Time to get this trip started! I head to the airport early to avoid traffic. Figure I would check in and cozy up to a bar and find the group and have a drink before flying out. I didnt plan this too well as the counter didnt open for an hour after I got there and there was only a starbucks before security. Womp womp! I made some phone calls and reached out to the fly group to see where everyone was at (they were all getting there later). Baggage check opens, get checked in, and then head over to security. No one in line so breeze right on through and then walk around the airport a bit before taking a seat and waiting for people to join. People start arriving so we go grab a quick bite and a beer or 2 at Hugo's. As our plane is starting to board, we head over and meet the rest of the group. Board the flight and Turkish airlines is nice, everyone gets a travel bag to help make the trip more enjoyable (night mask, socks, earplugs, etc.), a pillow, and a blanket. Get to my seat and there are headphones for you to use and a dedicated screen for each seat that allows you to start watching movies as soon as you get on the flight (it gets interrupted for crew announcements like one would expect). Start watching one of many movies I watched on the flight over (watched Logan, King Arthur, Hitman's bodyguard, Kingsman 2, Baby Driver, and Spider Man Homecoming in all), and waiting for the food/drink service to start. The service was awesome and the range/quality of the drinks that were available for steerage class were phenomenal (15yr Glenlivet, Hennessy, etc.). Get into Istanbul Airport for the layover and not nearly as security-rich as it was hyped up to be. Walk around a little bit and we eventually post up at a cafe with beers and snacks while we wait for our next flight. More of the same on the second flight, however I actually napped for a little bit on flight 2. Was weird that each flight took off at night. Arrive in Delhi and get to customs early, but realize we werent given the customs forms and by the time we get out of line, get the form, fill it out, and get back in line, the line has snaked back and forth; so now we wait. Get through customs (people trying to cut on the side and have to be told multiple times no and still dont listen) and walk into duty free store where we are told to max our allowance out as alcohol is expensive in Delhi (turns out it is more expensive than even I expected - 20% tax on alcohol). We get our bottles, go to baggage claim and meet everyone there before getting out to meet R who is waiting with her mom to get us to the hotel. We walk outside and the air quality hits you like a ton of bricks; this aspect was not over hyped.
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| Right next to our hotel is a nursery. This was one of the last things I expected to see in the city, but considering the drive to the hotel with all the flowers everywhere, I shouldnt have been surprised. |
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| The Kahn Market before it opens. This is the front row of shops. Theres a middle row (where mamagoto's is) and a back side with sides. |
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| Nice touch in the lobby of the hotel. Fresh Flowers. |
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| Closer look at the flowers. |
We walk over and meet our shuttle (first exposure to the stray dogs that are everywhere as we walk to the meeting spot) and then head to the hotel. As we are driving, notice a few things right off the bat; 1) the roads are shared with bikes, scooters, cars, buses, animals, people walking, etc. in a organized chaos I havent really seen since Vietnam (though just as much honking if not more); 2) all along the highway there are flowers and plants providing a break from the asphalt and grime that plagues much of the roads (though I did enjoy the fact that the city placed urinals randomly off the road near bus stops); 3) as we drive, there are many dilapidated houses all along the way, some are huge mansions, while there are also big hotels, nice houses, and other well kept buildings in the mix - made it hard to understand the dynamic of the areas we were driving through. As we come to stop lights, we eventually see stray cow herds walking through traffic, laying on medians, and what have you. Eventually we get to our hotel (Vivanta by Taj) and check in real quick before heading to the breakfast area for some non-airport food! Their breakfast was a good mix of Western comfort breakfast (cereal, pastries, fruit, etc.) and indian food (random assortment every day) with some able to order options in both camps (Omelet and Dosa) and tons of liquids (coffees, smoothies, juices, etc.). After eating, we head to our rooms to get showered and a nap before heading to Kahn market for some shopping/lunch. First try Town hall, which is crowded and not ideal for a group of 12-14 people (biggest table is 6-8 people). We get some tasty drinks at the bar while we wait for a table to open up, but they keep having people join them as others leave. Girls sit at a table and eat while guys wait their turn, we decide to check out our other options in the market as there are plenty of places and wind up at Mamagoto which had space for all of us at one table. We sit order some more delicious cocktails and some awesome food (I had my first khao soi in forever which was amazing!). As we wait to pay (eating out with groups was a pain the whole trip - always took an extra 45 mins at least for them to figure their stuff out) everyone was fading (everyone essentially got in from long international flights early that morning) so we head back to the hotel where everyone goes back to their room before the sun even set. I thought I could stay awake a bit so I try and watch some netflix in bed, but turns out I passed out from exhaustion less than 30 minutes into whatever I tried to watch.
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Mamagoto has some beautiful wall art.
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| We are cheersing the start of what shall be a great trip with old and new friends alike. |
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| Photobombing like a champ. |
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