Airports en-route…

Obviously any journey by aeroplane would not be complete without the inevitable bit of frisking at security.  Having taken off everything that could potentially contain any metal, I was sure that I would not get caught out.  How wrong could I be??  Even after removing my watch and rings (apart from earrings), wearing newly acquired Birkenstock which almost certainly consist entirely of plastic and elasticated leggings and woolly jumper, I still managed to hit the jackpot!  Hearing the ‘familiar’ dingdong (well it seems to happen to me every time I fly…), I could not believe it.  Maybe there was some metal after all in the flip flops and there are always dangers in wearing an underwired bra (must make a note of going bra-less through security next time…)…  Unfortunately, these days – well, at least in terminal 4 – the frisking is preceded by the rather publicly standing in this cubicle, legs spread and arms up in the air, whilst an unseen stranger glares through your layers of clothing to see what may be concealed.  I should be grateful for the unintended weight loss of last summer as at least he (maybe it was a she…) will have been spared any layers of flab and will have been greeted my rather trim size 10. (Please refrain from comments here…)

I have to learn to go with the flow and expect the unexpected…  There I was all ready to spend some time relaxing in the lounge, only to find out that there was no lounge at Terminal 4.  How disgraceful..  However, as it happened, after queuing and depositing my suitcases (how did I manage to take 43 kg?? And this does not even include my hand luggage!) and receiving an email from Madeleine (who organised my voluntary work) to ask me to email or take my qualifications to India, I had barely time to grab a coffee and some breakfast.   Emergency call to my son James was needed to ask him to dig out the document from a vague and rather unspecific location  and forward it to the said Madeleine – why do people wait until you have arrived at the airport to ask for vital documents… – and hopefully all will be resolved before I arrive in Trivandrum.  I always knew that this 10 hour stop-over in Mumbai would have its purpose…

Well, I eventually arrived in Mumbai and things did not quite pan out as hoped..  No luck with using the lounge as I was now on a domestic flight, so no chance of having a sleep in a relatively safe environment.  I had to find a supply of strong coffee to keep myself upright and caught the shortest of naps on the plane several hours later.  It was definitely a long night, but looking at the bright side: I finished a whole book!  The food on the plane was actually quite nice, but portions were only suitable for those on an extreme low calorie diet, so it was a relief to be collected from the airport and taken straight to a nearby hotel to have more curries… Before being whisked off to the school were all the children had been waiting for more than half an hour (flight was late as well…) to give me an official welcome with drum beating and some dancing and singing of the national anthem, and obviously the ubiquitous little bindi dot on the forehead and a bouquet of flowers…  Yes, I did have to do a speech and am expected to do another one tomorrow – better start preparing so I do not have to rely on my wits and blag it….

My First Post!

May not be as easy as it sounds, but I’m giving it a go!  This board was on the wall in a coffee shop in Namibia, where we stopped to sample what was ‘supposedly’ the best apple pie in the world.  Definitely debatable – let’s say most of my fellow travellers (including me) would beg to differ…

So here I am, setting off ’round the world’ to teach English as a foreign language, leaving behind friends, children and husband (or maybe not quite him as he has already gained the ‘ex’ tag…). There is no clear plan and certainly no itinerary, although I expect to be away for about five years.  But 5 years is a long time and much can change and happen.  I have decided to go with the flow and see where the wind will blow me.  As there is worldwide demand for teachers of English, I do not know which countries I will visit and whether ’round the world’ will literally see me circumnavigate the globe… But I am making it my mission to collect as many different stamps in my passport as possible and have not done too badly in the last twelve months.  By the time I reach India later on this week, I will already have covered four continents and eight different countries within this time, even though my teaching of English is only starting now…

The last three weeks since my African adventure seem to have evaporated in a flurry of preparation for my first teaching post abroad.  And as expected, there were a multitude of hiccups along the way, not least getting an employment visa for India.  You would have thought that as my post is ‘voluntary teacher’, this should not have caused too many difficulties.  But it took me two trips into London to get the necessary paperwork together and even then, I had to use my powers of persuasion not to add a third visit to this to also provide copies of all my qualifications (which was a requirement not previously mentioned).  I will learn from this experience and be more careful when I next have to apply for an employment visa  and shall read all the available information on the internet BEFORE journeying into London…

Then there was the acquisition of an appropriate wardrobe; I have a choice between wearing a sari or a shalwar kamiz.  Considering the layers of fabric wrapped around the waist for a sari, this is not an option – I would simply melt in the heat of ‘God’s Own Country’ (as Kerala is also known).  So I shall plump for the trouser and tunic approach as it seems more practical and certainly cooler.  But as the school I will be working at stipulates having sleeves in the tunics, my clothes are far from finished…  Although some only need minor alterations, one pair of trousers can only be worn by a stick-insect!!!  No amount of trying would get my legs through the narrow pipe-cleaner legs and after even letting out the side seams, my legs got stuck at the knees.  It is entirely plausible that years of cycling to school has done unthinkable things to my calf muscles, but I consider my knees within the realm of normality…  so either Indian women have much thinner legs (and knees), or these trousers were never meant for humans…  Luckily, I have also invested in some normal stretchy thin black leggings which will be a life saver if I cannot find trousers to fit my legs in India…

As time is marching on and with just over 24 hours to go until I leave home, I  must now get a grip on the packing issue.  Most of the shopping done – there will be the inevitable last minute purchases – I just need to fill the suitcases with masses of resources, mountains of essential foods (mainly coffee…) and toiletries and yes, I hope to squeeze in a few of my western clothes for days when I do not want to do as the Indians do…  I am only a stone’s throw away from Kovalam Beach, so must at least pack some swimwear so I can top up my tan in between lesson preparation…

I hope to post regularly on my blog and keep in touch with everyone. And I look forward to your comments.

 

Lieve