Waiting in Mumbai

Our flight on Air India went very well. They gave us pyjamas to wear and the food was tasty and ample.
Now getting through customs took a little longer. Apparently Dianne struggled with her biometrics. Her fingers were so dry that the machine could not read her fingerprints. She was instructed to huff and puff on her fingers before laying them on the machine. This took several attempts. With passports stamped and visa’s accepted we went on our merry way!

When taking our luggage (yes both pieces made it to Mumbai) to the transfer location, we are informed that our flight to Udaipur is delayed until 1600. That is about 12 hours from now if all goes well. We are both optimistic that we can spend some time in the airport lounge, so we go through security to domestic departures. We arrive at the lounge and are courteously informed that our access is restricted to a maximum of 4 hours before departure. Disappointing!

We are in no mans land and we have hit a wall. We both are so tired. There are no ATM’s in this area; to leave this area is almost impossible. Once you have gone through security’ you are hooped! So here we are people watching, writing the blog and watching the clock-tick, tock, tick, tock.

While we are waiting, (Dianne is sleeping) I am approached by a local family. It is a Dad and Mom with their two grown children. The son speaks very good English and he says where they are from and where they are going and begins asking questions about our life. He translates some details to his father, who is not quite as fluent in English. We learn a lot about each other. Their daughter is doing post graduate studies in Chemistry, the old man is a real estate broker. We discuss the price of real estate here and in Canada, They are amazed that Canada is so small, with only 37 million people. I point out it is big, but sparsely populated. Their flight is boarding now, so we get pictures and say a warm farewell.

As we head over to lounge to get a bite to eat we marvel at the amazing artwork that is displayed in Mumbai airport. Both the domestic and international terminals are quite striking and beautiful.

Tom ordered me an egg, fried hard over. The picture is what arrived. We need to work on his communication skills!Read more