Travel, Eat and Shop

Travel, Eat and Shop: Double-decker plane, Airbus A380 lands Manchester

2010-09-01T10:08:00.000-07:00

Travel, Eat and Shop: Double-decker plane, Airbus A380 lands Manchester

Double-decker plane, Airbus A380 lands Manchester

2010-09-01T09:23:00.000-07:00

It’s a historic moment in the aviation history as Manchester becomes the first regional airport to accommodate the landing of the Airbus A380 from Dubai. The Jumbo usually operates between Heathrow and Dubai, but now onwards Manchester will witness regular flights to Dubai.

The 517-seater double-decker sets the hearts of thousands of spectators fluttering and it was an ecstatic moment for the converging crowd which stood there to witness the world’s largest airplane touch down in a regional airport for the first time.

It indeed matters to be big. The airport authority spent around 10 million pounds to make space for the gigantic aircraft to land comfortably. It took 18 months to upgrade the entire runway system – the taxiways are widened and latest fire safety equipments are in place now. All these have earned Manchester a 'Category 10' certification from the Civil Aviation Authority, and it is one among the 17 airports to achieve this distinction.

Manchester with its upgraded aerodrome is now ready to facilitate flights to Dubai with large airliners. The massive commercial airliner had been operating services with London since 2008 and will fly daily between Dubai and Manchester from this September.

Travel, Eat and Shop: Kiss Flights Kissed Death Leaving Holidaymakers with little Flight Options

2010-08-18T21:25:00.000-07:00

Travel, Eat and Shop: Kiss Flights Kissed Death Leaving Holidaymakers with little Options

Kiss Flights Kissed Death Leaving Holidaymakers with little Flight Options

2010-08-18T21:09:00.000-07:00

Kiss Flights, a travel firm and an arm of Flight Options, kissed death, after the shocking plunge of burgeoning travel operators - Goldtrail Travel and Sun4U. Travel operators, insurers and custodians in the Aviation Sector, the CAA (Civil Aviation Authority), are swiftly back into action to subside the soaring blood pressure of angry customers.

According to CAA, around 13,000 travellers, who have booked their tickets through Kiss Flights, are holidaying in Egypt, Greece, the Canary Islands, Portugal, Spain and Turkey; though the fear of being stranded on the foreign destinations remains high, yet there is a silver lining in the cloud as the CAA assures them of repatriation as per ATOL (Air Travel Organisers' Licensing).

Sources also mention that there are another 60,000 travellers, who have booked their holidays with Kiss Flights, are eagerly waiting to start their much awaited vacation. The news, Kiss Flights stopped trading, have shocked the travellers, who are upset that their holidays are bungled this time not by Airline strike or by volcanic ash but by travel operators.

In the series of travel firms’ downfall, ATOL has surfaced repeatedly and to know whether the traveller is ATOL protected or not the invoice or the receipt should be checked. If the traveller gets flights booked through a company like Flight Options - the parent company of Kiss Flights - which is an ATOL protected company, the person is entitled for protection on particular elements as promised by ATOL. ATOL primarily offers protection on flight element only.

If the traveller had booked accommodation with other tour operators, those will remain unaffected by Kiss Flights’ failure. The CAA announces that those who are supposed to fly before 1800 hrs BST on 18th August should go ahead for a normal departure. For the rest who have their holiday bookings after 1800 BST on Wednesday 18 August 2010 are advised to claim a refund. Since the company busted in the peak summer, CAA is making all arrangements to help customers carry on with their holiday trips.

Temporarily a bit of panic surfaced when the news of the IGI Insurance refused to offer protection to Viking airlines unless it fulfilled the set criteria for receiving insurance. As Kiss Flights bought flights with Viking and if Viking was excluded or denied insurance cover, the clients could be affected too. This presumption had triggered an alarm among Kiss Flights' administrators that it would be denied protection as well. But assurance came from the IGI and Rock Insurance that Kiss Flights remains protected.

Speculators say that most of Kiss’ travellers were clients with Goldtrail which has recently folded its business and it is said that Goldtrail had sold its tickets below the cost price of the tickets. Some sources said that Goldtrail sold return tickets at around GBP 109 to its customers who when got back to claim a refund found that a return flight ticket to Turkey cost around GBP 200, which could have actually risen as high as GBP 275 meaning Goldtrail had sold by almost GBP 80 less than the original price. But the demise of Goldtrail is gladdening news for all as it is primarily responsible for the damage caused in the travel industry.

Experts attribute this crisis to Goldtrail's business strategy, which not only forced it to wind up its own business but also putting other tour operators into difficulty of managing minimum profits. It had created an unrealistic picture of the tourist destination i.e Turkey, where, over the last year, prices have shot up and on reaching Turkey, tourists found accommodation and other necessities to be costly which means Turkey would lose repeat customers.

