My first trip to USA
20 Feb 2009 20:00
After finishing all the packing, I was all set to go. The company provided cab arrived on time and we made it early to the airport. After bidding a tear-free, short and sweet farewell to the family, I proceeded to the security check area.
I had a shadow of doubt about the weight of my baggage and if it will be rejected. Luckily, the security check went fine and I proceeded to immigration. A fellow tamilian noticed me dutifully filling my immigration form and he handed over his form to me. I was glad to fill it out for him as he seemed quite lost. After finishing the formalities, it was time to board the flight.
We took a bus from the airport gate to the plane. As usual, there was no place to sit :P I got to my seat and was pretty nervous as it was my first flight. The person close to me was atleast 60 years old and he was chilling out with a newspaper! That gave me some confidence and indeed the takeoff was just fine. Not even close to a roller coaster ride!
The flight ride was pretty boring. There was no entertainment system as it was a domestic flight to Mumbai. Ten minutes prior to landing, I felt a severe head ache and it was worsening. Somehow after the landing things were normal again. Turns out I didnt have any 'ear protection' and that caused the headache. Dont ask me, it was mom's theory :P
21 Feb 2009 02:20
We got out of the flight and headed to the Mumbai airport for a long halt. Our flight to Chicago was due only at 7:55. I made friends with a fellow Indian who was on the way to London. Just happened that his flight was at 7:00 am and he had a long wait ahead, too. After two coffees, some chit chat with the UK friend, it was finally time to board the flight to Chicago
21 Feb 2009 07:55
This flight was very promising. It had an entertainment system with music, movies and some other stuff. There were even a couple of tamil movies!
We were all set to fly from Mumbai to Chicago. But wait. There was some traffic on the runway and it caused a 20 min delay. At around 08:20 we were ready to take off and this time I was ready. I took out a scarf and wrapped it around my ears, granny style :P Takeoff was smooth.
It was time for food. The person near me looked American and he handled the bread and butter well with the fork. I tried to follow his style and it worked. I was cutting bread and applying butter in style! The flight was long and painful (for the legs atleast). I managed to watch a film I always wanted to watch, but kept evading me - Billa (2007, Tamil). It was good.
I also managed to watch 'When in vegas'. It was pretty funny.
21 Feb xx:xx
We landed in Frankfurt Germany for transit and the pilot announced the outside temperatue - 4 degree celsius. I instantly dashed for my gloves and jerkin. It was indeed cold when we eventually made it out. But it wasn't too bad. We took another bus to get into the gates of the world's second busiest airport.
After a 45 min wait in a room with packed chairs, we were on the way to board the flight for part 2 of the journey.
There was a family with a small kid in front of me. The kid kept crying. The immigration officer told (with a strange accent) "Crying kids will stay in Frankfurt". The kid stopped crying. We had a good laugh :)
22 Feb xx:xx
After Germany, the flight was pretty normal and we reached Chicago airport after 9 hours of flight. The pilot announced the outside temperature to be -4 degrees celsius! When I went out, it was indeed freezing. But it wasnt terrible. We made our way to the 'Port of entry' immigration check and there was a big queue for the "Non US-citizens" queue. The immigration check was pretty smooth and I got my baggage (with a little difficulty) and checked the baggage into my next flight - a domestic to Dayton.
It you thought all was hunky dory so far, you'd be wrong. For, Chicago was the starting point of all fun!
I had to make my way to gate C17. En route, I lost ten minutes in physical security as 'something' was setting off the metal detector. It was my belt!! After the security check, I had about 15 mins to board the flight, but quite a distance to cover by foot.
22 Feb 19:00 EST
The Chicago airport is built for the busy. There is a 'flat escalator' which will move you forward (instead of up). If you WALK on it, you will go much faster. After two such 'flat elevator' walks and some looking around at signs, I arrived at gate C-17. A black officer welcomed me and told me I just missed my flight. He told me to go to gate F12 and check for the next flight.
22 Feb 19:15 EST
I went to gate F12 and the airlines people told me I have a confirmed ticket on the next flight. Well, thats awesome. Just a two hour delay. I'd be flying at 21:02 EST!! Things were looking good. I called my manager (with a friendly samaritan's cell phone) and informed there'd be a two hour delay.
22 Feb 20:00 EST
I went around looking for phones that worked for long distance calls. My search was in vain. None of the phones were useful for calling long distance (other US states). Finally I went back to my gate and was shocked to see the display board. It said "21:02 to Dayton - Cancelled".
Ok. Now I was in trouble. I was told to go to gate F2 and speak to Customer service. They told me the next flight was either in 25 mins to a close-by town OR at 23 Feb 7:35 am EST!
Now that my baggage had gone to Dayton in my 'missed' flight, I didnt want to go to any other city. So I told them I'd take the 7:35 flight next morning. That meant a whole night long wait in Chicago airport. I teamed up with a group of Americans who were also stranded because of the cancelled flight. We introduced to each other and they were glad to help me out in my 'first visit'.
