India/Istanbul Trip Day 14: End of the journey/Overview (3/10)

We wake up and get breakfast at the hostel before packing our bags and heading back to the airport via the train. Try and get the deposit back for the train card and turns out that isnt actually a thing so I guess there is now a souvenir and free money when we return. Go to check in and the lines are unorganized and it is a big mess. Eventually get up to the counter and they had given my seat up so it had to be reassigned and the frequent flyer number was still not registered; turns out my "class" of ticket didnt qualify for frequent flyer miles on my base airline in their group (United and Turkish Air) which is why they kept taking it off my ticket. I will say great airline service on the plane, but the most hassles I have ever had to deal with outside the flights causing much frustration and unnecessary issues. The immigration and security are not that bad though I had my passport/ticket checked at least 8 times between arriving at the airport and getting to my boarding gate. Finally get on the plane and it is just like the other flights; friendly staff, awesome free liquor options, movies as soon as you sit down, etc. I watch Justice league, Last Vegas, Roman J Israel Esp., Blade Runner 2049, and Dunkirk (yeah gotta watch those movies when you got the chance :) ) while enjoying their food and some Efes and Glenlivet. Once we land, get off the plane and make it through customs (which was a ghost town so I didnt get to really benefit from my newly acquired global entry) but then have to wait for 30 mins to get my bag to end a great trip.

Overview:

The good:
1. People - Met many great people throughout the trip, those affiliated with the wedding group which made the time in India a pleasure, and those I met in Turkey affiliated with the hostel who were amazing to hang out with. Then there is Steph who met me in Turkey and was fun to catch up with a friend from a few years apart.
2. Far off lands - Both Turkey and India are insanely beautiful for multiple reason. The history involved in those countries/civilizations and the architecture is vastly different than most of what one sees in Europe and the Americas. Personally I have a stronger attraction to that of eastern architecture and color use so I thoroughly enjoyed looking at many of the buildings throughout the trip. That being said, in all the random alleys, bars and what not we walked into, not once did I or the people I was with feel unsafe or unwelcome.
3. Food - I think this was the only international trip I did not lose weight on. Granted some of that may have been the access to a free bus in India for most of the trip but still, all the delicious food didnt help.
4. Inflight experience with Turkish Air - There is a reason this airline is always on the short list for best in the world.

Below are some pics that put the many wonderful aspects of the trip into a quick summary as they say, a picture is worth a thousand words.

The bad:
1. Hustlers in India - I have been in countries before with similar people doing what they can to extract money from tourists so I am not new to it, but I still dont like it. I do appreciate their trying to improve their situation and what not just hate dealing with it being a gringo.
2. Bartering - both countries work off bartering interactions which I do not like as I like to know what a price is and just either say yes or no and not deal with the negotiation part. Causes a lot of strife when trying to buy a scarf or get a taxi or whatever you are looking to do and it is something I just dont like dealing with.
3. Turkish air operations - I have never had so many problems with airline tickets on a trip. I do not understand how/why they seemed to have a problem at every single step of the way but I hope this is the exception and not the rule.

Take Home: I am looking forward to going back to both of these large countries and seeing many of the other cities/areas in each as from what I have read/heard, there is plenty of variety across both countries. Until then! :)