What an adventure! 33 days, 4 continents, 9 countries, 19 flight legs… Whew, we made it. Sounds like “The Amazing Race”!
The voyage got off to an inauspicious start right from the get go. Exiting a West African country is never a picnic and is typically good for some stories in itself. We arrived at the airport over 3 hours in advance of the flight time (Flight 1: Luanda - Lisbon) and then waited in line for over an hour just to get to the room where you check in where we got to watch the Portuguese/Angolan fine art of line cutting at its best. Another 30 minutes in a second line and we were finally checked in. Luckily passport control and security had no line - everyone was still in the first line. Steve’s years of transatlantic flights and United 100K status got us into the lounge where were at last got to relax. Of course the flight was late - there was no way all those people could get through the line in time. Initial panic about making our connection in Lisbon was relieved when our Lisbon - Zurich (Flight #2) flight was also late. However, Steve’s suitcase still did not find its way onto the connecting flight. The fellow at baggage assured us that it would be delivered to our hotel in Delhi. Steve would have to make do with 1 change of underwear and socks until then. Flight leg #3 had a shaky start the next morning as the airport folks directed us to the wrong line where we waited for an hour before informed of “our” mistake - we then rushed to the correct counter, managed to get checked in on time but alas, not sitting together. We finally made it to Delhi for the beginning of our Indian adventure.
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