My Lufthansa trip!

I am in Fairfax, Virginia, and am having fun! I got here on the 3rd of August by Lufthansa. The flight journey from India was physically very taxing. I have never been on flight for 19 hours and this was a new experience. I enjoyed a lot on the Lufthansa flight. I had mixed reviews from friends about Lufthansa, some said the seats are crammed and the service is poor while a few others told me Lufthansa’s service is even better than British Airways! So it was for me to see. It turns out, I got lucky again. I had a good journey! The seats were awesome, and the service was good. Food was nice. I saw Speed Racer (again), and Kung-fu Panda on the LCD Monitor.

I landed on Frankfurt airport, and it was just what I expected it to be. Massive! Took a train to reach the departure gate of my connecting flight. I was disappointed however, because I was unable to call home. The phone kiosks had all their instructions in German! Most airport authorities only understood German! I actually felt confused, because in India, English is such a common language, and telephone booths operated by a human is such a common sight! So much for a developed economy! I made a few American friends on the airport though. They were waiting for the same flight, and were kind enough to help me contact home.

If I had known that the connecting flight, which was operated by United Airlines, was going to be bumpy, and without a good screen, I would have not slept at all on the first leg of my journey. I had new friends to talk to though, Indian and American, so I had a good time.

Even at Washington DC airport, making an international call was difficult. A word of advice for all those traveling to America for the first time, and without a phone… Please carry International calling cards, all the phone kiosks need one and there are no humans around to help. Its just you and the machine! 

The DC Airport is cute. It had a full black theme, the building’s walls were a new concept of black (I think asbestos, it was not cement for sure). I waited outside for an hour for my pickup to arrive, looking at the vast landscape with cars (even some awesome ones… Rolls Royce, Daimler, Hummer and Porche! ) dotting the circular highway road.

My first meal on American soil was at McDonalds! I enjoyed the food. It is better than the McDonalds burgers in India.

I am all set for this new phase. A lot happened since, I got an apartment, got a part-time job, registered for courses, met many new people, and visited many new places.

Its 5:14 PM here on August 20. Time for my department orientation. More (long overdue) updates coming up shortly.