India Update 2

Finally touched down! After a layover in Chicago, overpriced cup o' coffee in Frankfurt, an insightful conversation with a man from Mumbai plus a final plane ride just long enough to remind me I'm not in America anymore, I am here! Kolkata!

As my swollen feet finally met Kolkata soil, my nostrils exploded with a scent that I can't say I have ever experienced. Spicy, sweet, sweat, and pleasure. This is the smell of Kolkata. Where the old India meets the new, and everything, including the air tells of it.

Greeted by our lovely hostesses at the airport, we loaded up our luggage, and were given a riveting tour of the city while being driven to the guest house. I tried not to look at the traffic as we passed. Horns blaring. Cars swerving in and out of our lane, what lane? Stop signs are merely a suggestion. We glide gracefully through. To the guesthouse: A quiet, peaceful oasis among the noise. We sign a lease for six weeks. And off we are again, to the traffic madness.

The mall. Something normal. Few nuances. We're taken for a classic cuisine...Italian. Feasting on pizza, we plow through our jetlag and finish with a few laps to look at salwarz and sip cappuccinos. I must say, India does indeed have a fine cappuccino, even if I was only half awake to enjoy it.

All in all the day was splendid, though I doubt I'll remember most of it. You don't remember much when you're only half awake. So now, I'm staying awake, hoping to decrease the amount of time it takes to work off the jet lag. Waiting for a shower, the only excuse I have to keep me up. If I can make it to 9 p.m. I'll be a superstar. Gonna make it to 9 p.m. Everytime the clock strikes 9 p.m. this week, remember me.
Hello, Kolkata! This is only the beginning.