It was Saturday & generally Bengalis are reluctant to leave for a journey on Saturday[connected to Saturn, planet of poverty & depression] & Tuesday[connected with Mars, planet of violence], but I did--since I am not that superstitious...
On my way to airport, I was contemplating on when shall I come back to India on vacation etc & whether, I have taken my essentials with me or not. After a smooth check-in process, in the Kolkata airport, I headed towards the lounge to catch my flight to Mumbai.
The flight arrived a little late, to Mumbai, where my father & one of my ex-colleagues from Grand Hyatt, Mumbai came to receive me.We rented a room in a hotel nearby--for me it was few hours, as I had to catch my flight to Dubai at 6:40 pm, the same day. After having a light lunch, I went to Grand Hyatt Mumbai, to relive the old memories & also few colleagues. I left Grand Hyatt, with some little chit-chat & then back to hotel....& then I had to leave for the airport.
In the international airport,another of my ex-colleague from ITC Chola, Thangapandi, came to see me & then after a formal goodbye to alll...I went inside the airport for immigration process. It was lengthy, but I was on time....& finally, I stepped in the aircraft....I still had some 30 minutes to go...when I talked to my mom...
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In about 3 hours, the flight arrived its destination...perhaps, to me it was the city of dreams, "Dubai...", a city which was nothing but a desert, but now it is one of the most expensive cities to live in this planet...The local time was 8:35 pm, 90 minutes less than Indian Standard Time.After delighting from the flight, I headed towards the arrivals for "Eye-scan" & then to passport controls for the entry stamp on the passport....& finally towards the marriott counter, to see who has come to receive me. I was surprised to see that they didn't have any info that I was coming & added to that, they knew that I was supposed to come in the morning. In any case, they told me to wait..I was observing the people getting down in the airport, & those who were roaming around. Yes, with only 20% Emiratis, this city is the hub of expatriates. People say Dubai is another Mumbai, but Mumbai has a long way to go....
After about 1 hour in the airport, a colleague came to receive me from the airport & was waiting for someone else also, who was supposed to start with me in the same company from the following day....and finally when I reached my new home...it was almost midnight. I was hungry, but reluctant to have any food...
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Over this one year, I have learnt a lot of things in Dubai...personal matters & also professional matters. Firstly, I came across a lot of people, people hailing from different cultures, nations, background & always it compelled to think matters in a macro-level, when in India, we think in the micro-level. The clientele here is also international, where locals can be considered as the minorities. This is also my first employment in a resort hotel, apart from it being my first international experience.Since, I love to deal with people, I also got a better understanding of people all around the world, Indians, Pakistanis, Bangladeshis, Sri Lankans, people from UK, Russia, Philippines, Germany, France & a lot..& also helped me to have keen interest in learning the lingo of others...French, Italian, tit-bits of Sinhalese, Tagalog, Indonesian & of late...Russian..also I made a few bunch of friends, & few of them cared to be both in my good & bad times...
Though sometimes, it gets boring staying alone & feeling lonely...but now I feel better alone, ever since, I have inculcated the habit of reading...day-offs are generally spent in cleaning room, cooking & then may be a short trip to Dubai Mall, the largest mall in the world, for watching a movie, groceries or window shopping...or may be..sleeping throughout the day...
In the midst of this one year, I went home once, for 20 days,but this small vacation has been pretty meaningful...when I got to know people better...met Ruchira, a school friend, who I never talked to when we were in same school & saw her after 10 years...also another one who pretended to be friend, turned to be something else, an opportunist...!!Badly I wanted to open my cafe this vacation, but shortage of time, didn't allow it to happen...Hopefully, someday soon....
Also this was the first time, I celebrated my birthday after a real longtime, & invited few of my colleagues...to have dinner with me, & almost all came except a few...I was happy to see that...
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People often ask me, "How long do you intend to stay in Dubai???", I say, "I follow His plans--I dont plan any & I dont intend any. He is making plans for me, I am His mere follower"....
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