A Bon Voyage - Part 1

Sorry for the long break ppl... but it's been quite crazy over here. I have too many things to write about so I figured I'd start with the trip.

I had a very eventful trip to India this time around. Wasn't all fun, but it did make it one to remember nonetheless.

I have always had a knack for packing. In fact ever since I was 17 I have discovered a method to pack one and a half times a normal person. So added to that my knack for procrastination as well, I kept my packing for the last few hours before my flight. It was an early morning flight. I was supposed to be out of the house by around 5 in the morning to meet the 2 hr buffer that is generally required for International flights. Being the night out champ back in college, I figured what the heck, may as well stay up until around 2 and then start packing. So I browsed the web, listening to songs, and generally killing time until around 1 in the morning... Then for some reason I felt really sleepy! So I figured what the hey.... may as well catch a few Zs and wake up all refreshed for the flight.

Unfortunately I forgot to set the alarm clock! So I was blisfully sleeping until my house-mate who was supposed to drop me off at the airport came stumbling up the stairs to see if I was ready to leave. I can't remember exactly what happened next. I remember running around a lot, jumping up and down trying to remember where my suitcases were (they were in the garage)... and then cramming everything into a suitcase. Unfortunately not everything would fit in one suitcase, so I had to pack everything into 2 suitcases.

Anyways all's well that ends well and I was able to get out of the house at 5:30. Got checked in suprisingly quickly given that it was an international flight and went inside to board the flight. Sleep came to me in tidal waves as soon as my butt touched the seat. I can't remember exactly how I boarded the flight. Given that I had a seat to myself it was all well and good. I slept the entire way to Dallas without stirring an inch!

Anyways when I reached Dallas I had a few hours to kill. I was up now and needed something to do. So I figured let me go to the gym a while. I had brought some workout clothes after all, and the airportgyms.com site said that the nearest gym was only a ten minute ride. So I get out of the airport, catch a taxi and started speaking in my broken spanish to the driver.... only to discover that he didn't know any Spanish :(. I always like to impress ppl with my Spanish and then nonchalantly tell them that I was from India and no I did not stay in Honduras for very long and yes I was very smart to pick up so much Spanish so quickly. With the poor guy not understanding any Spanish (nor English) we commincated using my version of sign language, much to the amazement of some bystanders on the road.

An unfortunate side-effect was getting lost before finally stumbling and bumbling our way to the gym. The rogue cost me $35 just to get there though. Anyways I figured since I was already there, may as well work out properly. So I had a wonderful workout in my work shoes (I found out that I had forgotten to pack my workout shoes) drawing a lot of strange looks as soon as people happened to glance at my feet. I suppose they supposed that I was one of those crazy freaks that just happen to crawl out of the woodwork. Wasn't able to run so I used to sauna for a while just to sweat a little. I fell asleep in the sauna (It was so nice in there) and luckily someone woke me up before I dehydrated away into oblivion. I rushed into the shower drinking as much water as
I was using to clean myself, jumped into my clothes and then caught a taxi back to the airport.

It was then I discovered that even going back to the airport was a pain! It cost me just as much to get into the airport as it did to get out. Damn taxi drivers in Dallas really know how to squeeze your wallet dry as well. You can't haggle over the price either so well couldn't really do much about the sneaking suspicion I had that I had been nicely cheated out of $10.

Went into the airport and ate at a Taco Bell because I figured at least I could minimize the damage with some cheap food. I was schoked to find out what normally cost a couple of dollars outside the airport cost 4 times as much in it. I was too hungry to not eat, so I just kept cursing the swindlers between mouthfuls of my burritos. May their dollars wilt and catch the umm... fungus I guess.

The flight to Chicago was just as uneventful as the previous one. I had successfuly tired myself out enough to sleep the entire 2 hrs into Chicago.

to be contd.