Around the World: Part Two

In which a Midnight was spent on Arab Land

My first Arrival flight (Bengaluru to Mumbai; office work) landed on the International Airport. On the bus from flight to the main airport building, I watched aircrafts like Qatar, Etihad, Emirates and so on. I wished that one fine day I would definitely board anyone of these planes and fly abroad. And the one fine day was 06.05.2019

Departure from CSMIA (Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, Mumbai)

Since this was an international tour, my brother accompanied me till the Airport (you can’t win over your mom in this!). We were informed to assemble in front of Gate 4 near Indian Flag Pole. The Complimentary items were collected from Airport Representative Bhushan and team. All ladies were in yellow. We met Akhilesh and he gave further instructions on departure. I entered the Gate 2 and waved goodbye to my brother. We queued up for the boarding pass of Etihad Airways. Here I made my first friend on tour, Sujata Patil. Next I met Asha Shedge and Nanda Sawant. I collected the boarding pass and checked in my luggage. Sujata had to collect her international Sim Card as well. Done with this, we proceeded for the Security Check and then the Immigration Counter. Then we reached the Gate No 74, traversing through the arrows and escalators. The boarding started at 08:45pm and we queued up as per zone indicated on our pass. Here I met Kanchan Kshirsagar and Swarnalata Varadarajan. I called up mom and informed that the flight will take off at 09:35pm and my next call will be tomorrow after 10pm IST.

We were welcomed by the Etihad crew. The music in the aircraft reminded of the cartoon Arabian Nights. We were flying to Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. I had a window seat. My neighbor was an old lady heading to Toronto (Mumbai-Abu Dhabi-Brussels-Toronto) and we talked about London. We got our headphones and security instructions were displayed on the screens. The Etihad EY 203 seats were divided as AB | CDEF | GH. The screen displayed the map with distance and time statistics and the travel route. After the Islamic prayers, the flight ascended. The instructions were in Arabic first and then in English. The only Arabic word I understood was Shukran which means Thanks. As the plane took off, I saw the million lights view of Aamchi Mumbai from my window and bid goodbye to India. The meal was served: matar paneer, rice, half roti and laddu. I watched Koffee with Karan episode which included Katrina and Varun. As the plane descended towards Abu Dhabi Airport, I saw the landscapes in square symmetry. As it was close to midnight, the streets were lit with yellow lamp posts. Finally this Etihad bird joined its flock at the airport terminal. I bid adieu to the old lady and got off the plane.

We followed the Flight Transfer Way. Security Check In included scanning of the shoes, jacket, wristwatch, belt and also the tip top hairpins along with the hand bag. Now we headed towards the Gate 33. The search for washroom and drinking water was on. We were in the waiting area for a while and the ladies were chitchatting and I was desperately in sleep. One more security check was done for a few passengers including me. A translucent test paper was rubbed on mobile screens, handbag and then on the palms. It was then inserted in a machine for detecting. On the boarding announcement, we had to pass through the gates by scanning our tickets. The Etihad EY 11 aircraft had a different seating arrangement ABC | DEFG | HJK. I had an aisle seat which means that I would get up whenever I want and also whenever my neighbor wanted. As the usual routine, we were given headphones, security instructions followed by Islamic prayers and the flight took off. I slept for a major part of the journey with unwanted waking breaks like the one from the cute airhostess on having my special meal and so on till the nature’s call. I never used the washrooms on-flight journeys so far. But this time I had to! It was already morning and we had to fill in a form. The screen indicated 6°C temperature in London with drizzles. Finally we descended on the European Land (Heathrow Airport London).

We assembled at a location and Akhilesh gave the further instructions. We then queued up at the Immigration Counter with the form. Such a long queue it was! As if the whole tourist lot landed here! We got our passports stamped after the biometric check. We proceeded towards the luggage belt. We picked our belongings, freshened up and walked towards the arrival gate. Co-travelers do share in your Etihad experience in the comments below.

Read next: Around the World: Part Three