The Indian Departure: The Brazilian Sojourn

(Image source: http://www.pwindia.in/News/Infrastructure/10-06-28/HDIL_looking_to_bag_Mumbai_airport_TDRs.aspx)

With the hope of reaching the corner of the world I left home at around 5 pm to catch the flight EK 509 to Dubai, at 2235. On the airport, at the entrance a guy asked me are you English, maybe he was, but why I, out of some hundred people around, then he left, so did I. Was that part of some terrorist code word, whatever!! Then the long process of terminals, this was my third journey outside India, excluding my Andaman trip as it will officially be India, but still I was a bit nervous and my Mom and Dad, who had come to see me off, made the experience more complicated than it was. But moms and Dads are there to do things complicated when they are easy and easy when they are way more complicated, so I thank them to be with me.

Then as I had reached before time, I had to wait. I hate waiting, who doesn't  but this time it was difficult to bear more than most times. After some years, at least it felt so, the counters opened I went through the simple processes and got my boarding cards. Then the immigration counters, what a hell was that. They had more number of counters than five years ago, but they were still the same, unorganized.

I was standing in a queue, and was said to go to another one because they are going to close the counter, what customer service!! While they told us to go to the end of the hall, while we were on our way most of the people joined some previously existing lines, and were not treated with the same politeness, but I had enough time so I went on as suggested to the last line. It was surprising to see that the counter was closed and we were made to join a longer line. To a person studying management, these mismanagements seem so annoying, and to a marketing guy, like me it seems like killing your own brand, but I know before all those distinction I am an Indian, and used to such behavior. I may want to change these, maybe I want to complain, but this was not the time for all these and I had to let go all the thoughts. Maybe my return to India will be a good time for these.

I went to the security checking after my emigration formalities. It was even more chaotic, they had four lines, this is what I thought, but I am still not sure. There were four attendants doing the personal check and several others doing the baggage checking, where lines automatically became crowd, I don’t know how, whoever was lucky got his turn. I left a pen there; fortunately I did not bring the costly one my mom had kept for me. With all these I was done with the formalities. I went to the waiting area, kept roaming, visiting toilet and surfing Internet, yeah Internet was free at the airport, a nice facility at the airport.

The airport experience was not great, for Indians I would rate it 7/10, I mean for travelers (Indian or foreign) who are used to some of these behaviors and for someone who is alien to the Indian way I would give 5.5/10.