Bangalore, Day 14, Part 1

[bjarvis]

It's been a great trip but I'm ready to go home: I miss my bed, my square dancing, my friends and mostly my hubbies. I'd go back in an instant though. There are somethings I didn't get to do, including riding the new metro, riding in an auto-rickshaw and seeing an elephant. I'd also set aside time for an eye exam & new glasses and see about getting some tailored clothes. I regret not stopping by KFC to see how the local menu differs from North America. I still wouldn't drive in Bangalore though.

I noticed a couple of cars today which had a sticker on the back urging anyone who witnesses the vehicle being driven rashly to call the number below. Frankly, the number looked 12 digits long: who is going to remember that when they're dodging a fast moving vehicle? And seriously, just how much worse does a Bangalore driver have to get to be labeled "rash"? My mind can't fathom it.

Checking out of the hotel was a novel experience in that the staff had no concept of a check out time: you check out at whatever hour you desire instead of the staff hounding you out by 11am or so. Still, it was a longer process than I've experienced before as they gave me copies of everything I ever signed the past two weeks: room service, laundry service, travel & driver services, etc.. The master account ran four pages but the grand total was just shy of 90,000 rupees, about $1.800. That is one hell of a bargain.

Checking in at the airport was relatively easy. The personal body scans at security were minimal but they examined every item in every carry-on, rejecting dangerous items like chapstick and chewing gum. My mess o' power cables for my tablet, phone camera and laptop caused some momentary consternation but I had the distinct impression I was given lighter treatment than the Indian travellers around me.

I also thought it interesting that security screening is segregated by sex. It's not a simple "ladies may opt for the scan & pat down by female security if they chose," but rather men are pulled from the line and ordered to one set of lines while women are ordered to another with no consideration of couples or families travelling together. It caused some significant delay as families had to sort & assig their travel docs before being separated.

I also thought it was a little odd that the process for documenting my departure from India was just as onerous as my arrival: forms to be completed, explanations for my visit, details of where I went, etc.. I expected that on arrival, but what are they going to do as I'm already one foot out the door?

I was happily surprised to learn I could get 45 min of free wifi at the Bangalore airport but the applicatin procedure requires receiving a serial number & authorization code via mobile text messaging so I enabled roaming on my mobile for the first time. Hopefully that text message won't cost $10,000.

The hotel and airport staff (among many others) have been so incredibly helpful these past two weeks. There's always someone to look after my luggage, make arrangements on my behalf, run errands as needed, etc.. I'm seriously not used to having things done for me on this scale but I think if Kent & Michael put in a bit more effort, I could grow into it.

Hey, Air France! I gave you two full weeks to equip your Airbus 340 planes with electrical outlets but I'm not seeing any improvement. WTF?! You are beginning to annoy me althogh I will admit your bathroom tissue is a vast improvement over the coarse-grain sandpaper which seems to be common in India.

One of the flight attendants looks like a tall version of billeyler --but less gay. I'm tempted to ask him an accounting or square dance question but he'd probably toss me out the door over the Balkans or something since I've also insulted their planes. The French can be so touchy.

The Bangalore-Paris hop is about 10.5 hours and it doesn't appear to be popular: perhaps only a third of the economy class is used, but that means more space to stretch and sleep. There are still lines at the toilets though. I slept about five hours in mixed degrees of comfort. My throat feels raw but I'm not sure if that's caused by dry cabin air or the insecticide fogging process as we taxied from the gate.

And now that I'm at Charles De Gaulle Airport, I had to go through security all over again, as though they could possibly be any more intrusive or thorough than Bangalore. If I fly internationally again soon, I will consider paying a lot more for a direct flight or find a connection somewhere else. Other airports may do the same, but I know for certain how inefficient this one is so I'm willing to take a risk others might be better.

Charging my toys and boarding in an hour...

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

Next time, instead of just seeing an elephant, you could try to get a ride on one. That's a photo worth sending home. Just sit facing the front: elephants fart In proportion to their size. J

[bix02138.livejournal.com]

I suspect the double security is a function of airports built with different security regimes in mind than those which now are in place, and (possibly) local bureaucracies and/or labor agreements.

Flying from Boston to Venice we had to pass through security in both Boston and Rome (and Rome was the craziest rabbit-maze ever).

As for the sex-segregation in Bangalore, it may be that this is the easiest way of dealing with issues of gender in India's multicultural, multireligious culture (wherein some groups have taboos about strange men and women in close proximity). It may simply be less hassle for them to separate everyone.

[rwgill.livejournal.com]

Thanks for sharing the details of your trip.

Welcome home (since I figure you won't see this comment until you are back in the U.S.)

[rsc.livejournal.com]

I assume you had to change terminals at Charles de Gaulle, which inevitably means going through security again. I'm not fond of that airport as a transfer point either, but it's often the only sensible option.

[excessor.livejournal.com]

On my last trip from Bangalore, I was traveling with two coworkers, a man and a tall, blonde, buxomy woman who is afraid of everything. We, too, were segregated as we went through security. There were two lines, and women were directed to small wooden house, wherein there were women who would inspect or pat down female travelers in private. It looked like a guardhouse you might buy from Sears & Roebuck out of a catalogue. My female coworker told me that the inspection wasn't very thorough, although they tried to sell her linens and other textile goods.

For men it was different. One stands on a small platform and is inspected by someone from the armed forces, complete with uniform and machine gun. The Army guard motioned me over to him and looked me up and down as I stood on the raised platform. No one else could hear us. He smiled.

He: You've got big muscles.
I: I'm trying! But you must have muscles, too, with all your military training.
He: [ smiling shyly ] Not like yours!

Normally, a man in uniform making nice compliments is a fantasy, but I wasn't feeling well, so I let him go.

One of the flight attendants looks like a tall version of billeyler --but less gay.

Isn't ev…never mind.

I don't like transferring in France. Frankfurt is far nicer and while you have to do security more than once, at least you don't change buildings and there are clean places to find a bite to eat. When traveling from California to India, I traditionally have done the SFO to Tokyo Narita to Singapore route. I rest there for a couple of days before heading on to Chennai/Bangalore.

[billeyler.livejournal.com]

I hope that someone looking like me was a good thing. :-)

Cheers on being back home from your first India adventure! I enjoyed your posts.

[weekilter.livejournal.com]

"I noticed a couple of cars today which had a sticker on the back urging anyone who witnesses the vehicle being driven rashly to call the number below. Frankly, the number looked 12 digits long: who is going to remember that when they're dodging a fast moving vehicle?"

But can you do it with 10?