The Zombie Day

Even after about 20 hours of travel, things are looking vaguely familiar as the sun rises over Hyderabad on our way to the hotel.  “Gachibowli” is where we’re headed…Hindu temples every few minutes…a (not so) thin layer of pollution-haze covering the city…”Do Not Pass Urine” painted on fences and walls…dudes passing urine on fences and walls.

But in all fairness, knowing what we’re getting into makes us both feel more settled.  And when we arrive at the Westin the relief of being in our second “home” starts to sink in.  Check-in is a breeze (thanks to Amanda’s copious Starwood Preferred Guest points she’s racked up over the past year, I’m sure) and Annabelle immediately finds solace in the playground set up right in the lobby.  Luckily her body still thinks it’s late-afternoon and we’re able to pry her away without too much trouble to go to our room.

[Lowly Blog Drafter Note: Let me preface this next bit with a big “thank you” to our employer.  We GREATLY appreciate the accommodations we’ve been afforded, both in transit and while at the Westin.  It’s magnified by having AB with us and knowing how hard it could be.  We’re extremely lucky.]

Our room.  It’s fantastic. In the main living area we have a nice workspace, a dining table (aka – Griffin’s clothes dresser and laundry hamper), and a sitting area with a big coffee table (aka – Annabelle’s craft table).  There’s a small kitchenette.  The microwave will come in handy for mac ‘n’ cheese.  The bathroom and closet (Amanda and AB’s closet, mind you…my dresser has been discussed previously) are one in the same.  Spacious enough.  The bedroom is nice-sized and most importantly can be partitioned off for privacy when AB goes to bed in the roll-away we got.  If it weren’t for AB wanting to go back to the play area, I’m sure we’d pass out right away.  But instead we trudge downstairs in time for breakfast to open.

6:30 AM, India Standard Time.  8:00 PM Central Daylight Time.  This is where things get blurry.  And pre-schoolers get cranky.  And we’ve got hopefully 12 more hours to suffer through to break free from jet lag as quickly as possible.

Breakfast is…incredible.  We have all the chutney, dosas, sambar, idly, upma, pongal, and aloo mutter in the world at our fingertips.  (More to come on food – stay tuned!)  Want to know more now?  http://bit.ly/1pO7ZjB.   For backup, there are also some safer options that remind us more of home: omelets, fruit, pancakes, super-healthy-not-at-all-bad-for-you pastries, and…pizza.  For breakfast?  Okay.  Coffee, black tea, and masala chai.  Thank goodness.  That, paired with the play place keep us sane for an hour. 

After snapping out of our haze, we’re able to convince AB to go on an adventure to explore the hotel grounds.  There are two presumably fantastic restaurants downstairs (we STILL haven’t tried them…whoops), along with a salon, a spa, and a workout room.  There’s a big grassy area out back, and a few interconnected swimming pools.  We make a great decision to not get in the pool today.  The density of our bodies after breakfast paired with our severe lack of awareness of our surroundings would surely lead to disaster in a pool.  Instead, we head back to the 25^th floor of the hotel that has an open atrium looking down into the lobby below which causes vertigo with one wrong look.  Due to our long-term stay, we get access to the Club Lounge.  This is great, because we can continue to overdose on caffeine all day long.

We somehow make it to lunch and then we catch a Westin shuttle to the nearby Inorbit Mall.  Or maybe we went to the mall and got lunch?  Or maybe it was a dream inside a dream…  Whatever.  The main point here is that we got out of the hotel and went to the mall.  Our transport was an auto-rickshaw, or a tuk-tuk.  These things are glorified three-wheel scooters with a “roll-cage” made of tin and canvas.  Child safety be damned!  Just put her in the middle and hold on! 

The mall is actually quite nice.  Plenty of people, distracting stores, and a playground.  However; this was AB’s first real experience with India, and vice versa.  The white family that includes a beautiful mother, a giant father, and the cutest daughter I have, draws a bit of attention.  Unfortunately, AB gets it the most.  More on this later.

An unknown number of minutes or hours later, we stumble upon a Westin shuttle that takes us home.  It’s early evening and we’re all about ready to curl up and pass out.  We barely make it up to the room and AB is OUT within minutes.  Amanda and I join her within an hour or so and we all sleep like babies.

All in all, our India experience is shaping up nicely.  Don’t worry…I won’t give the play-by-play of tomorrow.  We’ll get more “topical” in nature while I play catch-up on the blog.  Look forward to the next posts of sightseeing, AB’s school / our office, food, friends, surprise vacations, and more!