A Tale of Two Duty Frees

After all the morning excitement the flight out to Dubai was very relaxing. Nobody in the third seat and all the legroom that you could wish for. D almost exhausted the available episodes of The Big Bang Theory while R watched a totally implausible movie starring Ray Winstone as a Glasgow polis.

Congestion over Dubai means  a late landing. We are a little worried about the tight connection but Emirates have it organised and we are shepherded to the front of the security queue and then urged to make best speed straight to our gate. This means bypassing the Duty Free which has consequences later in the day.

Before leaving Glasgow we had received a call from the Emirates help desk to check that things were going OK. The separate seating was mentioned and a solution found. At the gate boarding was under way and we were soon in our adjacent seats right at the front of cattle class. Good for legroom but rather close to several small children.

Any chance of sleep went out of the window when breakfast was served an hour into the flight. This did not feel right at 11.30 pm UK time. We did get the never ending thrill of watching the sun rise over India from 37,000 feet. As we started the descent the pilot told us it was foggy in Kolkata. He wasn't kidding. We felt the bump on the tarmac before we could see the ground.

 The Foreigners landing form that has to be completed seems to have got shorter. Or maybe we have just got used to it. While we wait for our bags we spot the stacked pallets that comprise the duty free and after we get the luggage we invest in a couple of medicinal bottles. Just for emergencies you understand.

At this point R starts to feel sick and has to dash for the ladies. D heads to the prepaid taxi counter. As he gets there the bag with two bottles of brandy falls to the floor. Both are smashed. The taxi is paid and D goes in search of R while the cleaning crew race in to see if there is anything to salvage. At this point D realises that he was short changed by 100 rupees at the taxi counter. R's ashen demeanour is not cheered by any of these tidings.

We found the taxi rank with the uninvited assistance of a couple of hustlers who wish to be tipped in foreign money. What it is to have dreams. Our lift was an ever dependable yellow Ambassador, driven by a laconic youth who seemed worried about getting frostbitten ears. The fog had lifted a bit and we were happy to have the windows open. The traffic seemed very quiet, probably due to it being Sunday. Our man made good progress and we were soon at the good old Fairlawn Hotel where our room was ready.

A bit of a panic

Lawdy. What a to do! As if heading off for six weeks of fun and sun in India wasn't excitement enough we had a double dose of extra thrills this morning.

Woke early this morning and saw that there had been a light sprinkling of snow. Thirty minutes later it was snowing hard and settling. Hardly Storm Jonas but enough to make driving a bit tricky. Should we change our plans for getting to the airport?

D remembered to do the online check in that he should have done yesterday. "Your reference is not recognised". Panic! Reboot computer. No change. Call Emirates help desk. Hmmm! " Your flight today was cancelled because you have booked to fly from Heathrow to Singapore on 13th February.

Oh no we haven't. After holding for a few minutes we were told that we could still get our flights but that our prebooked pairs of seats had gone. Bum!

By now the snow was worse so we called number two daughter to cancel our lift and made our way to the station. Trains were running OK and we were soon on the way to Glasgow. Probably the emptiest train we will see for the next six weeks and no need to book in advance. We even got Senior Discount.

After a brisk march through the sleet to the bus station we found the Airport Express coach. The journey could best be summed up as Heavy Boots and No Prisoners. Arrived at the airport at around the time that we had planned to leave home.

 Straight to the Emirates desk where we were able to confirm that we did indeed have tickets for the flights that we wanted and were able to salvage emergency exit seats for the first flight. No such luck for Dubai - Kolkata. Seats 3 rows apart from each other and the flight absolutely full.

Now. What to do to kill three hours at the airport?

Almost Time

January almost done and it is nearly time for our annual migration to warmer climes. The packing is (mostly) complete , 17 train trips booked and 18 hotel/homestay reservations made.

The itinerary this year will include all the regular stuff - train trips, hair raising car rides, bird watching, exotic meals, cold Kingfishers with maybe the odd tram, plenty of Himalayas and if we are really lucky a tiger or two.

D-Day is Saturday 30th January and we hope to be posting regularly after that

If you are new to Radinja blogs here is what went before.

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