I’m back in India. Arrived here Saturday evening with two colleagues, Walter and Andy. A few things stand out about the trip from San Francisco to Bengaluru; the rest is the usual travel stuff of hurrying and waiting.
We did an overnight extended layover in Dubai, arriving around 7:30pm on Friday night and scheduled to depart at 1:30pm the next day. It’s the second time I’ve done this long layover and I scheduled it that way by design: it offers the opportunity to start to adjust to the wicked time change, allows us to see the spectacle that is Dubai, and so far it’s been much less expensive than the ~3 hour layover itinerary (even when you factor in taxis and a hotel stay).
Since there were three of us traveling, I decided to try an apartment on Airbnb instead of hotel rooms. I was expecting I could give the taxi driver the address listed in the Airbnb listing and that we’d be whisked right to our destination. This turned out not to be the case: the building name is what you need, and I hadn’t pulled that info to my phone beforehand. We sorted it out by tethering phones and starting the check in process in the Airbnb app, but this was unnecessary complexity… especially after a 15 hour flight. There was some confusion at the security desk, as well, but we worked through it. The apartment itself was perfect for our needs: amazing views, close to things to see and do, and nice amenities. We learned some travel lessons along the way, so I’d feel comfortable doing Airbnb there again, and would be better prepared next time.
Sleep has been a problem. Last night I slept from 10:30p to 1:30a or so, and then from 5:30a to 7:00a. (Aside: Burning Love was on HBO in the middle of the night; I’d never heard of it but it’s a Who’s Who of funny people, and they do an amazing parody of The Bachelor/The Bachelorette). The night before was similar, and I only managed around 2 hours of sleep on the 15 hour flight. I’m fighting through the jet lag but a full night’s sleep sure would help a lot.
It’s only been a few days but I don’t know if my writing practice here will bear fruit. I’m not happy with my writing voice. I’m saying “I” and “I’m” way too much but can’t figure out how to do otherwise yet. Getting frustrated. I need to write about topics instead of what I’m up to. That would help. 😕