Kiss Flights also dealt with flights in some of Goldtrail’s routes. With the collapse of Goltrail, sources say, some of Goldtrail's clients turned towards Kiss Flights, which expanded flights to meet customer demands. Unfortunately, with the collapse of Kiss Flights, these clients are disappointed twice in their hope to fly to their dream destinations. The demise of Kiss Flights perhaps is the tip of the iceberg, pointing to the fact that some kind of Government interventions are necessary to support travel companies survive and also to restore people’s faith in travel industry.

CAA has announced that those Kiss-clients, who are already overseas, may complete their holiday trips and need not worry as they would be helped in flying back to UK. And those who are supposed to tie their seat belts after 18th August have been asked to refrain from starting their trip and advised to seek alternative arrangements. With travel firms like Avor getting into full swing to help Kiss Flights’ travellers re-book their holidays, there is still hope that things would not be that bad as one had imagined. Still getting a refund is always time consuming, so many will have little option to plan alternative travel destinations.

Disclaimer: These are observations made by the author on the basis of information available on the internet. The author is not aware of the veracity of the figures and information mentioned in the sources.

My trip to Gurgaon

2010-05-15T08:32:00.000-07:00

I stood in the searing sun like a brown bread from tandoori and turned into charcoal by the time I could get into a cab for Gurgaon. The cab driver nodded more and made strange gestures than talking, in other words an absolute rascal.

I asked him if he would go to Gurgaon he indicated a 'no' and then when a blue shirt guy asked if he would go to Shankar Chowk he replied in the affirmative; and he refused the guy who mentioned IFFCO Chowk. Overhearing it was Shankar Chowk, I got back to the cab and tried to embark on it. Before I could get on to it he started his cab, I shouted at him and he slowed down.

He drove the cab speedily and the passengers in it fell on their sides: right and left and I looked through the glasspane to look around the place. Building and road constructions are going on, ripping through the greenery. The cab went via Kapashera, which was a known route as I had travelled the day before in a friend's car.

The rascal cab driver dropped me in front of Trident and swept by through a lane. I patrolled up and down from Trident except the place where I need to go. Finally with the help of the traffic police I found my way and reached my destination.

After my interview, I ran like a bull in all wrong directions to find a place from where a transport to Dwarka would be available. The traffic police helped me cross the road three times and then he solved my problem by directing me to a crowd. I stood with some 40-50 people waiting to catch a cab or a bus.

Then came an over-crowded bus from where I donno but on it was written Dwarka. If I say I got into it, it would be wrong. I stood on the steps and enjoyed the breeze till I reached Dwarka. My legs ached but that was a better place than sitting amidst crowd where there was not a bit of fresh air.

The bus conductor wore a green T shirt, his fair complexion seemed to be a canvas for the bright green coloured T shirt. I felt someone on my shoulder and saw the young conductor's bums. He was trying to climb hard on the door opposite to where I was standing and I realised he was trying to collect the fare.

I had never thought that one could be such a nuisance...yes it's Delhi...

16 hrs Hault at New Delhi

2010-05-14T23:58:00.000-07:00

In December 2009, I stopped at Delhi for 16 hours with all dust and dirt during my return from my visit to Ajmer. I took the Metro from Chandni Chowk and reached New Delhi station.At the entrance of ND railway station a woman emerged welcoming me with all smiles "I am the Madam here, tell me what you want". I was a bit taken aback and felt cud be an insane woman and she was indeed and tracked me wherever I went...Finally I entered the platform so that she wud stop following me...

I tried to find a rest room but cud not manage one, then I found few foreigners standing in a queue, I noticed it was a cloakroom. I stood behind them and dumped my stuff there in cloakroom. Then I walked within 5 km radius of New Delhi Railway Station...it was 8.30 - 9, I walked down the lanes and bylanes of Paharganj, then I walked back to the station and found more alleys around. In one alley I just walked down out of curiosity and walked a bit more thinking I would get good tea...Further inside I found a clean restaurant and ordered chana batura, gorged upon the stuff, came out and again walked down the other side of the station, Ramganj, and saw nothing except carpentry stuff, came back to the station and then took the main road and walked and walked and finally I saw Park Hotel, I realised then that I was Connaugt Place and that it was a walkable distance from the Railway Station...I walked round and round the area, and realised it was our Esplanade in Kolkata...

None of the ATMs in that area worked that day...I came back to the railway station back and then I took one of the lanes which was left unexplored and there I bumped into Bengalis who told me which lane and bylane had interesting food to offer...

