What Diplomats Do

You may have noticed that I haven’t written a word on this blog since I joined A-100. Because I’m too busy, right? Well, there’s actually another important reason.

First Assignment: Berlin!

I could hardly contain myself as the announcer, speaking to a room filled with newly minted diplomats and 300 of their closest friends and family, began: “Berlin, Germany….” I buried my face in my hands as I muttered “there is no way I’m getting this” before jumping out my chair when my name was called, stumbling past my classmates and generally acting like an idiot as I progressed towards the podium where I received a little German flag.

FOREIGN SERVICE EXAME ADVICE FOR COL

Foreign Service exam advice for students: where to start, what to know, and what to expect.

12 WAYS TO WORK AT THE US EMBASSY

Jobs at the US embassy are not just reserved for diplomats (I mean FSO Generalists) – the majority of American employees in embassies are actually something else. So what types of hires are they? And how do you get a job like that?

HOW TO BECOME A DIPLOMAT

LIFE AS A DIPLOMAT& WORLD CITIZEN

PCS Out!

This month has been a whirlwind of packing and saying goodbye. It’s the 7th time we’re leaving a country we lived in for a few years and...

Jun 94 min read

12 Biographies to READ or SKIP

I love biographies and memoirs. I've been reading them since I was a teenager, but it only recently dawned on me that it's my favorite...

Jun 25 min read

Vipassana: 10-day meditation course (my experience)

So, I did it! I stayed to a Vipassana center (dhamma) near my house in Mumbai. There are hundreds of centers in the world, in 94...

May 237 min read

Vipassana Meditation course FAQs

And I'm done! I just completed a 10-day meditation course at Dhamma Pattana (near Mumbai) along with about ninety other students. It was...

Apr 295 min read

10-Day Vipassana retreat (going in)

I'm about to embark on a 10-day Vipassana retreat at Dhamma Pattana, in Mumbai. Two days from now, I'll report to the meditation center...

Apr 142 min read

Hinduism for dummies

I didn’t understand much about Hinduism before I moved to India. Cows are holy, reincarnation, lots of gods. That’s about it. I hoped I...

Apr 84 min read

Aryuvedic healing in Varkala

Before coming to India I was only vaguely aware of Aryuvedic medicine. I’d heard about elements/doshas and had even figured out I’m a...

Apr 13 min read

Skiing in Kazakhstan: PROS & CONS

Did you know that Shymbulak is the largest ski resort in Central Asia? And that if you want guaranteed snow in March, it's one of the...

Mar 204 min read

Mumbai Running Routes & Tips

When & where to run in Mumbai Even if you really love running outdoors—and I know few people in Mumbai do!—it can be challenging to find...

Feb 94 min read

Month of Abstinence: Sugar

Last month, I endeavored to cut sugar from my diet. I can't say it was a resounding success. Not only was it difficult to change my daily...

Jan 314 min read

Month of Abstinence: Alcohol

My decision to make a lifestyle change is usually the result of a slow but steady buildup of knowledge through reading and talking to...

Jan 55 min read

India Travel Tips 3: Mumbai

The trickiest question of all is what people should do while they’re in Mumbai, because it’s not a tourist hub. It’s no wonder that the...

Dec 29, 20243 min read

India Travel Tips 2: Near Mumbai

Close to Mumbai there are a number of popular tourist destinations within 1-3 hours by car, train, or ferry. Unlike most travel...

Dec 16, 20242 min read

India Travel Tips 1: Best Places

If you’re curious about exploring India and need some travel tips, you could simply open up a Lonely Planet. But wait, did you know the...

Dec 4, 20244 min read

My next assignment: PRM!

Six weeks ago I received an email from the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration. I wasn’t surprised, because during the preceding...

Nov 21, 20243 min read

Banjul: the ideal diplomatic posting?

It’s official: we’re moving to Banjul next year! Where?! Banjul is the capital of The Gambia, and The Gambia is a tiny country inside...

Nov 19, 20242 min read

3-Week TDY in Dushanbe

I just went to Tajikistan—a country I never imagined visiting. I couldn’t even locate it on a map—the “stans” have always been a bit of a...

Oct 8, 20244 min read

Tandem bidding 3

Uh-oh, it’s almost time to move on again! As much as I enjoy living in Mumbai, every Foreign Service tour meets its inevitable end. We...

Sep 15, 20243 min read

Bucharest highlights & lowlights

Need a random city trip recommendation? How about Bucharest! Having confused Bucharest with Budapest and Belgrade all my life, Romania’s...

Sep 6, 20246 min read

Promoted and leaning in

So, I’m a manager now! I’m still posted in Mumbai for another year, but my job here has changed dramatically. Bottom line: no more visa...

Jul 6, 20243 min read

Maldives Getaway

BLUF: this was the best five-day vacation ever! Though the Maldives were never on my list of must-see destinations. There was something...

Jun 2, 20244 min read

50 Work Outfits Challenge

Dressing for work has become somewhat of a hobby. My bright blazers rarely go unnoticed by my colleagues and I’ve been asked more than...

