A decade of flying...

Next month (22nd to be precise) would mark the 10th anniversary of my first flight! A decade!! Time has really flown. When I took my first flight, I was a diminutive (almost) 20 year old in my 3rd year of engineering studies. Destination: America. Perhaps it was symbolic as that flight marked the start of a decade which I can call the American decade of my life after two decades in Delhi, India. In any case, it was beyond my wildest dreams a few months before that day that it could happen. I (with many others) had applied for a one semester exchange program to the University of Massachussets in a whim. There was an interview (of which I do not remember much) and it turned out that I was selected. And to top it all, the other person selected was a wingmate, Amit Sinha! This was perfect. That started the time of preparations. One thing that I remember distinctly was that IIT wanted not to pay their share of the fare to America citing financial problems. We did not give in and told them that they had advertised it, and they should honour that. The director called us to his office (the only time I went there) and had a meeting with us. He wanted to know what kind of families we were from, and when he found that both of us were from middle-class, single-salaried families, he consented to pay half of the fare (but for the last time). He was the one who found out the cheapest ticket (Kuwait airways) which at that time cost Rs 28,000 (approx. $620 with today's exchange rate) for the round-trip.

Finally, the day arrived when we were supposed to leave. The bad part about the flight that it left at 6 AM which means the whole night was spoilt. We went from home to the hostel and then we (I and Bhuvan) went upstairs and chatted the night away, while mom and dad slept in the car. Then we left for the airport (I don't remember how Amit got there from the hostel). I remember that a few people accompanied us on bikes, and we arrived around 3 AM. I distinctly remember the shirt I wore, white with blue stripes. I also remember a couple anecdotes: One from Chander, saying that I should wear a tie, so that they respect me on the plane, and the second from Jetly when he told me that I will be hot on the plane and I told him that I will open it, and he asked - What, the window, and I said, no the long-sleeves (sorry poor joke, may be). Then we were airborne and soon we landed in Kuwait. It was a gleaming airport, much in contrast with the Delhi airport. I still remember how the airport looked like (although I have been there once more since). And then we had another stop in London (I remember the view of London from the air - hopefully, we will have a chance to see it from the ground next month, almost exactly to the day I saw it from the air for the first time). After a short encounter with the Brits, we were outbound again, and this time the first tangible sight that I remember was the cars on a Long Island freeway, on the 'other' side compared to what I had been used to all my life. Soon, we had landed in JFK airport in New York City, which was to become one of my favorite cities in the whole world. And so began life away from home...I did go back after 4 months, but then returned later to the shores of Delaware river. That story will probably be told later.

My latest flight took me to Gothenburg, Sweden, not so far from the country I call home currently, Norway. It was a much shorter journey, and it brought me to a city that lives and breathes water. I was there for a meeting, and we took a ferry every day from the hotel to the meeting location. We also took a ferry to one of the outlying islands one evening, for a beautiful evening in a restaurant.

It is amazing where life has brought me, and the family God has blessed me with! It is wonderful to see the world, and I long to see more. So, hopefully, the flights will continue. Two trips are already planned...first to Paris for our 6th anniversary, and then to UK next month! Let me fasten my seatbelts and prepare for the adventure...