Kevin Tiller

As mentioned before, the only reason for flying Mumbai-Kolkata is because I need to be there over the weekend and there were no trains available. I like the pace of trains and want to see more of the countryside. Still, them’s the breaks.

I figured I would leave approx 8am to get to the airport before 9.30am for my 1130am flight. That is heaps of time even allowing for anything to go wrong. I was up at 7am and soon packed. It was easy to tet s cab ($6). Checked in and bought a roll for breakfast with a chai and read a free newspaper. Not much world news ! The flight was fine, it was quite empty so had loads of room. Just read my Indian Outlook magazine on how Samsung will eat Apple.

At Kolkata I pre-paid for a taxi and caught that to Sudder Street. I was very keen to look at the route to/from the airport as that is on my running route. A total obstacle course and I am wondering what I have let myself in for – roadworks,  holes, pavements, fences, traffic all over. Hot, dusty & exposed. Kolkata is not really even like much of Mumbai – it has a general sense of decay & grime. Quite depressing.

As I hadn’t even picked out a hotel I looked like freshmeat to all the varioys touts -hotels, taxi, change money,  hasish – everything. I got a room in a small guest house.  It’ll do for now – a bit grimey, no air con, dodgy lock on door. I went out for a walk without my pack & got a chai. tried the phone and found vodaphone kolkata is different than mumbai so am technically roaming but barely any price difference.  We’ll see. I went back to my room for a rest, sort my bag out and drop off some laundry. After a while I went out to survey the scene. Lots of people. I came here with dawn for a few days in 1989 en route to Darjeeling but can’t remember much if anything of our time, other than thinking it was decaying and grimy even back then.

I spent an hour walking but it felt like forever. I just got hot & tired. I found a spanish cafe down a side courtyard and got some pasta/tomato with honey lemon ginger.  I didn’t fancy eating indian for once even though there were a couple of decent looking places. I didn’t fancy something on the main drag and liked the idea of something off to the side where I could out with a few drinks (non-alcoholic of course) without being rushed or hassled. I don’t seem to have seen many places like that this year. There seemed to be a big group of Spanish people coming in – you don’t see many travelling around much.

After a few honey lemon gingers I went straight back to the hotel and was in bed asleep by 10pm as it had been a long day.