Stupid, Stupider and Stupidest

You guessed it: I'm still in Delhi. I went to the airport this morning to catch my 10:45 flight and found out it was actually a 4:15 flight. I thought it was at the same time as the one I missed yesterday but it wasn't. I tried desperately to find another flight to Dubai but nobody else was flying. Of course it's particularly difficult to try to find/book a flight when you're not allowed into the airport without a ticket. The airline offices are actually in another building, but apparently nobody in India works before 10:00 so I had to sit around waiting for the airline workers to show up. Once they got there, I found out that none of them can issue tickets at the airport anyway.

I had experienced the same situation the day before in Kathmandu when I was trying to get them to find me alternate flights due to the delay. The Royal Nepal offices open at 10:00 but nobody actually showed up to work until 11:00. One would think it's not asking too much for somebody to drag their butt into the office by 10:00. It cracks me up that they all want to go to America to seek their fortune - they'd last about two days at a job before they ended up living on the street.

Anyway, since I knew I was going to be here for another night, I just came downtown, got myself a room and went to the Emirates office in the city. I am thrilled and somewhat stunned to report that they just changed my booking to tomorrow and didn't charge me a dime for it. I'm looking forward to finally getting on a plane with this airline - they're certainly impressing me so far.

At least I don't have to worry about the further delay messing up my plans in Istanbul. Since it's the weekend, the extra day doesn't set me back at all. I did feel rather foolish having to e-mail my hostel for the second consecutive day to tell them not to come pick me up at the airport. I have to admit I let them think it was another airline problem - didn't want to tell them that I'm just an idiot. I'm sure I'm going to have to pay for the two nights that I booked and didn't actually sleep there.

I'm in a much better mood today and almost enjoyed Delhi. It helps to be in a somewhat familiar place when little crises like these hit. I did a bit of sightseeing, which I'm rather proud of since I don't have a guidebook or map with me. I still hate the touts, the overwhelming stink of urine and having to dodge fecal matter in the streets.

I'm now on my way out for a western style meal - might as well enjoy what I can of this place.