It’s midnight in Delhi and Team Starrett have checked into our hotel after a very full day of transit for our 2018 adventure. The four of us have 10 days in Northern India on a privately organised trip, complete with a 24/7 chauffeur and a guide during the day. Jason participated in his 1 in 3 years travel attendance in 2017, so is sitting this one out and enjoying Westcourt road’s peace and quiet for the duration.
January is a new time of year for our annual trip. Travelling at this time of year provided a lovely leisurely lead up without the usual panicked shopping trip to procure socks and underwear when the boys inform me the night before that they have none. On a side note, this mystifies me every time - what have they been wearing?? Josh did discover that his jeans don’t fit well so he has borrowed Tarin’s (!) and seems quite happy with that.
We travelled the Brisbane/Singapore leg in business. I would rather use my points to upgrade on an overnight flight (that flatbed is super appealing). The boys however think that sleeping through a business class flight is a complete waste of time and all three were strong advocates for the upgrade on the way over. I went with the majority and thus we are travelling in style.
It was a treat to have real champagne, decent food and a comfy seat. Business class did not start off well however. We were lined up in the business lane to board and a Qantas lady (Josh tells me her names was Di) bustled over and said to me “This Lane is for business class you know”. I said “yes” and left it at that. Really! I know the boys’ new haircuts are a little dodgy, but they’re not THAT bad. We did get excellent service on the flight though and some special attention. I even managed to get a lovely dessert wine to drink with my vanilla bean panna cotta. In hindsight, it was a good call to fly business so thank you Starrett boys.
It was a looong six hours to Delhi. We did have a ‘lost in translation’ moment when the meals arrived. The flight attendant offered chicken or fish and I asked for vegetarian. He said “Yes vegetarian we have vegetarian chicken or vegetarian fish”. I went with the “vegetarian chicken” which was a spicy chicken curry.
First impressions are a bit blurred due to fatigue and our limited path - literally airport to hotel only. The airport was very efficient with a heavy military presence. We were quite interested in the “deportation room” at the airport which had a number of people in it. Our greeter Shiv escorted us out to the waiting van where we were given Marigold lais. The air was thick with smoke which Shiv told us was from farmers burning the crop stubble. There was a cacophony of noise from the honking horns of the cars. Lots of crazy driving, stray dogs - that’s about all I’ve got at this stage. Security to get to the hotel was very high, with two gates and a stop to open the bonnet of the van and inspect the engine. Shiv and Depak, or driver, said “Security is very good” and nodded approvingly.
As usual, the boys have been absolute troopers - cheerful, friendly and interested. Bed now for a hopefully dreamless sleep and a recharge for tomorrow. I’ve included a photo of the marigold necklaces, and Campbell enjoying business class. You will see a small clip on koala in the photo. This is one of our two team mascots from work and is a compulsory travel accessory when one of the team travels. This one is Lu-Seal and her partner, who I believe is on a cruise, is Wingnut (for those not in the know, our two product groups are Fasteners and Seals.)
January is a new time of year for our annual trip. Travelling at this time of year provided a lovely leisurely lead up without the usual panicked shopping trip to procure socks and underwear when the boys inform me the night before that they have none. On a side note, this mystifies me every time - what have they been wearing?? Josh did discover that his jeans don’t fit well so he has borrowed Tarin’s (!) and seems quite happy with that.
We travelled the Brisbane/Singapore leg in business. I would rather use my points to upgrade on an overnight flight (that flatbed is super appealing). The boys however think that sleeping through a business class flight is a complete waste of time and all three were strong advocates for the upgrade on the way over. I went with the majority and thus we are travelling in style.
It was a treat to have real champagne, decent food and a comfy seat. Business class did not start off well however. We were lined up in the business lane to board and a Qantas lady (Josh tells me her names was Di) bustled over and said to me “This Lane is for business class you know”. I said “yes” and left it at that. Really! I know the boys’ new haircuts are a little dodgy, but they’re not THAT bad. We did get excellent service on the flight though and some special attention. I even managed to get a lovely dessert wine to drink with my vanilla bean panna cotta. In hindsight, it was a good call to fly business so thank you Starrett boys.
It was a looong six hours to Delhi. We did have a ‘lost in translation’ moment when the meals arrived. The flight attendant offered chicken or fish and I asked for vegetarian. He said “Yes vegetarian we have vegetarian chicken or vegetarian fish”. I went with the “vegetarian chicken” which was a spicy chicken curry.
First impressions are a bit blurred due to fatigue and our limited path - literally airport to hotel only. The airport was very efficient with a heavy military presence. We were quite interested in the “deportation room” at the airport which had a number of people in it. Our greeter Shiv escorted us out to the waiting van where we were given Marigold lais. The air was thick with smoke which Shiv told us was from farmers burning the crop stubble. There was a cacophony of noise from the honking horns of the cars. Lots of crazy driving, stray dogs - that’s about all I’ve got at this stage. Security to get to the hotel was very high, with two gates and a stop to open the bonnet of the van and inspect the engine. Shiv and Depak, or driver, said “Security is very good” and nodded approvingly.
As usual, the boys have been absolute troopers - cheerful, friendly and interested. Bed now for a hopefully dreamless sleep and a recharge for tomorrow. I’ve included a photo of the marigold necklaces, and Campbell enjoying business class. You will see a small clip on koala in the photo. This is one of our two team mascots from work and is a compulsory travel accessory when one of the team travels. This one is Lu-Seal and her partner, who I believe is on a cruise, is Wingnut (for those not in the know, our two product groups are Fasteners and Seals.)
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