Tuesday, September 14, 2010

On the Road Again


Pinkberry and Veuve Cliquot: a balanced meal, courtesy of Dubai airport and the Emirates lounge.

I can't think of a single airport where I wish my layovers were longer, or a carrier whose flights I wish were just one hour more. It didn't even annoy me that my seat companion was talking on his cell phone the entire flight in air. Emirates is just such an amazingly pleasurable experience; even with only getting three hours of sleep last night, I stayed up the whole flight for the entertainment (Robin Hood, followed by snippets of a few episodes of Grey's Anatomy and Glee) and the food (ravioli and meatballs!). In the 3.5 hour flight to Dubai, I engage in a bit of all my guilty pleasures, which only heightens once I reach the airport (Pinkberry or Coldstone?)

It's funny to think how different my experience was this morning, flying back from Delhi. My body so tired it hurt from so little sleep, a companion who insisted on sitting next to me in the middle row even though the window seat was free... and (drumroll) cockroaches crawling around the aisles!! What's amazing is this is one of my two favorite airlines in India (although, naturally, the experience is usually much better).

That's the crazy thing about experiences here... my days are so often marked by multiple peaks of highs and lows, and not much in between.

Case in point: after my not-so-fun plane ride this morning, I arrive Hyderabad to find that Amjad's wife has made me an amazing feast for breakfast, packaged up in a tiffin (lunchbox) to bring to work. Amazingly nice! ... followed by the frustration of a meeting starting seven hours late.

But as a new-found mentor here in India says: "If everything went according to plan, where would all the fun be?"

Um, as it turns out: at the Dubai airport.

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