The Setup

So here I am, I finally made it to Bangalore after some long flights. I left Phoenix, AZ at 12:32pm on Thursday February 21st and arrived in Bangalore around 2am Saturday February 23rd. Overall, the flights were smooth, uneventful and on time. Here is a quick overview of each leg:

Phoenix to Chicago


Distance: 1440 miles
Flight Time: About 3:30 hours

I don't have a lot to say about this flight except that I had to sit in the middle, no isle or window seat available. I got over it pretty quick because I knew I was sitting in business class during the next two flights. All I did was have some water, watch part of the movie Spun and read some of my book. We landed in Chicago, I made the long walk from my arrival gate to departure gate. I found a place to have a sandwich and then I called my lovely wife.

Chicago to Frankfurt


Distance: 4343 miles
Flight Time: About 7:30 hours

So I talked to Michelle for awhile and then it was time to board the flight. We started boarding about 45 minutes before take off. I got to my seat and I was happy to see how much room I had and that I would not have any difficulty getting up to go the bathroom even though I was sitting next to the window. All my happiness started to fade away as we waited, and waited, and waited to take off. We finally took off about an hour after our scheduled departure time. The pilot said all would be well and that we should still land on time in Frankfurt.

Once we were in the air it was time to get comfortable. The chairs on this flight were pretty comfortable since I could recline and kick my feet up. Again, I read a lot on this flight and watched the movie Michael Clayton. The movie was pretty good but the video monitor was terrible and sometimes I had trouble seeing the screen. I got about 3 hours of sleep on this flight and ate a lot of food. I can't tell you what I ate because I can't remember but I felt like the flight attendants were bringing food or drinks every 10 minutes.

Once we got over Frankfurt Airport the pilot told us we were being held in a holding pattern because of too much airport traffic. We circled for awhile and finally landed about an hour late. This was a little cause for concern for me because I had never been to this airport and I had no idea where my departure gate was.

Frankfurt to Bangalore


Distance: 4614 miles
Flight Time: About 8 hours

When I got off the plane in Frankfurt I was happy knowing that I only had one more leg to go and then I did not have to be on a plane for 2 weeks. I was pretty much already sick of flying at this time but I couldn't really call it quits and hang out in Frankfurt so I went to find my gate for my next departure. Frankfurt airport is a little confusing but the signs are in English so getting is to the next gate is not that hard just a bit frustrating. I actually felt like the signs were tricking me and taking me in the wrong direction. At one point I came into the main part of the airport where all of the restaurants and shopping were. I got concerned and wondered if I went past the security check points. All was well and I made it my gate.

Boarding works a little different at Frankfurt airport then it does at most US airports. At most US airports you can sit in the waiting area and when it is time to board you give your boarding pass to the agent waiting at the door. At Frankfurt the boarding area is gated off and you wait until the agents are ready to let you in. When they let you in, they scan your boarding pass and then you wait. When it is time to board you just walk onto the plane. I don't know which way is better but they are definitely different.

The airline for this flight was Lufthansa and I have to say that their business class seating is pretty awesome. I posted a small picture of my seat with the TV. Everything is done using a small remote control next to your seat. If you want to lie down then you press a button, if you want the sit to recline, just press a button. There was a fair amount of programming to watch and since I couldn't sleep anymore I decided to watch 3:10 to Yuma and Gone Baby Gone. Again, I felt like I was getting food every 10 minutes but no complaints here. I had a pretty good dish that was prawns, curry sauce and rice.

The bad part of the flight is I could monitor where the plane was, how fast the plane was going and how much time we had left. That is not a good thing for someone like me who checks there watch every 5 minutes because I kept checking how much time I had left. I did get a pretty nice picture from the window of the plane. I think we were over Iran or somewhere around there when I took this.

Bangalore
We landed at Bangalore International Airport around 1:30am and got off the plane pretty quick. Getting through immigration was not a big deal but it took forever for the bags to come out. I was a little concerned while I was waiting at the airport because I was told by our coordinator that the cab drivers were going on strike so I was not sure how was going to get to my hotel. My bags came out, I went through customs and luckily someone was waiting from the hotel I was staying at.

The drive to the hotel was about 5 minutes and only took me about 10 minutes to check in. I got up to my room, called Michelle and talked to her for awhile, took a shower and fell asleep for a long time. I think I went to bed at about 3am in the morning and I woke up about 3pm in the afternoon. Even though I am awake now I feel like I could go right back to sleep. I need to stay awake so I can adjusted to the time change before I go to work on Monday.

For now, I am going to unpack, take another shower and find something to eat. I hope to be able to get out and about on Sunday and see what is going on around Bangalore. So for now here are some shots from my room and I will update as soon as I get a chance.