June 9, Day 2 of trip according to itinerary
Life on the plane: It's United Airlines so finding a Flight Attendant who is both civil and informed is like finding a cookie on the floor: you don’t know how it got there or if it's for real. Most often, it's like the rest: stale (and probably stepped-on a few times). Example: Question: Is there cheese in the scrambled eggs? Answer: Dunno, I don’t eat this food. So, okay and thank you. A few of us ancients can remember when being a “Stewardess” was a job women did during their youth; travel a little (for free!), make a little money, then go on to a real life. Now the job seems to attract and retain the sour, the disillusioned, the ornery eager to get off their feet as soon as possible (and probably in the midst of (another) messy divorce). And, happily for travelers everywhere, the longer hops are assigned on a seniority basis that results in the old-timers plodding up and down the aisles of the “Friendly Skies.”
We depart Newark a half hour late and are immediately ordered to cover the tiny windows – evidently so no moonlight gets inside the plane. The windows remain covered until we land – a half hour late – in New Delhi. Thin slivers of light get in to tell us an entire earth day has transpired. An illusion, of course, since we were traveling east while the sun was going west. Not much happens during the blackout beyond a few Scrabble games, reading and the afore-mentioned sleep-free head bobbing. Then, at 7:30 PM local time, the last rushed “meal service” i.e., the scrambled eggs. Yes, there was cheese in them.
Arriving in New Delhi, we are – as always – struck by the sameness of airports. Cincinnati or Ulan Bator, it's the same look, the same Duty Free shops, the same weary travelers. Once aboard the shuttle to the Eros Hotel (Eros? Are you kidding me? I can barely walk, let alone perform the exhausting and demeaning rituals my Love Guru demands!), we see our first Indian billboards: Hyundai and Apple. Nothing’s more international than commerce.
Night at the Eros Hotel: The sleep of the dead. True, we want to add India and Nepal to the list of countries where we’ve, uh, had Eros, but it’ll have to wait til tomorrow.
 |
| Despite the word Raja in honor of the trip, Deb (Scout) still lost big this time. |
 |
| Yes, 25 hours after leaving SD, we are almost there |
 |
| Looking good to arrive until... |
 |
| We make u turn, but finally land |
 |
| Greeting halls at all international airports look alike |
 |
| One picture in hotel with humpback Deb and we call it a night |
Posted with Blogsy
Love the humpback Deb photo with all the beautiful flowers at the Eros Hotel! Hope you awoke fully rejuvenated from the sleep of the dead. Go For It! See and do as much as you can on this amazing adventure!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Mary. We are late in posting, but the trip is wonderful, so far!
Delete