Hi Everybody. I'm an amateur gemologist that just finished the week-long GIA Colored Stone ID lab in Mumbai, India. Fun and intense. I started the GG distance course in 1976, left jewelry in the 1980's and am now just returning to finish the GG. I need to do Colored Stone Identification, pass the exam and then do the 3-4 day Colored Stone Grading and then do the Diamond Grading week-long class and I think I'll be GG.
Why Mumbai? Simple, the class costs $400 in India, and lodging/food is cheap and I don't like NYC.
Introduction
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Re: Introduction
I wish you luck in getting your G.G.. I often recommend GIA students do the international schools at least for part of the course. I favor them going to Bangkok because of what they will also learn, and the connections they will make by being at the center of the Worlds colored stone industry. A bit more expensive than India, but I think worth it.J S Flynn wrote:Hi Everybody. I'm an amateur gemologist that just finished the week-long GIA Colored Stone ID lab in Mumbai, India. Fun and intense. I started the GG distance course in 1976, left jewelry in the 1980's and am now just returning to finish the GG. I need to do Colored Stone Identification, pass the exam and then do the 3-4 day Colored Stone Grading and then do the Diamond Grading week-long class and I think I'll be GG.
Why Mumbai? Simple, the class costs $400 in India, and lodging/food is cheap and I don't like NYC.
Re: Introduction
I agree, wholeheartedly.
Bankgkok beats Mumbai, hands down. Unless, you are (as I was) not-so-well-off, as Mumbai is very cheap, Bangkok not so cheap. Bangkok is cheap to stay in, and the connections one makes in Bangkok are likely to beat any in Mumbai. The class was excellent, the teacher excellent, but, though I'm not sure, I think all of the other students travelled home, so social interactions were very limited.
And as far as "city quality," Bangkok beats Mumbai, any day.
Note, I have lived in Chiang mai, but have never stayed in Bangkok.
Bankgkok beats Mumbai, hands down. Unless, you are (as I was) not-so-well-off, as Mumbai is very cheap, Bangkok not so cheap. Bangkok is cheap to stay in, and the connections one makes in Bangkok are likely to beat any in Mumbai. The class was excellent, the teacher excellent, but, though I'm not sure, I think all of the other students travelled home, so social interactions were very limited.
And as far as "city quality," Bangkok beats Mumbai, any day.
Note, I have lived in Chiang mai, but have never stayed in Bangkok.