22 Feb 22:00 EST
We went to a nearby hotel named Candlewood suites. The room rent was 49$ and that was manageable for me, even with cash. I ultimately payed with my traveller's cheque. We planned to leave in the 11:35 flight next morning, but I was concerned about my baggage that would have already reached its destination!
The hotel room was very good. It has a very comfy bed, a tv, a mini kitchen and a good bathroom. I ordered a pizza and they delivered it in 30 mins. In the interim, I used the hotel phone to call up others whom I wanted to inform. After having pizza and watching a bit of tv (Who wants to be a millionaire), I was feeling pretty sleepy.
23 Feb 05:00 EST
After sleeping for a decent amount of time, I woke up at 5 am. Called up one of my American friends and told them Im trying for the 7:35 flight. After checking out, I was at the airport in no time. After roaming around for a while, got a fruit salad and a copy of USA today and was skimming through it. At 06:45 hrs, my name appeared on the waiting list for the 7:35 flight, I was able to get a seat on the 7:35.
23 Feb 07:35 EST
Made it out of Chicago at last! After a short 35 min flight, we landed in Dayton. My ultimate destination. In comparison to the bustling Chicago airport, this one was quiet and small.
I immediately rushed to the baggage area and managed to find one of my big babbages. The second big baggage was missing! Lodged a complaint with the airport folks and left the airport. The weather was indeed very cold here. The wind made it worse. Since there was no one to pick me up, I spotted a taxi stand and made my way there. Got into a taxi and finally made it to apartment.
My ex-colleague here was kind enough to mark and label all things related to cooking and a colleage here helped me get into the apartment and settle down.
23 Feb xx:xx EST
After a while, I thought of unpacking the one baggage that I managed to find. To my utter shock, the last (maybe the mightiest) comedy was in store. We didnt know how to set a pass code for the luggage. So we just used keys to lock it. Well, just so happens that someone else (during the course of the journey) had kindly (and quietly) locked my baggage with a 3 digit code that I didnt know!!
This was indeed a hilarious situation. Out of my two big baggages, one was lost (and allegedly ON THE WAY) and the other was locked. I just had to try out (a possible) 999 combinations before I manage to unlock it!!!
I waited for a while, had some food and started with the himalayan task of cracking a 3 digit code. Out of sheer luck, the suitcase opened at the fourth code - 003!!!!
And in the evening, my other baggage too arrived safely.
I sure had a long, adventurous and fun flight!
After finishing all the packing, I was all set to go. The company provided cab arrived on time and we made it early to the airport. After bidding a tear-free, short and sweet farewell to the family, I proceeded to the security check area.
I had a shadow of doubt about the weight of my baggage and if it will be rejected. Luckily, the security check went fine and I proceeded to immigration. A fellow tamilian noticed me dutifully filling my immigration form and he handed over his form to me. I was glad to fill it out for him as he seemed quite lost. After finishing the formalities, it was time to board the flight.
We took a bus from the airport gate to the plane. As usual, there was no place to sit :P I got to my seat and was pretty nervous as it was my first flight. The person close to me was atleast 60 years old and he was chilling out with a newspaper! That gave me some confidence and indeed the takeoff was just fine. Not even close to a roller coaster ride!
The flight ride was pretty boring. There was no entertainment system as it was a domestic flight to Mumbai. Ten minutes prior to landing, I felt a severe head ache and it was worsening. Somehow after the landing things were normal again. Turns out I didnt have any 'ear protection' and that caused the headache. Dont ask me, it was mom's theory :P
21 Feb 2009 02:20
We got out of the flight and headed to the Mumbai airport for a long halt. Our flight to Chicago was due only at 7:55. I made friends with a fellow Indian who was on the way to London. Just happened that his flight was at 7:00 am and he had a long wait ahead, too. After two coffees, some chit chat with the UK friend, it was finally time to board the flight to Chicago
21 Feb 2009 07:55
This flight was very promising. It had an entertainment system with music, movies and some other stuff. There were even a couple of tamil movies!
We were all set to fly from Mumbai to Chicago. But wait. There was some traffic on the runway and it caused a 20 min delay. At around 08:20 we were ready to take off and this time I was ready. I took out a scarf and wrapped it around my ears, granny style :P Takeoff was smooth.
It was time for food. The person near me looked American and he handled the bread and butter well with the fork. I tried to follow his style and it worked. I was cutting bread and applying butter in style! The flight was long and painful (for the legs atleast). I managed to watch a film I always wanted to watch, but kept evading me - Billa (2007, Tamil). It was good.
I also managed to watch 'When in vegas'. It was pretty funny.
21 Feb xx:xx
We landed in Frankfurt Germany for transit and the pilot announced the outside temperatue - 4 degree celsius. I instantly dashed for my gloves and jerkin. It was indeed cold when we eventually made it out. But it wasn't too bad. We took another bus to get into the gates of the world's second busiest airport.
After a 45 min wait in a room with packed chairs, we were on the way to board the flight for part 2 of the journey.
