I left Halifax on Friday afternoon. Some planes there were practicing tricks (for an air show coming up, I assume) and we got to watch a fighter jet doing fancy spins while we were waiting on the plane to leave. In Newark I met up with Erica (who is my travel buddy this time) and we managed to kill the 6 hours of layover by eating and walking excessively around the terminal.
The 15 hour flight over here was fine, except it just felt like night the whole time. We left at night, then it turned into daylight as we were going over the ocean, but all the windows were shut so it seemed dark and everyone went to sleep. Then when everyone woke up, it was getting dark again outside, and we landed at night in Bombay. So I just feel like I had a really long Friday night and missed Saturday completely.
But the plane ride itself was fun - Erica and I were sitting next to a guy named Amit, who became our friend right away. We all shared similar tastes in Bollywood stars. He was on his way to India for his wedding, and invited us to come, but it's in Chennai which is quite far South so we couldn't make it. But there is a reception in Bombay on the 21st, which we're definitely planning to attend. He met his wife-to-be on an internet dating website! The other highlight of the plane ride was the view. Mostly it was dark the whole time or too cloudy to see, but in a few places it was clear and we had an incredible view. I got a good look at the deserts and mountains of Turkmenistan, of all places. Here are some in flight photos - Turkmenistan, fancy clouds, sunset, and the in-flight map that shows us coming in to India!
When we landed, we had the challenge of collecting all of Erica's luggage and hoping we didn't get hassled at customs. Amit stayed with us and helped us out, and also let us use his phone to call Erica's friends and relatives to try and figure out what to do with all the luggage. She realized, a bit too late, that the domestic airlines in India might not let her check in 4 suitcases.
In fairness, half the stuff she brought was for other people, but still! We bypassed customs, because the customs guys were lazy and just waved us by without checking. So Erica didn't have to explain why she was carrying multiple laptops and cell phones. (Gifts for family, actually.) Erica's friend Punit picked us up from the airport then, and because nothing was open that late (it was after midnight by this point) he just drove us around the city. Everything looks different here at the moment because they are in the middle of a big festival for Ganesh, the Hindu elephant god, so there are decorations and lights EVERYWHERE. Very pretty. It also started raining really hard while we were driving, with lightning. It didn't rain once the entire time I was in India in March, so this is kind of a novelty. Also - Bollywood moment! We saw John Abraham's car. John is a very attractive male model turned Bollywood star. Celebrity cars - how exciting! Don't worry, I'm (half) joking.
Finally Punit dropped us off at the Domestic airport so Erica could catch her flight to Hyderabad. We stopped in a parking lot so Erica could rearrange some of her luggage and transfer some of it into a suitcase she didn't need right away and could leave behind with Punit in Bombay. You have to imagine, it's 3am and she has got half her suitcase dumped out on the ground in the parking lot. Actually, it was mostly shoes. Hilarious.
We waited for many hours for Erica's flight, then I waited a few more hours and phoned some hotels. I finally found a decent one, and so I am staying here for a few days on my own until I meet up with Erica again in Delhi, probably around the 10th.
All is well here, India is pretty much like I remember it. A cockroach tried to attack me in the airport bathroom by falling on my head but it missed my face by an inch. I also got cheated pretty bad by a taxi driver who charged me double the fare (his "meter" was definitely broken), but I was soooo tired and dying to find my hotel so I didn't bother to argue with him like I normally would have. And everywhere I go, young men stare at me and yell out "Hello Madam!" so it's all the same as before, really. It's fun, but will be a bit better once I've slept, for sure.
Now I will go locate a restaurant and eat some Indian food. I'll write again once I've done something more interesting than just land here and find a hotel, haha.
2 comments:
I can't believe it!!!!
Love the hair, by the way!
*ack* Cockroach >.<
Hope you're having fun, good luck avoiding the skeezy guys trying to be your "friend" and be safe!
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