Monday, June 22, 2009

As I pass through the Valley of the Shadow of Airports

I am currently writing this blog off line in one of the basement gates of Delhi airport.  I would say it has been a long day but that assumes I have any concept of time left.  This journey started harmless enough as Brandon dropped me off at BNA at approximately 11 am CDT on 16 Jun.  Check-in went well and the agent even let my extra 3 lbs slide. I was really worried she was going to make me unload either my peanut butter or 5lbs of lemonheads (comfort food, don’t judge me).  The only problem was that she could not transfer my bags all the way through to Kathmandu, and I would have to pick them up in Delhi.  I was not thrilled with this foray out of the security area, but with a 10 hour layover I thought I could swing it (of course this would all be moot shortly).

The flight from BNA to ORD was uneventful and I was even surprised they announced my gate for Delhi as we were taxing.  I got off the plane and proceeded to H15 just as the stewardess had indicated, only there was no one at gate H15 and my flight wasn’t listed anywhere.  My 1.5 hour layover was more like an hour now and I had no idea where I was going.  After a little asking around I found myself outside the airport on a tram to terminal 5 (the Intl terminal).  Getting there I located the Air India desk where one of the ushers laughed at me and asked if I was going to Delhi?  I said yes and he started yelling at the agents who were leaving.  I got to go back into the super secret space behind the check in desks where the supervisors lurk, and they literally printed my boarding pass in seconds.  I asked for any advice about getting through security and the supervisor told me, “You better run.”  So run I did, and, surprisingly, the security attendants in the Intl terminal were really helpful.  They took me up to the front of the line and got me through in under 5 minutes.  Even more surprising, every person I got in front of greeted me with a smile, and one even said, “Go right ahead, I’ve been there.”   I had decided to wear my hiking boots to travel in order to save on space and weight in my pack.  This was great for weight and space but horrible on expediency, so I ran to my gate in my socks.  I made the flight…barely.

I connected through Frankfurt and finally made it to Delhi 17 hours after I sprinted through O’Hare.  Air India was a delight to fly.  I got fed 4 fantastic meals, with coffee or tea with each.  I chose tea every time.  The tea they served was much thicker and stronger and so I actually used cream and sugar in my tea.  It was delightful!   I had the whole row to myself and my own personal screen, so I had a pretty comfortable flight (I even slept about 4 hours.)  I expected Delhi to be a complete SNAFU but it turned out to be pretty harmless.  I got herded into a transient group and all of my connecting information taken by an agent.  He then went to the airline and w/ all my information and acted as my advocate while I waited in a lounge.  Granted I spent 9 hours in the lounge but the agent did his job well and came back a couple of times to keep me up to date on my status.  His first bit of info was disheartening.  While I made the plane to Delhi, my bag did not.  However the agent got me a phone number and an actual name of someone to contact in Kathmandu to work it out.  I later had my boarding pass hand delivered to me to get me where I am right now.

It is now 6:15 in Delhi on 18 Jun.  I finished the book “The Shack” and it was phenomenal.  I highly recommend it to all.  Thanks Dad, you were right about this one.  It also helped me keep this whole trip in perspective.  I was getting a little stressed out with all these close calls and lost items, but in the end I was able to laugh it all off because my trust is in the Lord not the airlines or myself.  I also hung out w/ a Dutch woman named Andrea who was heading back to Nepal after a 3 month hiatus back in Holland.  She, her boyfriend and a couple of friends spun off her own non-profit org to help build youth clubs earlier in 09 and so she was returning to keep the momentum going.  Great conversations.

In this opening blog I also want to give a shout out to all my family for a wonderful send off and such loving support.  Mom, Dad, Aunt Tina, Uncle Dave, Noni, Poppi, Dan, Kelley and Owen.  Thank you all for your financial help, cards, prayers, thoughts, wishes and smiles.   And to all the rest of you all who said go for it, thanks J  I’ll hopefully have some photos for you shortly.  Cheers, blessings, namaste.

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