Mumbai to Kathmandu: The Slow Road

I arrived at the Mumbai airport about 11:30 PM local time November 2. The jet passengers disembarked to a bus that unloaded us in a domestic arrival area. I was expecting to wind up in a secure transit area, as at other airports. So, I had to exit the airport and enter by another nearby gate. The young soldier who checked my documents nearly didn't let me in because my flight was 10 hours away. After I said I had no place arranged to stay, he waved me in. (He was a pleasant chap. No complaints.)

Note: security here is high. Lots of soldiers with automatic weapons. It is the only place where I and my baggage was screened twice. Understandable considering the Mumbai terrorism assault a few years ago.

I tried to get in to the secure departure area but an older immigration clerk said it was too soon and he was not about to bend. There are some waiting areas and cafes in the arrivals area next to the flight checkins and that is where I stayed. It has all the charm of a bus station.

I could not access the airport wifi because they require a mobile number for verification. You know me—no cell.

The airport is bustling but partially air conditioned, which is good considering the warm humid air outside. The airport never gets quiet. Even at 5 AM, knots of people move about.

I stayed awake, reading my Kobo and writing a few scenes from my next novel. I find I write well when sleep derived. How would have thought~

At 7 AM November 3, I tried to check in to the secure area again and was successful. I regret not getting in earlier.That area has more seating,more shops and is cleaner.

The Mumbai  time zone is 9.5 hours ahead of Ottawa time and Kathmandu is 9:45 ahead.. 

The Mumbai airport lacks the efficiency and fast processing pace of the Brussels airport. The jet that was scheduled to leave Mumbai at 10:40 didn't taxi until noon. It was due in part to having to bus us 20 minutes around the airport to reach the jet, even though many gantries were empty.

After two hours flying time, we landed in Kathmandu at 2 PM. It is a small airport about the size of the one in Kelowna or Thunder Bay. What they lack in size, they make up for in complexity. A few hundred people stood in line for over an hour to pay our visa fees and get various papers stamped by a clutch of four men. In developing nations, functionaries proliferate. After yet another line to get through customs, I located the driver to take me to the hotel in Kathmandu.

Wow. It is like any movie of sprawling Asia you have ever seen. The traffic rules are beyond our Western comprehension. The roads are rough (keeps the speed down), and the route meanders.

The system worked. I did manage to get to the assigned hotel and meet the tour guide and the other trekker (yes, there is just two of us). After an hour's chat about the days ahead, I exited to my room for a “nap” after 29 sleepless hours.