in time and again. The hosts and the caretaker were genuinely caring towards both of us.

I can go on for a few more pages, but I need to retire and get back to my mother who is asking for me. I promise to share some more in my next post, which should be sooner than you think. In the meanwhile, I wanted to share that India is one of the top 5 destinations for Medical Tourism in the World! You could have a look at the following few websites to know more!

http://www.indiahealthcaretourism.com/

http://www.indian-medical-tourism.com/

http://www.medicalindiatourism.com/

http://nomadcapitalist.com/2014/01/05/top-5-best-countries-medical-tourism/

Workcation - The Future Of Business Travel

Just the other day I was talking to my class mate, Ram, now a Senior leader in E&Y, who travels the world over on business and was currently visiting Gurgaon from Bangalore. I told him he just had to visit us at "Cinnamon". Though he was on a tight business schedule, the offer of a complete home made meal closed the deal. 

 

Our “catching up” went on till the wee hours of the morning and we asked him to retire in the spare room. We told him that he could stay with us as long as he wanted, which he denied since he was already booked in a hotel for the whole period that he would spend in Gurgaon. Later that evening I received a call from him asking if he could make our place his permanent “business” stay. I was more than happy to have a buddy around. My curiosity piqued and I asked him what made him change his mind. Why a home stay when he could be put up in the best of the hotels? To this, he rattled off a few points that I thought I could share with you!

1.  Feeling of being home - Ram and many others who travel between cities, between continents and between different time zones are always missing “home” and their family. An evening spent at Cinnamon, Ram realized that whilst he did feel relaxed in hotels, it never gave him the feeling of being home. The informal set up, the home made meal, he never felt this close to home in any of his business stays before.

2.  Shut out from the office - According to Ram, whenever he travels, he seems to find himself working in the hotel at the end of the day. That, he says is very tiresome so much so that he doesn’t feel fresh the next day. He shared that the other evening, he was able to relax and partly shut out his mind from work that has no end. Even though he hardly slept for a few hours, he was fresh the next day. He felt that the shutting himself out from work environment can happen only when you are at home.

 

3.   Live with the locals - Being a pucca Bengalurian(read south Indian), Ram said that people at work and at the hotel were forever making him feel comfortable with the kind of food that he ate everyday or assisting him at shopping. Ram felt he never could sense what it was like to be a Dilliwala. Having spent time with us, he interacted with our caretakers and other staff and he had a jolly time trying to understand them and they him. Hilarious anecdote this, but we can keep that for a different time. 

4.  Real recommendations - A business travel is also an opportunity to look around the city you go to. Post work, there are times when one can look around and explore the city. Whilst a hotel gives you all the “must do” things, many a times, one misses out on the “experience” of the city. Thus a real time recommendation is a must. Which, in fact, is given mostly by the people who live there! Home stays with their expertise can provide you with the exact recommendations as per your need and interest.

5.    Long stays - Staying long in hotels can really be just that…very long!... a hotel gives you the pleasures of being pampered and live luxuriously yet it can be very exhausting to come back to a small room especially when the business stay is more than a week. At this time a home stay provides you with the space, the comfort and the luxury of being yourself while at work.

6.  Family can join in - Having the family on a workcation really works wonders! A homestay can provide the best place for the family to be together in a new place. The routine remaining the same!..its a home just in another city.

7.    New friendships - A homestay can open the doors to new friendships and networking with the people who you stay with. At times they are known while at others, it may lead to forging new relationships and friendships that can last life long.

So, next time you are travelling for business, you could give a homestay a try. Actually, a homestay geared towards a proper Workcation - one that offers the productive space of a hotel but the comfort and relaxed atmosphere of a home. “Cinnamon Stays” in Gurgaon is one such option.


Picture Courtesy - #Cinnamonstays #Gurgaon #No1onTripadvisor