That meant I could happily finish off lots more jobs around the house and feel a lot more confident about having done the stuff that needed to be done before leaving.
Of course its never all done, but everything on the list got ticked and then the list got chucked. Smile and a smoke time.
Of course the only reason I knew the plane was delayed was because the noble, fearless Bullet Boy No.1, Il Presidente, 'I only turn left on planes' Michael Hobbs, had SMS and email notification. Us 'up the back' would just be expected to turn up and suffer. Maybe booking through budgetair.com meant losing direct contact with Air India, so they didn't know how to reach me.
Either way its good to be friends with Michael, a man whose coattails have handgrips just my size.
Perhaps because there was not fund raising. There was also no Bullet Boy branding and not a lot of new stuff to buy.
Not even new injections, just the visa, which took two full working days travelling to Rome to present and pick it up in person, along with the meagre €155 processing fee.
Not even new injections, just the visa, which took two full working days travelling to Rome to present and pick it up in person, along with the meagre €155 processing fee.
Not a great encouragement for tourism.
But it took a week this time instead of the nervy month last October.
So it was ready 6 weeks early!
There seemed to less time to get excited. I have ended up with a proper job and working fairly flat out doesn't give you a lot of time for reflection. Of course the pay is better and it does make you feel a more valued member of society, but it takes up a lot of time.
But it took a week this time instead of the nervy month last October.
So it was ready 6 weeks early!
There seemed to less time to get excited. I have ended up with a proper job and working fairly flat out doesn't give you a lot of time for reflection. Of course the pay is better and it does make you feel a more valued member of society, but it takes up a lot of time.
So here we are at 7:30 am Italian time, 11 am Himalaya time with a start at the blog. It has taken a mere two hours since giving up on sleep and merely snoozing, to realise the windows on this Boeing 787 are automatically tinted hence the snooze factor.
But the morning ablution queue extends to my extra leg room seat so peace is no longer with us.
But the morning ablution queue extends to my extra leg room seat so peace is no longer with us.
Being assigned the exit row (part of hanging on to Michael's coattails at the Business Class check-in in Rome) is a real joy. At a certain height (6ft 2in - or 1.88m in new money) when your legs don't fit into the spreadsheet designated economy class dimensions then being able to stretch out without damaging your shins and disrupting the passenger in front, is a big plus.
This pleasure was slightly marred by a chap asking to swap so he could sit near his wife and two young children. I wanted to be kind and generous, so I let him have the joy of sitting in his own peace a few rows away.
This pleasure was slightly marred by a chap asking to swap so he could sit near his wife and two young children. I wanted to be kind and generous, so I let him have the joy of sitting in his own peace a few rows away.
Returning to India should be not only fascinating but also more enjoyable. The trip last November had us all worried about hand sanitiser and Delhi belly, but none of us suffered badly.
Of course there are always those days after a fairly heavy session when the digestive tracts burble and gurgle but that is not the same as an emergency stop beside the road hoping you can get your trousers off in time. Still it's a brave man who farts in India.
So Delhi it is, with a shopping list.
The duty free in Rome was closed when we got there at midnight, they don't sell stuff on the plane and - Item one - we need whisky as a gift for Alex, Nomadic Knight organiser, guide, storyteller and fearless leader.
The duty free in Rome was closed when we got there at midnight, they don't sell stuff on the plane and - Item one - we need whisky as a gift for Alex, Nomadic Knight organiser, guide, storyteller and fearless leader.
Indian SIM cards to ensure contact with the outside world. Well by contact that probably means the means of causing envy when we post photos of stunning scenery, or at least of beaming smiles. Bring it on. Item two.
Items three through six. Baby wipes would help, you just never know. Somewhere that can repair my iPad screen, Diamox the altitude sickness pills, since we will get up at 5000 metres. And goggles. The logic is that India has a lot of bikes so there should be bike goggles. That may be true, but leisure bikers may not be as common as they are in Europe.
Lets see.
And as always, near the end of the flight we start talking to our neighbours. Mine were two brothers from Rajasthan who had a marble business and had just spent two weeks on a package tour going round Europe, ending up in Ancona (from Split) and Ascoli Piceno.... 80 and 40km from us, in Le Marche, the lesser known part of the peninsular, Italy in miniature. But a bit of a secret, almost nobody knows about it. There are no t-shirts and no tourist traps. Of course that's where you'd find Rajasthanis!
Late night update - Holiday Inn, Delhi.
So the usual uninformed start to the immigration process, with no forms given out on the plane and none visible on the way through to the immigration officers desk. But obviously being sent away to find some and having to wander around before finding some at the back of the hall. Then fill them out, or was it fill them in, it was very confusing either way, so 10 minutes turns to 30 in the blink of an eye.
So the usual uninformed start to the immigration process, with no forms given out on the plane and none visible on the way through to the immigration officers desk. But obviously being sent away to find some and having to wander around before finding some at the back of the hall. Then fill them out, or was it fill them in, it was very confusing either way, so 10 minutes turns to 30 in the blink of an eye.
Still there was duty free at the airport. At least, armed with Jura and Laphroaig, we can hold our heads up when we see Alex. Of course at the airport we also got the SIM cards, baby wipes, Diamox and cash.
There was no hotel shuttle and it was hot and confusing so we took the most expensive taxi on offer, for a 5 minute, €5 ride. At least he could get through the hotel's security set-up. guys with guns, scanning equipment for us and our luggage. It was all very new millennium.
A quick late afternoon bite to eat at the hotel, à la carte, as we expect to be hotel buffet'd up to the eyeballs in the next couple of weeks. Siesta, a cup of tea then Michael and I met up for retail therapy. We found goggles at Harley Davidson (HD Quality!) and well deserved margaritas at TGIF where we had delicious burgers. So good to eat nonb-Italian for a change!
A quick late afternoon bite to eat at the hotel, à la carte, as we expect to be hotel buffet'd up to the eyeballs in the next couple of weeks. Siesta, a cup of tea then Michael and I met up for retail therapy. We found goggles at Harley Davidson (HD Quality!) and well deserved margaritas at TGIF where we had delicious burgers. So good to eat nonb-Italian for a change!
It may not seem very Indian but our taxi waited two hours for us in the hope of a €2 tip.
Little did I know the longer term effects of the vicious insects in his upholstery, so its early to bed ready for Chandigarh tomorrow.
Little did I know the longer term effects of the vicious insects in his upholstery, so its early to bed ready for Chandigarh tomorrow.