There was a family with a small kid in front of me. The kid kept crying. The immigration officer told (with a strange accent) "Crying kids will stay in Frankfurt". The kid stopped crying. We had a good laugh :)
22 Feb xx:xx
After Germany, the flight was pretty normal and we reached Chicago airport after 9 hours of flight. The pilot announced the outside temperature to be -4 degrees celsius! When I went out, it was indeed freezing. But it wasnt terrible. We made our way to the 'Port of entry' immigration check and there was a big queue for the "Non US-citizens" queue. The immigration check was pretty smooth and I got my baggage (with a little difficulty) and checked the baggage into my next flight - a domestic to Dayton.
It you thought all was hunky dory so far, you'd be wrong. For, Chicago was the starting point of all fun!
I had to make my way to gate C17. En route, I lost ten minutes in physical security as 'something' was setting off the metal detector. It was my belt!! After the security check, I had about 15 mins to board the flight, but quite a distance to cover by foot.
22 Feb 19:00 EST
The Chicago airport is built for the busy. There is a 'flat escalator' which will move you forward (instead of up). If you WALK on it, you will go much faster. After two such 'flat elevator' walks and some looking around at signs, I arrived at gate C-17. A black officer welcomed me and told me I just missed my flight. He told me to go to gate F12 and check for the next flight.
22 Feb 19:15 EST
I went to gate F12 and the airlines people told me I have a confirmed ticket on the next flight. Well, thats awesome. Just a two hour delay. I'd be flying at 21:02 EST!! Things were looking good. I called my manager (with a friendly samaritan's cell phone) and informed there'd be a two hour delay.
22 Feb 20:00 EST
I went around looking for phones that worked for long distance calls. My search was in vain. None of the phones were useful for calling long distance (other US states). Finally I went back to my gate and was shocked to see the display board. It said "21:02 to Dayton - Cancelled".
Ok. Now I was in trouble. I was told to go to gate F2 and speak to Customer service. They told me the next flight was either in 25 mins to a close-by town OR at 23 Feb 7:35 am EST!
Now that my baggage had gone to Dayton in my 'missed' flight, I didnt want to go to any other city. So I told them I'd take the 7:35 flight next morning. That meant a whole night long wait in Chicago airport. I teamed up with a group of Americans who were also stranded because of the cancelled flight. We introduced to each other and they were glad to help me out in my 'first visit'.
22 Feb 22:00 EST
We went to a nearby hotel named Candlewood suites. The room rent was 49$ and that was manageable for me, even with cash. I ultimately payed with my traveller's cheque. We planned to leave in the 11:35 flight next morning, but I was concerned about my baggage that would have already reached its destination!
The hotel room was very good. It has a very comfy bed, a tv, a mini kitchen and a good bathroom. I ordered a pizza and they delivered it in 30 mins. In the interim, I used the hotel phone to call up others whom I wanted to inform. After having pizza and watching a bit of tv (Who wants to be a millionaire), I was feeling pretty sleepy.
23 Feb 05:00 EST
After sleeping for a decent amount of time, I woke up at 5 am. Called up one of my American friends and told them Im trying for the 7:35 flight. After checking out, I was at the airport in no time. After roaming around for a while, got a fruit salad and a copy of USA today and was skimming through it. At 06:45 hrs, my name appeared on the waiting list for the 7:35 flight, I was able to get a seat on the 7:35.
23 Feb 07:35 EST
Made it out of Chicago at last! After a short 35 min flight, we landed in Dayton. My ultimate destination. In comparison to the bustling Chicago airport, this one was quiet and small.
I immediately rushed to the baggage area and managed to find one of my big babbages. The second big baggage was missing! Lodged a complaint with the airport folks and left the airport. The weather was indeed very cold here. The wind made it worse. Since there was no one to pick me up, I spotted a taxi stand and made my way there. Got into a taxi and finally made it to apartment.
My ex-colleague here was kind enough to mark and label all things related to cooking and a colleage here helped me get into the apartment and settle down.
23 Feb xx:xx EST
After a while, I thought of unpacking the one baggage that I managed to find. To my utter shock, the last (maybe the mightiest) comedy was in store. We didnt know how to set a pass code for the luggage. So we just used keys to lock it. Well, just so happens that someone else (during the course of the journey) had kindly (and quietly) locked my baggage with a 3 digit code that I didnt know!!
This was indeed a hilarious situation. Out of my two big baggages, one was lost (and allegedly ON THE WAY) and the other was locked. I just had to try out (a possible) 999 combinations before I manage to unlock it!!!
I waited for a while, had some food and started with the himalayan task of cracking a 3 digit code. Out of sheer luck, the suitcase opened at the fourth code - 003!!!!
And in the evening, my other baggage too arrived safely.
I sure had a long, adventurous and fun flight!
Labels: adventure, baggage, Chennai, Chicago, Dayton, flight, fun, India, Miamisburg, Mumbai, trip, USA
posted by srinivasang87 at
5:19 PM
|
2 comments
