Before going to India I had heard things like you either love it or you don’t. And advice like, “you really need to be ready for India… because India is not easy.” I had heard about the pollution, the chaos, dirty water that makes people sick, eating only cooked mushy food, and how you can’t possibly understand the wonders of India unless you go.
I was going. I was ready. And I knew in my soul it was an adventure I needed to do solo. At least part of it. I was going to attend the 50th Anniversary of Ramamani Iyengar Memorial Yoga Institute (RIMYI). I first became curious about visiting RIMYI in the early 2000s. I’ve been patient and put in a lot of practice hours to be ready for this adventure.
I arrived at RIMYI early enough to take five days of classes at the institute, before the two week intensive began, that included five-six hours of classes a day. And after that, I traveled to the remote village or Bellur for an additional four day intensive with Prashant Iyengar.
I left two days after Christmas and was gone four weeks.
It was the my first international trip solo. I have been married 25 years and all 27 countries I visited before India were with Brian (who happens to be chair of the airport board, hence the sign). See you later honey. Thanks for holding down the house! You’re the best yoga husband ever.
To The Delhi Airport…
After a long layover in New York, I was ready for take off. I brought my first yoga book I ever purchased, along for the ride – Yoga A Gem for Woman by Geeta Iyengar. I purchased when I was pregnant with my first baby, when the seed for my yoga curiosity was first planted.
I was nervous to land in the Delhi airport, traveling solo on my first trip to India. So I mapped out the airport before I landed and I had a plan: get through customs, get my bags, find an ATM to get local currency, and go to domestic departures for my connecting flight to Pune.
When I spotted an ATM, I curiously wondered if I should be thankful or suspicious about the heavily armed military man airport guard standing next to the ATM. I decided to be grateful for safely, and got out the max of 2000 Rupees from each of my two debit cards.
I needed Rupees to pay for my yoga homestay, the remainder of my fees for yoga classes and to buy props for the two week intensive taking place off site from RIMYI. In India, most things are still paid in cash.
I had a four hour layover, which was a good thing. Because it took three hours for me to arrive at gate 34, for Indigo Air flight 2343 to Pune. Departing at 1:40 AM.
After the ATM, went to domestic departures where a security worker told me to find Terminal 2 instead.
I spotted a large yellow lit up sign that was outside the airport, for Terminal 2. But nothing inside. And once I went outside, I would not be allowed back inside the airport. I hoped for the best and stepped outside.
Having traveled to other underdeveloped counties, I was prepared for the dozens of taxi drivers shouting “taxi” at me when I stepped outside. I confidently and respectfully repeated “no Taxi” to them as I looked around for the way to Terminal 2. Second guessing which way to go.
At this point in my 24 hour journey, keeping track of time was getting tricky. I was very thankful for the kind taxi driver who approached me in English and asked me where I was going. He asked to see my boarding pass and clearly explained the process of what I needed to do next. He was a wonderful welcome to India and a taste of the kindness I would continue to experience there.
Walking outside on a path alongside a parking lot with my two suitcases in the middle of the night to Terminal 2 was not on the airport map! And not what I envisioned as my first steps in India. But I was taking it all in, like a starry eyed traveler, not minding the smell of pollution in the air.
Thankfully, I had the insight when I checked in to my flight in Knoxville,TN to request a printed boarding pass for my Indigo Air flight. Because at Terminal 2 there was no staff working the counters in the middle of the night and I had to have a boarding pass to get inside the airport doors of Terminal 2. This was part of the process the taxi driver explained to me. Because if your flight is more than three hours from departure, you are not allowed in the airport and getting a hotel is recommended!
Next came the long, packed Indigo line to recheck my bags. I was the only blond haired, obvious foreigner in the large crowd of Indians. I was feeling far from home, on a big solo adventure that my wandering soul craved for decades. I always wanted to travel the world, far and wide. And I finally felt really far away from home.
Then my phone rang…. It was my daughter Lydia (age 15) and I answered to make sure everything was okay. She said, “Mom, I am going dress shopping with Scarlett for our winter dance (which I was missing) and I need money to buy a dress.”
I laughed out loud at the irony, that with technology, you can never really be that far from home (which is nice too). I am grateful that my village at home is good. That there will be more dances. And that I was able to joyfully say, “Lydia, call your Dad. I AM IN INDIA!”
I found gate 34 to Pune and took a seat in a plain metal white chair. There was a coffee stand with an honor system to pay. It was 1 AM. And yes people were drinking coffee!
The local Indians slowly filled the chairs around me and I trusted we were all in the right spot because there was no sign for Pune and no Indigo Air workers. Just a yellow paper flip chart that displayed 34 in black bold numbers. About 1:20AM a woman in a tidy royal blue flight attendant outfit showed up and called out, “flight to Pune, follow me.”
Ready to go, I joined the crowd following her down a ramp, and outside to a bus that drove us to the middle of the hazy dark runway where we walked outside to board the full plane. I slept well on my long haul flight from JFK to Delhi, but looking at the planes lined up in the smoggy dark sky made me feel like I was dreaming. Luckily, my flight was not delayed due to low visibility as a result of pollution. Because that sometimes happens.
It was a nice flight, where I received a bag of snacks and a cucumber sandwich. I was so hungry I forgot I wasn’t supposed to eat raw food. I gobbled it up, and all was well.
I landed in the new terminal of the Pune airport and easily made it through baggage claim, where I had a driver waiting to take me to my hotel. At 5:00 AM I arrived at the beautiful JW Marriot and was greeted by staff in traditional Indian clothing all putting their hands together to bow and say Namaste. It felt like I was in a dream. A dream come true. I was in India.
I got to my hotel room, took a shower, and scheduled my alarm to wake me up for lunchtime.
Despite many signs saying taking photos was prohibited in the Pune airport – I snapped this on the escalator. I was looking forward to ringing in the New Year in INDIA!
