Terminal-ed

Welcome back to the Traveller's Tales. As it seems to happen towards the end of all my trips, my most recent transit experience goes wonky.

First week of June and me was all content and happy that I have a fixed return trip with no muck ups where I can screw up. Just to be doubly sure, me goes to the local HR chap on monday to see if my calculation of Saturday being the correct date for the expiry of my visa was correct or not. Me was quite confident that the date was correct seeing that I had arrived at the date using complex procedures involving the Oracle(TM) date function (No need to bore yourself wondering why I would do that)

Well, it seems I was wrong. Me complex procedures did not take into consideration the day I landed in the country. End result, all me superbly booked tickets are valid for a day on which I would in all likelyhood be arrested at immigration.

So begins the standard run around and get a ticket jamboree. Mail Monday to travel for a change in dates. Send out a reminder on Tuesday. Another in the evening. Call in on Wednesday morning. Am told to get in touch on Thursday. Like a dumbass that I still believe that I would get tickets for Friday. Thursday morning come in check my mail, no tickets. Call travel say all routes are overbooked. So thus begins the contemplation of alternatives, the brilliant idea that I would go and get immigration done on Friday night (as me flight was at 6AM in morning anyway) itself is shot down by the facilities I remember to have seen on arrival at the airport. No tickets till the evening. I resign myself to having give some gyaan about why i over stayed. Firday morning frantic call at 7:30 from the manager

Manager: "Are you out of the country?"
Me: "No."
Manager: "Get to office. Lets see what we can do."
Me: "OK"

So I reach work at 10AM. Get call from travel that they have ticket flying out to AMS for 1400 today but the connecting flight to BOM is only the next morning. I say can you get me an alternative route. Some more time wasting and travel comes back at 1045 saying this is the only ticket they can get. Without options me tells them to issue the tickets. Print it out, say bye to janta, run back home dunk all my luggage, have a bath and leave for the airport at 12.

Thus begins the 45 hours journey from Bucharest back to Bombay. Land in Amsterdam Friday evening. Just my luck, the hotel that is there within the airport terminal is undergoing renovation. So no rooms there. Also the dutch are not kind enough to issue on arrival visas. Would atleast have roamed about Amsterdam (Maybe would have ended up unknowingly getting hash into the country, but what the hell) So I end up with 16 hours of random roaming about the airport. Some 50 odd chinese janta also end up doing the same thing. End up dozing of on one of the reclining chairs hearing "Jig-a ,Mayo,Nihao-Ma" all around me.

Next morning get up and have breakfast and catch the bloody flight back. End up, sitting next to geriatric old woman who tells all her life's woes in a confessional and finally land in Bombay

Fun.

The lucky traveller

After staying with an expired visa in HK twice, was wondering whether I would have a repeat here.

Me visa was to expire on Saturday, I had no idea about my travel plans till Monday. Contact travel for a ticket back before Saturday telling them the reason clearly. First the chap completely ignores the request. Second, the guy comes back saying the tickets are all waitlisted. Finally, after two days, the chap does come back with a confirmed ticket. Only its on Sunday night, by which time I would have become an illegal migrant in a none too friendly (or so we hear) country.

So there me is sitting completely lost wondering what the hell to do. Get back to travel telling them clearly to get me a ticket leaving latest saturday night. Slowly the tubelight on the end switches on. Says that they will check and let me know. Thus begins two days of frantic calling every few hours to find out whether I have hope or not. Finally thursday night I get a ticket out. Only thing I have to travel via Beijing and I will be leaving Beijing at 0005 on Sunday. Something is better than nothing. Besides I thought I would be completing me emigration formalities in Shanghai in the afternoon and things would be fine.

Come saturday, after all my previous experiences with travel, I decide to leave bright and early for the flight. Booked a taxi to go to the airport. Go down at the appointed time. Wait five minutes. Wait ten. Wait fifteen. Then start getting jumpy. My phone had died out. No one was at home and I had left my key in the house as I was leaving. There I was stranded in the middle of the street with no sight of no taxi and no way to call and find out whether it is coming or not. Trudge off to the estate agents, who are two blocks away, dragging all my baggage. Somehow explain to the agent that I need to make a call, call a taxi and get the agent to tell the taxi waala were I want to go.

So successfully I end up at Shanghai Airport, only to find out that I cant pass emigration there. It will have to be done in Beijing.