Apr 30, 20243 min read

6-Week Marathon Journey (Part 3)

Final installment! Here are Part 1 and Part 2. Race Day The NN Rotterdam marathon 2024 started at 10:00 AM for elite runners, and at...

Apr 24, 20248 min read

6-Week Marathon Journey (Part 2)

While consistent and thorough training obviously matters, a big part of running long distance is getting into the right mental state of...

Apr 20, 20245 min read

6-Week Marathon Journey (Part 1)

Oops, I did it again! My second full marathon is officially on the books. It felt like a mission impossible, but I managed. This is a...

Apr 17, 202410 min read

Sri Lanka Trip

We just spent our spring family vacation in Sri Lanka: nine days of beach, hills, and cities. Our first stop after landing in Colombo was...

Apr 13, 20244 min read

Getting my scuba diving certification

Last week I took a week long trip with my family to Sri Lanka. We stayed in several places (Colombo, Unawatuna beach, Ella, Kandy) but my...

Mar 28, 20245 min read

11 Running Principles I Swear By

To celebrate 15 years of running, completing 3 half marathons in 2024 so far, and not having knee pain anymore, I’m making a list of my...

Feb 24, 20245 min read

Fear of change

I recently started intermittent fasting. It’s partially an experiment (my husband is really into health and nutrition) and partially due...

Feb 17, 20244 min read

Working in a visa mill

Mumbai has one of the biggest U.S. consular sections in the world and is referred to as a “visa mill” among officers. So far, I’ve...

Feb 10, 20244 min read

TDY in Kolkata

Kolkata is India’s third largest city, located in the northeast of India near the border with Bangladesh. I should have checked a map or...

Feb 3, 20245 min read

Why I love running and 21k (half marathon) is the perfect distance

This weekend I completed a half marathon in exactly two hours. Is that a good time? Depends, I guess. Objectively speaking it’s a good,...

Feb 1, 202410 min read

I’m in a book

I would lie if I said I hadn’t thought about turning this blog into a book somehow. But as much as I’d like the idea of being an “author”...

Jan 25, 20242 min read

Daily annoyances, Indian edition.

It took me a year and half to come up with enough annoyances to write about, which makes Indians—in my estimation—less annoying than some...

Jan 22, 20243 min read

The few countries I still want to see

There are about 200 countries in the world, but it recently occurred to me that visiting about 40 of them might be more than enough—I’m...

Jan 8, 20243 min read

100 things that made my year in 2023

2023 was a fine year overall. It felt like a year of progress professionally, and generally life was good in India. I celebrated ten...

Jan 2, 20243 min read

What it takes to look good as a woman

I love fashion. And to create a good “look” I feel like I also have to do something about my hair and face, because that’s part it. But I...

Dec 30, 20234 min read

Where is home?

Home is where the heart is, of course. Home is where my own little family is. This is something I rarely question. Not that I don’t think...

Dec 19, 20235 min read

The ultimate travel wardrobe + packing list

Packing all the right things can be hard. When I travel I want to be comfortable, prepared for any type of weather, look good… and pack...

Dec 12, 20233 min read

Chennai cyclone: a Foreign Service moment

So I just flew from Mumbai to Chennai for a one-week work exchange. It’s the kind of thing the State Department offers (when finances...

Dec 5, 20233 min read

Nobody cares about you

Retired diplomats and diplomats on their way out of the Foreign Service have mentioned to me that the State Department doesn’t really...

Dec 3, 20233 min read

100 things you didn’t know about me

At my current Post, new colleagues have to share “one interesting fact” about themselves when they introduce themselves. I noticed most...

Nov 10, 20235 min read

Thoughts on India & the Environment

Who doesn’t worry about the environment these days? It’s been an emerging issue for so long and I very much grew up with it. My mother...

Oct 10, 20235 min read

Mumbai: one year in

It’s our one year anniversary living in Mumbai. The city really grew on me. There’s so much to do here, time flies! We decided early on...

Oct 3, 20235 min read

Comprehensive Health Checkup

India is one of those places where healthcare costs are a tiny fraction of US prices—even if you go to the really good (Harvard educated,...

Aug 20, 20233 min read

Three birthdays and a wedding anniversary

Spring is always busy at my place. My husband, daughter and I have birthdays within one month of each other, and our wedding anniversary...

Jul 7, 20234 min read

Kid life in Mumbai

When I ask my kids if they like living in Mumbai they find it hard to answer. They still miss their neighborhood friends in Germany and...

Jun 23, 20234 min read

Two types of diplomats

What diplomats do? Well, there are two types of diplomats... Never DC'ers Those who try to avoid serving a tour in Washington at all...

Jun 17, 20233 min read

What makes a good diplomat?

I ponder that question sometimes, for different reasons. Sometimes because I wonder what else I would be doing if I weren’t a diplomat....

Jun 10, 20238 min read

Keri Russel is wrong

There’s a new Netflix show that will almost certainly be watched by all diplomats; the one where Keri Russell is Ambassador to London and...

May 13, 20232 min read

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Welcome to What Diplomats do!

Welcome to my site! Like the title says, this website is for everyone who wonders what diplomats do.

Just remember that everything on here is just my personal perspective, not the Department of State's perspective, and certainly not the absolute truth.