I thought I had plenty of time after my plane landed at the Amsterdam airport before the flight to Delhi......I was wrong.
I went to a WIFI cafe to send a message to Keary that I arrived safely in Amsterdam. Then I went to Mc Donald's to order two double burgers to bring to Eli......hamburgers do not taste the same in India. Then I went to a snack bar for floppy french fries and a margarita.......buy one get next one half off......so I drank two margaritas.....I felt relaxed after that!
I didn't know what the local time was, By the time I asked a man what time it was, it was 12:30pm. My flight leaves at 1:50pm...Uh oh...better get over to the departure gate. Don't want to miss my plane. I hurried over to gate D6 and they were boarding already with a long line. When it was my turn to show my boarding pass, the attendant said I was at the wrong gate. I should be at gate G8. I apologized and she said, "Don't be sorry. You are the one who has to do all the walking to get to the correct gate. It is all the way back to the opposite end of the airport terminals. I practically ran all the way over there...sweating up a storm. They were also boarding with a long line, but at least it was the correct plane. Ahead of me we all could hear a young child screaming very loudly for about 15 minutes. I hope he is quiet on the plane.
I settled down in my seat. Then a man and woman came over and asked me if I would be willing to switch seats with them. They were assigned seats away from each other. Wife was assigned a seat next to me. His seat was also a window seat on the other side of the plane. I said ok and moved over to the other seat. The Indian man sitting next to me owned a gem business in Jaipur with 50 employees. His English was excellent so we got to know each other pretty well after seven hours.
I asked questions about customs in India and about how to get through the Delhi airport.
The flight went well. The back of each seat had a small TV screen. There was a nice choice of movies to watch. I watched Epic and took naps most of the way. The meal was a small dish of chicken with rice, salad, and tiny cream puffs...I even got two small bottles of wine for free. When it was almost time to land, we filled out a customs declaration form.
Upon landing in Delhi about 1 am, my friend on the plane used his phone to call my son Eli so I could let him know that I had arrived. I quickly made my way over to the other side of the plane where my carry on suitcase was stored and waited to get off the plane. Next we stood in a long line to go through immigration and then I got my suitcase from the conveyor belt. Next I walked past customs following the green line marked on the floor as instructed by my friend on the plane. The red line is for people who have something to declare for customs.
Now it was time to go out the exit door. I was told to stay in that area where there is a railing. Drivers or friends of passengers wait behind this railing. I was told to stay in front of that railing and look for Eli's driver who should be holding a sign with my name on it. It was noisy and there were masses of people everywhere behind that railing. I stayed by the exit door and waited about 15 minutes. Then Eli's driver appeared. Yippee. I went up to him and said Nomeste. I pointed to him and then to me and said I go with you.
I walked around to the other side of the railing and he took the suitcases while I followed him closely. We walked for about ten minutes to his car. Strange sights and sounds and darkness. Temperature was about 80 degrees and humid. I got in and he drove for about 40 minutes to Eli's apartment in Gurgoan, a suburb of Delhi.
Eli's place is an apartment complex with three towers of apartments. The entrance to the area is through a security gate. The driver had to stop and explain that he was driving me to tower C2 to Elijah Hall's place. The driver then called Eli to let him know that he was there and dropped me off at C2. There was another security man at the door who greeted me and helped me get the suitcases into the small elevator and accompanied me to the 11th floor to apartment 1102.
Eli welcomed me and showed me around his three bedroom apartment. I sleep in his son's room on a futon converted into a bed. His wife Nicole and son Dante left Delhi September 13 and returned to the US because Nicole is three months pregnant. They wanted Nicole to be cared for by her doctor in Brookfield. The prenatal care in India is different.
They did have a housekeeper/nanny, but they fired her over a disagreement about wages and severance pay. I also should mention that Eli will be returning to the US for two weeks in 10 days. I better learn to get along by myself quickly. I will. This will be a Great Adventure.
I went to a WIFI cafe to send a message to Keary that I arrived safely in Amsterdam. Then I went to Mc Donald's to order two double burgers to bring to Eli......hamburgers do not taste the same in India. Then I went to a snack bar for floppy french fries and a margarita.......buy one get next one half off......so I drank two margaritas.....I felt relaxed after that!
I didn't know what the local time was, By the time I asked a man what time it was, it was 12:30pm. My flight leaves at 1:50pm...Uh oh...better get over to the departure gate. Don't want to miss my plane. I hurried over to gate D6 and they were boarding already with a long line. When it was my turn to show my boarding pass, the attendant said I was at the wrong gate. I should be at gate G8. I apologized and she said, "Don't be sorry. You are the one who has to do all the walking to get to the correct gate. It is all the way back to the opposite end of the airport terminals. I practically ran all the way over there...sweating up a storm. They were also boarding with a long line, but at least it was the correct plane. Ahead of me we all could hear a young child screaming very loudly for about 15 minutes. I hope he is quiet on the plane.
I settled down in my seat. Then a man and woman came over and asked me if I would be willing to switch seats with them. They were assigned seats away from each other. Wife was assigned a seat next to me. His seat was also a window seat on the other side of the plane. I said ok and moved over to the other seat. The Indian man sitting next to me owned a gem business in Jaipur with 50 employees. His English was excellent so we got to know each other pretty well after seven hours.
I asked questions about customs in India and about how to get through the Delhi airport.
The flight went well. The back of each seat had a small TV screen. There was a nice choice of movies to watch. I watched Epic and took naps most of the way. The meal was a small dish of chicken with rice, salad, and tiny cream puffs...I even got two small bottles of wine for free. When it was almost time to land, we filled out a customs declaration form.
Upon landing in Delhi about 1 am, my friend on the plane used his phone to call my son Eli so I could let him know that I had arrived. I quickly made my way over to the other side of the plane where my carry on suitcase was stored and waited to get off the plane. Next we stood in a long line to go through immigration and then I got my suitcase from the conveyor belt. Next I walked past customs following the green line marked on the floor as instructed by my friend on the plane. The red line is for people who have something to declare for customs.
Now it was time to go out the exit door. I was told to stay in that area where there is a railing. Drivers or friends of passengers wait behind this railing. I was told to stay in front of that railing and look for Eli's driver who should be holding a sign with my name on it. It was noisy and there were masses of people everywhere behind that railing. I stayed by the exit door and waited about 15 minutes. Then Eli's driver appeared. Yippee. I went up to him and said Nomeste. I pointed to him and then to me and said I go with you.
I walked around to the other side of the railing and he took the suitcases while I followed him closely. We walked for about ten minutes to his car. Strange sights and sounds and darkness. Temperature was about 80 degrees and humid. I got in and he drove for about 40 minutes to Eli's apartment in Gurgoan, a suburb of Delhi.
Eli's place is an apartment complex with three towers of apartments. The entrance to the area is through a security gate. The driver had to stop and explain that he was driving me to tower C2 to Elijah Hall's place. The driver then called Eli to let him know that he was there and dropped me off at C2. There was another security man at the door who greeted me and helped me get the suitcases into the small elevator and accompanied me to the 11th floor to apartment 1102.
Eli welcomed me and showed me around his three bedroom apartment. I sleep in his son's room on a futon converted into a bed. His wife Nicole and son Dante left Delhi September 13 and returned to the US because Nicole is three months pregnant. They wanted Nicole to be cared for by her doctor in Brookfield. The prenatal care in India is different.
They did have a housekeeper/nanny, but they fired her over a disagreement about wages and severance pay. I also should mention that Eli will be returning to the US for two weeks in 10 days. I better learn to get along by myself quickly. I will. This will be a Great Adventure.
