We're back from our trip to Kolkata! Now that we've more or less recovered, I've got so much to share.
The night before we left was insane. We were late getting our immunizations and did them at a walk-in travel clinic in the area at 4:30 pm or so. Of course, it took about 2 hours, so we didn't get back until after 6:30. When I walked in the house, with my arms sore from getting four shots in my arms, I noticed a wasp-like thing inside the house on the window. (I hate bees.) I ran out to the garage to get the bug spray, but when I came back inside I noticed that there were in fact no fewer than ten of those buggers in my living room! Apparently, they came in through the chimney. We quickly called our insect-control service to have them send out a technician right away. The problem was solved by 8:30. Talk about drama right before the Little Guy's bedtime!
We left on Thursday, 24 May on a British Airways "sleeper flight" from JFK to Heathrow. The Little Guy slept for maybe one or two hours on the flight, so we were pretty much exhausted when we finally got to the Heathrow Marriott hotel the next morning. Fortunately, we had planned to stay about 24 hours in London before catching our connecting flight the next morning to Kolkata. We needed the rest! The Little Guy was a little cranky at dinnertime and didn't want to sit still to wait for food, so Hubby and I took turns walking with him around the hotel lobby. The Little Guy was fascinated with the elevators, and had a blast riding from the lobby to the first floor.
The following morning, we caught our British Airways flight to Kolkata. Again, we got very little sleep. The Little Guy amused himself by watching the DVDs that we brought from home and by running up and down the length of the plane. This activity seemed to annoy some of the flight attendants, but the Indians on board seemed quite amused and would smile at my three-foot blur dashing by at full speed.
The first thing that struck me when we landed was the combined heat and humidity as we walked off the plane. It felt like a steam bath and was enough to make my glasses fog up! I also noticed that people there don't seem to run the air conditioners that much. The Kolkata airport is rather small, but it's not easy to navigate since there are a lot of stairs and no elevators or escalators. That's not a problem unless you're carrying a toddler, roller luggage, a handbag, and a backpack to customs like we were. It could have been worse, though, since we checked the stroller and the car seat along with two other wheeled suitcases.
Passport control went otherwise smoothly.
When we collected our checked bags prior to going through customs, I noticed that the humidity was so high that beads of water had collected on our luggage. The stroller and car seat felt a little wet and grimy to handle, as if they had enjoyed their own steam bath. After customs, we met our porter who took us outside to meet our driver which was arranged by the Taj Bengal hotel where we were staying.
While we waited outside for the driver, I noticed a few children begging in the area where the taxis picked up new arrivals. They must've been about 8 or 10 years old or so. There was also a group of a few men, also waiting for their rides, who seemed enamored with my red-headed Little Guy. They also seemed fascinated with and amused by the car seat we had brought.
Soon enough, our driver, Kalim, pulled up. Since car seats are not often used in India, the porter seemed to not know what to do with it exactly and proceeded to put it in the trunk with our luggage. (I soon found that to be a common occurrence.) Along our way to the hotel, I chatted with Kalim and took a few photos while he gave us a brief orientation, pointing out the sights.
Two women behind the front desk dressed in sari uniforms checked us into the hotel. The service was friendly and efficient, and they assured us that our requested crib was already in our room. The lobby was beautifully decorated, if a little warm, as if they conserved energy by not air conditioning the hallways. At our room, we were greeted by a butler carrying two water goblets full of juice, one mango and one coconut. I picked the coconut, since it reminded me of sipping fresh coconut juice on the beach during our honeymoon in Rio de Janeiro. It was good but not chilled. Having hardly slept on the plane, Hubby and the Little Guy both crashed immediately. I rested for a short while, but found myself restless and eager to venture out before long. So, I went downstairs to get another copy of the hotel key card and to get something to eat at Sonargaon