With no option, get on the flight to Beijing. Get off at Beijing. No bridge here. Its two degrees C on the tarmac. All the passengers from the flight are hoarded into a bus. Thankful for the warmth from bodyheat stand as the bus then takes all around Beijing airport to arrive at the baggage claim terminal. Pick up bags to go for check in to me next flight. One weird thing, Customs check is done before check-in here. The guy at the check in counter was more worried about me expiring visa than the guy at emigration. Gives me a weird looks and finally gives me a boarding pass. Go and clear emigration at 2300. I am legal for one hour more. Thankfully flight leaves on time and after travelling twelve hours back and forth accross the Asia, I'm back home.

The week just gone by....

Monday morning get up a bit late...was supposed to go in in the
morning....was leaving home at 830....when i get call....where the
crap are you....get work as soon as possible..listen to the
pm...put mobile in pocket...get on bus...get off bus...check
pockets...no mobile...

Tuesday.....miracle happens....i reach work before 9....am dazed for
the rest of the day

Wednesday...reach at around 930...go have breakfast...come back..see
mail from PM asking to meet her...go thinking i'm going to get crap
for not doing any work...sit down...she asks...how you feel about a 1
month...max two month stint in Bombay...me
thinking...huh...where did that come from...think abt for a
moment...then signed me own death warrant by saying yes....am told i
have to leave asap...if possible get there by tomorrow morning....put
in a travel request...get tickets to travel by the 9pm flight to
Bombay...am told this is a EMEA/ES project by the new PM who is in
Pune in the afternoon...leave work at 7....reach home at 830...chuck
my clothes into a bag...reach airport at 855...to b told that i
have missed flight....again...

This is where Thursday comes in...run around at the various airline
counters in Bangalore Airport...to be told that only Jet has a flight
by which i can even hope to get to Bombay in time for Thursday
morning...buy ticket....leave Bangalore at 12...reach bombay at
2...home at 230...sleep...and am of to Lower Parel at 9am....come home
i think at 1030...eat...sleep...

Friday...home....work...home...sleep...

Saturday...wait today is saturday right?
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Guess who's back
Back again
Shady's back
Tell a friend

uhmm...

Well…I’m back….one fifteeth chink…but back I am…

Though that almost did not occur….

I was told on Friday to go get the hell out of the country…Now…my ticket was valid only on Taipei – Bangalore…that too only till 30 Sep…So when I call up the travel desk asking them to book my ticket they tell me it is not possible…you will have to raise a new travel request…It is way out of your budget and similar rot...Basically were telling me to goto hell…

Saturday was a public holiday in Hong Kong….Chinese Liberation day or some such rot…so all travel agents closed…frantic searching of airline offices result in zilch...finally reach through to Singapore Airlines reservation number…only to be very bluntly told that there are no vacant seats for travel on Monday...Next try Thai…you have a confirmed booking from Hong Kong to Bangkok….but Bangkok – Bangalore sector is unavailable…contemplate giving gaalis to the twat on the phone…but leave it…next try Cathay…seats vacant HK – Singapore – Bangalore …I’m thinking good…but the ticket will be issued only till 1pm…have to rush across the Harbour to get to the ticketing office…reach there at 1230…stand in queue get to the counter…only to realize I don’t have the cash…female there says you can come tomorrow and pay for you ticket….asgfasdgfnak…

Next day go get the ticket do some random roaming about the city after which I return at abt 12…cook…eat…pack..sleep at round 5…

Monday morning….get up at 1015..think crap...i’m screwed…needed to buy some stuff…go searching for the stuff..time 1215…ok…goto bank to say that I’m leaving, settle dues etc…time 1330….collect lunch…get going towards home ..time 1415…realize that the stuff I bought needs to be packed ...1417..start packing 1418…end packing 1425…get all the stuff down from the 19th floor to ground floor 1430…hail taxi to airport 1435…arrive at airport 1605…

Flight leaves 1550

So there I was in Chep Lai Kok International Airport Hong Kong…calmly contemplating the next outburst…goto the ticketing counter…am initially told no free flights to Bangalore till thu……After the female searches the damn system for some 15 min she comes with a flight that is going to Delhi at 2335…from there you will have to book your ticket to Bangalore…decide to take the risk…loaf about the airport for 7 hours…get on flight arrive in Delhi at 3am…clear customs etc and arrive at delhi domestic at 4am…bheek maangofied at the various airline counters for the cheapest ticket that i could find…finally caught flight at 710 and reached home in Bangalore at 11

Thus ends the tale of one slightly drowsy traveler….

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