Day 1 - Bangalore to Jaipur

Goa 2005, Goa 2007, Mumbai 2008 and now Rajasthan 2009. For me, every trip starts with a sprained leg. No sooner had I stepped out of the auto rickshaw in Jaipur than I twisted my leg. For the rest of the evening, I wobbled around on one leg.

As we headed towards the BIAL terminal – which to me, looks smaller than the old airport terminal – a guy in grey overalls appeared out of nowhere, directing traffic towards the left. “Traffic Control”, I thought, “mighty impressive”. Soon, a car with the name plate “member of the legislative assembly”, sped past on the right, and my thoughts came thudding down to earth. That's democracy for you...

It’s hard to miss the UDF counters at the entrance. They claim you can pay by credit card. But the guy at the counter refused the card.

Him: “Sorry Sir, cash only!”
We: “Why? (The board next to the counter) says we can pay by card”
Him: “Yes sir, but it will take 10 minutes. Our server is very slow!”

So much for the international standards, and all that “Silicon Valley” hoopla! We still decided to use the card, but the rest of the queue was not impressed by the guy’s answer.

Whatever be the impression from outside, the terminal interior is really world-class. A huge hall greets you on entry. On one side, an advertisement of SATYAM assures you to count on them to transform businesses. The security check is also very impressive leaving no stone unturned. The official made us drink more than half the bottle of water we were stupidly carrying. But we were not as stupid as the gentleman who thought he could carry a toy pistol as part of the hand luggage.

Security: "What’s this?" (Pointing to the toy)
Him: "That’s a part of it" (Pointing to the video game pack in front of him)
Sec: "Sorry sir, you cannot carry this"
Him: "But without this the game is useless" (and after a pause), "it’s only a toy"
Sec: "Then you check it in"
Him: "But I’ve already checked in my bags"
Sec: "Please go downstairs and check this in sir…"
Him: "But for that I have to go all the way down! Thats too much trouble for me to take"

Mind you, “ALL THE WAY DOWN” is just one floor! What can I say?

Stereotyped images of Rajasthan were erased as we approached Jaipur. The ground was green, and not scorched or filled with sand from the desert. The touchdown at the airport was far from smooth. It seemed as if he was doing a brake test for the flight. The flight came to stop near a little building that I surmised was the terminal. It seemed as if a train was making an unscheduled stop at a wayside railway station. The airport was small by all standards.

The biggest surprise awaited us when we reached the “guest house”. It was a small house, laden with heaps of clothes, probably used as a store by Mr. Gupta. The place was dusty, and we were initially skeptical. But soon, the ladies from next door got to work, and the place was cleaned out. By the time we finished lunch (at 5:00 PM in the evening), they had even put in beds and warm blankets for us. We felt at home.