Feels Like Yesterday
Finally, I landed in the US of A. The time read 11:30AM Pacific Standard Time, Saturday, 9th October 2010.
The flight from Hong Kong to San Francisco had been, thankfully, tolerable. Thanks to a wide range of available movies and TV shows, it kept me busy during the entire 12 hour flight. Also, the seat next to me was empty - so I did get a lot more room for myself this time around!
12 hours is a long time. Funny thing is, I left Bangalore at 2:40AM Friday and reached Hong Kong at 11:30AM local time Saturday . From Hong Kong, I left at 2:40PM Saturday and reached San Francisco at 11:30AM local time - Saturday. Yeah, I'm still foggy and I still need to brush my teeth, but worse than all that is that I seem to have got my time all mixed up. I guess it's pretty normal though for a first time traveler.
When I landed in America, naturally I had my share of expectations. I mean, thanks to all the movies and stories and pictures, there was a virtual image already in my mind even before I had actually seen the place. So when I opened the gates and stepped on to the American soil, some things were actually Indian. For instance, a few cabbies asking if I wanted a taxi. Being my natural Indian instinct, I avoided them. This was a mistake as I later found out. Anyway, the wait time in the taxi queue was long but finally, I got a cab who didn't know where my hotel was. Not to worry, he said. GPS was the answer. And a very efficient one if I can say so.
My cabbie was a Vietnamese guy settled in US since 1979. We spoke for a while before we hit a mammoth traffic pile up towards the Golden Gate. Apparently as we found out from the FM, a couple of accidents and an air show had completely choked the Route 101 - and there we were, chugging along super slowly. It took us about 4 hours to cover roughly 25 miles.
Right now, I'm still sleeping and waking up. Almost lost in the time warp. It's already Sunday in India, but to me, it still feels like yesterday. I think I just need to eat more of the pizza.
Till then, cheerio!
The flight from Hong Kong to San Francisco had been, thankfully, tolerable. Thanks to a wide range of available movies and TV shows, it kept me busy during the entire 12 hour flight. Also, the seat next to me was empty - so I did get a lot more room for myself this time around!
12 hours is a long time. Funny thing is, I left Bangalore at 2:40AM Friday and reached Hong Kong at 11:30AM local time Saturday . From Hong Kong, I left at 2:40PM Saturday and reached San Francisco at 11:30AM local time - Saturday. Yeah, I'm still foggy and I still need to brush my teeth, but worse than all that is that I seem to have got my time all mixed up. I guess it's pretty normal though for a first time traveler.
When I landed in America, naturally I had my share of expectations. I mean, thanks to all the movies and stories and pictures, there was a virtual image already in my mind even before I had actually seen the place. So when I opened the gates and stepped on to the American soil, some things were actually Indian. For instance, a few cabbies asking if I wanted a taxi. Being my natural Indian instinct, I avoided them. This was a mistake as I later found out. Anyway, the wait time in the taxi queue was long but finally, I got a cab who didn't know where my hotel was. Not to worry, he said. GPS was the answer. And a very efficient one if I can say so.
My cabbie was a Vietnamese guy settled in US since 1979. We spoke for a while before we hit a mammoth traffic pile up towards the Golden Gate. Apparently as we found out from the FM, a couple of accidents and an air show had completely choked the Route 101 - and there we were, chugging along super slowly. It took us about 4 hours to cover roughly 25 miles.
Right now, I'm still sleeping and waking up. Almost lost in the time warp. It's already Sunday in India, but to me, it still feels like yesterday. I think I just need to eat more of the pizza.
Till then, cheerio!
Comments
Post a Comment
Liked it, loved it, loathed it... Would be great if you let me know!