Now for the story behind my early departure from Kathmandu. So, I normally never reconfirm any of my flights before I fly, mostly because most major airlines don’t require it. However, rumor had it that Royal Nepal Airlines was fairly unreliable, so I went to their office in Kathmandu to confirm my departure flight for Oct. 31. I was then informed that they ‘weren’t actually going to be flying that day.’ Ok, great. Now what. With this new pertinent information, they simply tell me to just come back tomorrow. So I do, and what’s the first thing they try to tell me, ‘oh just come back tomorrow.’ I don’t think so! We are going to solve this problem. After an hour of getting no where and what is looking like no solutions, my head starts to ache with the mixed thoughts of when will I actually be able to get out of this country and planning my next trek if I get stuck here for a while. I then help the guy figure out that its possible for me to move my flights up a day or two, all of which still have open seats. I should know at this point not to push my luck, so of course my semi-productive day ends with the information that BA is closed for the day and I must come back for the third time tomorrow. Good gravy. The next day, as soon as I think we’re really making some progress, he tries to tell me something along the lines of, ‘ok you’re booked to leave tonight on Royal Nepal Airlines and I’ll try to book the British Airways flight for you, but you need to talk to someone when you get to New Delhi to make sure they are confirmed.’ “Ok,” I say to myself, “be flexible.” I have the opportunity to get out of Nepal, but I have no idea if I’m going to get stuck in Delhi. Well, let’s do it, what’s traveling without a little adventure.New Delhi, I have found, is a bit of a stressful place to make an international transfer. Let’s just say it requires a lot of patience and trust. Basically you get off the plane and look for someone who might be ground crew working for that airline. Tell them you want to transfer and then they’ll stand you in this corner next to the customs lines. They then hand write down your name, passport number, transfer flight, and luggage tag numbers. We then walk back upstairs and are told to ‘sit and wait’ in the transit lounge (basically a large hallway about 150 yards long, 30 yards wide, and not nearly enough seats). My layover was 9 hours there. After about 6 hours someone finally addresses a group of us, “Anyone flying on British Airways?” A couple of us around her nod and then she asks for our passports and tickets and says she’ll be back soon. Two hours later, an hour before our flight takes off, I’m starting to get a little anxious with still no passport or confirmation that I’m actually going to get on this flight. 45 minutes before take off a lady returns, “British Airways? Follow me.” A couple of us follow her, identify our luggage, and are handed our passports and official boarding passes. Hurray, I’m really on my way home. Talk about an inefficient, very confusing and concerning process. Having been through a similar process there twice now, I suppose I have learned that it just seems to work out ok. Controlled chaos?
35 hours of traveling later, I am happy to be home safe and sound. It has been a little strange getting back into my normal routine, after a very simple life style this past month. It was so good to see all of my kids at work again, and it helped that they were just as excited to see me. I am already missing Rob and Ryan. They were great traveling companions. I had a really great trip trekking in Nepal! I absolutely loved being active out of doors in good company. It was very ideal and something I find great joy in.
