I'm back in Bangalore. The new airport is nice. So are the roads leading to it. The facilities are good too. I landed at 4 am last Thursday and spent an hour outside the airport enjoying the amazing coolness of Bangalore. Reminded me of the original Bangalore which was relatively pollution free around 7-8 years back before the congestion epidemic struck. The taxi driver was a jolly fellow. He took me to be a new visitor and I didn't bother correcting him. He was animatedly chatting about the city and it's sights & sounds. I gave him a good tip.
The journey was nice. I left Riyadh and reached Sharjah for a journey break where my friend Robinson joined me en route to Bangalore. I shopped a bit in the duty free. Air Arabia is a budget airline and you have to spend for everything from water, headphones, newspaper to meals and other items taken for granted on other airlines. It's a nice experience. Something out of the usual. But yeah, you save the money.
I have an anecdote that happened on the way to share. In Sharjah airport I purchased a $10 telephone card to talk with my parents and other friends. I was waiting in the line to make calls when an old lady walked up to me and asked if I could help her make one local call to her son who was apparently outside the airport. She was a 60 something Indian lady. I said fine and asked for her calling card. She didn't have one and asked if she could use mine. I said okay and she handed me her son's number and I dialled. I gave her the phone and she spoke happily announcing that she had reached Sharjah and would be out soon. She hung up. Then she asked if she could make another call to her other son back in India. I kept a straight face and asked for the number. This time she started crying and I figured out that this was her first trip aboard and away from her younger son who was in India. She had come to Dubai to stay with her elder son for a few months. I felt sad for her. To give her some privacy I walked away to take a short stroll around the airport. I came back after about 2-3 mins hoping she had hung up and I could make at least one call. But she was still on. I glanced at the credit getting deducted at every pulse. There was about $4 left. I sighed to myself and went away to sit in the waiting lounge. After a while the old woman came up to me with my card and handed it back. She thanked and blessed me. She went towards the immigration and was soon lost among the milling crowds associated with a airport. I sighed and smiled to myself. Meanwhile I walked to the phone booth and inserted my card. The credit left was $10. I was speechless. She had bought a new card for me.
The journey was nice. I left Riyadh and reached Sharjah for a journey break where my friend Robinson joined me en route to Bangalore. I shopped a bit in the duty free. Air Arabia is a budget airline and you have to spend for everything from water, headphones, newspaper to meals and other items taken for granted on other airlines. It's a nice experience. Something out of the usual. But yeah, you save the money.
I have an anecdote that happened on the way to share. In Sharjah airport I purchased a $10 telephone card to talk with my parents and other friends. I was waiting in the line to make calls when an old lady walked up to me and asked if I could help her make one local call to her son who was apparently outside the airport. She was a 60 something Indian lady. I said fine and asked for her calling card. She didn't have one and asked if she could use mine. I said okay and she handed me her son's number and I dialled. I gave her the phone and she spoke happily announcing that she had reached Sharjah and would be out soon. She hung up. Then she asked if she could make another call to her other son back in India. I kept a straight face and asked for the number. This time she started crying and I figured out that this was her first trip aboard and away from her younger son who was in India. She had come to Dubai to stay with her elder son for a few months. I felt sad for her. To give her some privacy I walked away to take a short stroll around the airport. I came back after about 2-3 mins hoping she had hung up and I could make at least one call. But she was still on. I glanced at the credit getting deducted at every pulse. There was about $4 left. I sighed to myself and went away to sit in the waiting lounge. After a while the old woman came up to me with my card and handed it back. She thanked and blessed me. She went towards the immigration and was soon lost among the milling crowds associated with a airport. I sighed and smiled to myself. Meanwhile I walked to the phone booth and inserted my card. The credit left was $10. I was speechless. She had bought a new card for me.
