Monday, February 14, 2010
These few days in Pondicherry have me understand that if need be how my country is the Indian northern India.
Madness North hectic, its excess, its excess, everything that once you set foot at the airport in Delhi Indira International Ganghi it seems to have landed either in a branch of the Hell, either in the 4th dimension, I miss all this.
Sometimes I feel here in Pondicherry for not being in India, although it is true that sometimes the atmosphere more relaxed and zen is good.
But back to the beginning of the story ... I'm
Arrive Delhi Friday night, with 45 minutes behind the schedule, the aircraft had left Paris with the delay, the cabin was not ready due to late arrival of the aircraft.
Arrive Delhi at 23:50 local time, then the usual paperwork (immigration, baggage, customs).
I wonder around 1am at the Visitor Lounge, a sort of transit lounge for passengers broke idle or too tired or lacking time to reach the city center or the immediate vicinity of the airport to find a hotel.
CONTRARY to the old terminal, access is free, but the two restaurants were replaced by a vending machine with snacks and drinks, and a stand of Coffee Day closed at this time of night.
A TV channel broadcasts a continuous Indian info ...
few people on Friday evening, we are a few to try to find some rest and wait ... bouquinent some, others retsent sat staring into the void, his head leaning dangerously towards the bottom or side to sleep as the wins, the startling when the weight of the head is too lours and draws from their slumber ... Finally
others including myself settled in a lying position on several seats, propping his head on their sleeves, a shawl or a piece of cloth as a blanket, and try to sleep, or failure to close my eyes and doze ... For my part, I'm doing not too bad, I of course my trusty iPod glued to their ears, and I spend 3 hours or less correct, although obviously I would be better in bed ...
To keep me company, there is a woman with a broom ... she tirelessly pushes his broom, and no one knows also not good that she or he guides and supports each other, so I can feel the fatigue on his face and the weight of his body on the handle of his broom ... We exchanged glances and smiles, it makes me understand by signs that she is cold (there is air conditioning, despite the 11 ° outside) and she would also sleep ... But she never asks her broom nor stops to pace up and down the waiting room ... I can not imagine the life of the woman, who owes little sleep during the day and never recovered from his sleepless nights at the airport, to clean waste from other low work reserved worse off ... at least it does not drag on the street, breathing the polluted air of the Indian megalopolis ...
At 4am I redescsneds the arrivals level, and after charging my phone India (airport shops are open 24/24), I agree with the door 4 and free shuttle that connects the new terminal 3 (domestic flights and international flights of Jet airways and Kingfisher airlines) for Terminal 1 (domestic flights from other airlines including Spice Jet with which I must reach Chennai). It is theoretically
shuttles every 15 minutes, but at 4:30 am the driver is moderately motivated to start and prefers to sleep ... It took all the tenacity of a few Indian pressed for time and departure time for the move and start .. We reach the
T1 in 15 minutes (not too much traffic even at that hour, even if for a newly arrived tourist it seems incredible to see the crazy traffic at all hours of day and night in India including in Delhi!).
I record my suitcase to the counter Spice Jet, and I agree ambarquement door.
My flight departs at 6:45, and was announced earlier.
The plane is full, mostly men.
Beside me, a family (father, mother and 3 children). Mom has never flown and will remain stuck on the window while the rape hallucinations and scrolling the earth from the sky ... It is true that it's always magical to see the landscape from the window of an plane, I can not get enough, and yet I have a few hours behind me ...
Spice Jet is a low-cost airline in India, so the drinks are offered (coffee or tea) but the rest is paid. Channa
Arrive around 9:30 am after 2:20 flight.
It's much warmer than in Delhi, already 21 ° at this early hour.
I get my bag and put myself in search of a bus to Pondicherry. It is in fact that I join the main bus terminal in Chennai, and from there I'll find a bus without problems for Pond, a very kindly told me AgNet airport, even to me on a note paper Tamil the prompts, so I can ask my way to Someone if I'm lost.
So I'm heading towards the ATM prepaid taxis, I pay 350 rupees required to reach the bus stand (the price is fixed and depends on the chosen destination, so no possible scam).
We reach the center in about 30 minutes, a lot of traffic and it jammed a lot when we stopped at a traffic light.
indications from my friend at the airport was very clear, and I find no problems on the bus you want (RCT Express bus, which connects Chennai to Pondicherry in 2-3 hours depending on traffic).
I hold to the back of the bus with my suitcase, and the bus moves off a few minutes later. Lots of traffic out of Chennai, we are more than 1 hour out of town.
I take my ticket on the bus as is usually done in India, the officer goes to claim his tickets had several times during the trip, when a new passenger joins our little group of travelers. I pay 170 rps, which is 3 euros.
We left Chennai to 11.15, and we reach Pondicherry at 14:30.
The bus stand is 2 steps from the Hotel Green Park where Ramesh has reserved rooms. After a good shower, I start looking for the small group of French who arrived last night. It
Api's cousin Ramesh who picks me in the car is king! I found the others in town, and we head to stroll along the sea promenade is very pleasant, there is air and it is not too hot.
I done challenged by a young journalism student who did a report on the use of plastic bags in India. So I filmed, and he asked me some questions about how I perceive this very real problem in India, and on possible ways to solve it. It's fun to be filmed, and here we are a lot of fun.
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