Blast Off (lisa)

Thursday Night 4/14:  I’m 35,000 feet up in the air flying over some beautiful snow covered mountains.  I have no idea how much longer this last leg of our flight is but I have already been able to catch up on a movie and eat a delicious vegetarian lunch on Lufthansa business class.  I feel like I left Charlotte weeks ago and yet not even four days have passed.  I am still in disbelief that I will be landing in Bangalore in just a few more hours.  What a whirlwind trip this has been so far.  So much has happened since we packed up and headed out at 6:30 Monday morning.

Addien woke me up at 5 a.m. Monday morning.  In a whisper she asked if it was time to get up yet (my human alarm clock).  She hardly slept because she was too excited about going to India.   I was exhausted from a late night of last minute packing adjustments the night before.  I was amazed at how hard it was to pack less than 50 lbs in each suitcase.  I finally relented and gave up some clothing and shoes, shampoo bottles and lotions.  I would not give up the vitamins and laptops, however.  I’ve got priorities, Facebook and good health.  At the airport the next morning the guy at the ticket counter didn’t even look at the weight of the luggage.  He just asked if any bags were over 50 lbs.  All that late night fretting and he didn’t even look at the scale.  My sleep deprived brain was not too happy.

I’m amazed at how my kids have adapted and taken to travel.  The first leg of the flight Steve graciously gave me his first class seat and he sat near the back with the kids.  Although, I really would have liked to have seen the kids' expressions as they experienced their first “blast off” (as the girls called it). 

Forget Mastercard...a Visa is priceless! (Steve)

The passport drama has finally come to an end - at 9:30 this morning we received a long awaited FedEx package with our sparkling new visas. Talk about down to the wire! Its hard to believe, but we only have one day left before we leave. The movers came yesterday to pack up the items we set aside to ship, and we've been frantically working to tie up the remaining loose ends in preparation for our 6 month adventure. We start on Monday morning (April 11) and fly from Charlotte to NY, where we'll spend the day and take the kids to see the Statue of Liberty. Monday night we leave from JFK to Frankfurt, Germany in first class. What's that? Why, yes, I did say first class. Lufthansa is my new favorite company after upgrading the whole family to international first class. We'll spend 2 days in Frankfurt, visit some real-life castles, eat some schnitzel (or something like that) and then head out on the ~8 hour flight to Bangalore. 

The trip will be just under 4 days from start to finish, which means we'll have just under 4 days to develop our family strategy to battle the taxi drivers when we step out of the Bangalore airport.  I knew there was higher purpose behind Owen getting his Tae Kwon Do black belt this year!

India - here we come! (Steve)

Its hard to believe there is less than a week before we are scheduled to leave for our India adventure!  In true India form our visas are held up in processing and we still don't have them in hand.  Of course, if we don't receive them by Saturday (T-minus 5 and counting) we will need to postpone our flights...again.  Ugh.

Its been well over 15 years since I last set foot in India, but the visa delays bring back a flood of memories:  standing in line (more like a blob) at customs, being sick in a hotel with food poisoning, fighting with cab drivers who try to "help" you with your luggage, being sick on the train with food poisoning, eating amazing food from street vendors, being sick on the street with food poisoning, etc.  Despite these vivid memories, I can't wait to return!  Without question, India is my favorite place in the world and I'm excited about the opportunity to expose my family to the wonders India has to offer.  The culture is richer than any I have experienced, the food is amazing (the street food is more amazing than words - but its also guaranteed to make you sick so I guess some things are just too good to be true), and the architecture is truly awe inspiring.  After spending over 2 years in India/Sri Lanka I always dreamed of having the chance to bring my family back...and that dream is about to become reality! 

I have my company to thank for this opportunity as I head over for a 6 month assignment to help "establish a new offshore capability."  To be perfectly honest, I have very little insight on what I willl be doing, but it doesn't concern me.  Of more importance is the chance to share a vibrant cross-cultural experience with my family - and the chance to do that within the culture of India is a dream come true.  As the details of my assignment become clear I will be sure to share, but in the meantime I am content to embrace the chance to expose my family to the wonders of India!