I walked further down and found Bikaner sweets and not Bikanerwala, I tasted the sweets, liked it and packed some for my uncles and then while coming back to the station I realised the street was full of clothes, shoes, chappals, etc. On reaching the station, I went to the toilet, and standing before the toilet mirror I found a weather-beaten crow...

Was feeling a bit cold, sat in the ladies waiting room and watched other women...One little girl came up to me and asked my name, she asked me where was my kid...I just gave a smile and the women sitting next to me instructed the child that I was much older to her and that she shud address me aunty and not ask my name...but the child was least bothered about the social etiquettes and chatted with me as if I was her next door neighbour all the time calling me by my name...

It was 6.30 pm, I collected my bags from the Cloak room and started climbing the stairs until a coolie came up and offered me help, I said I have already come a bit and that it was not that heavy and that I can carry it on my own. But he was very polite, he said "I am poor and if you dont give me work how wud I live", I had to surrender, he steered through the crowd and led me to a point in the platform where compartment B3 wud stop. The train came and B3 stopped in front of me. I got into the train carrying one bag while leaving the other...Suddenly I realised one bag was missing...I cut through the crowd and was surprised to find my bag there - thank God people are scared these days of unattended stuff...I picked my bag and got back into the train, slept well, woke up and chatted with fellow Bengalis and reached home happily...

At Ajmer after 11 years

2010-05-14T23:54:00.000-07:00

after getting into the train at Delhi I hit the berth and slept like a log of wood...I opened my eyes just 10 minutes before the train entered Ajmer...Khwajaji woke me up. I jumped off my upper berth, pulled down my bag and jumped off the train...

I checked into a sharing room in Ajmer station and as usual was adopted by one of the pilgrim families, this time a Muslim family, who took me along with them.

It was fun, this family has a pretty married daughter, Asra, with whom I chatted all morning until I took permission from her parents and stayed back in the Dargah for 3 hrs with a huge crowd of women, who read namaz while I said my prayers...

Asra and I did a bit of shopping...walked till the lake and sat there...

In search of...

2009-11-23T10:04:00.000-08:00

Saturdays and Sundays are mine. On Saturdays I wash my dirty clothes etc., buy grocery and other food stuffs from the hypermarkets and laze on my bed.

Lying on my side I play farmville on my laptop. In the afternoon I go for long walks. I love walking. As I walk down I watch men n women walking by holding hands - everyone more and less are in shape. They eat panipuri from the roadside - when young man eats, the woman waits upon, while the woman eats, the man stares as if the girl is eating rosogolla, love or lust, I don't understand...I passed by several panipuriwallas, beating temptation. Like a drunkard I thought I have resisted temptation. But the aroma of redchilli powder and tamarind and chat masala cannot be ignored for long. My mouth watered and I was involutarily standing in front of the panipuriwallah with my extended arm.

As I gulped down the fourth panipuri, I had an uncanny feeling of being watched. Yes, a woman's man gazed at my ease of gulping down panipuris. "Shameless man", said I, but he seemed not to hear, the wife seemed to be in a different world or perhaps used to his roving eye. Somehow I finished my 6th panipurri, and shelled out the 10 rupee note without a pinch as I have derived complete pleasure in drinking the arse-burning hot tamarind water...

I walked further down to the crossing and waited to cross the road. Turning to my left I caught the attention of a handsome traffic cop. He wore many badges, which told me he is higher authority and his Tamil twang told me he was from the South. I looked into his eyes, but he averted my gaze as if he had seen Petroneus. He looked at the guy next to me and informed us of opportunity to cross the road from the other side.

I crossed the road with the hunk standing next to me. The traffic cop was a sight indeed. I was lucky enough to spot him the second time. And then the third time, I was caught unaware by him as I crossed the road when the signal was green n he sent me back. He has the b**** indeed to send others back for crossing the road when the signal stood green with envy. He had actually caught the hand of a passer-by and led him back to our side for crossing the road when the signal was green.

I looked at my hands, none held mine...The thin girl next to me, who is perhaps a zero size and thank God she had long hair, otherwise how would people know she is a woman, also had a hefty guy drooling over her.

A friend had once told me, "You should have asked the cop for a date." I rued over the idea of asking him for a date. I have the boobs, but do I have the guts? A firebrand police officer like that would not even take a second to give me a tight slap and throw me inside the van and put me behind the bars.

The thought of a tight slap woke me up, my desire for a cup of coffee with him flew, I crossed the road faster than usual with the other impatient pedestrians...

Oye Amritsar in Bangalore

2009-09-13T03:23:00.000-07:00

Singlehood and Sunday early morning is an awful combination. You don't have much so what to do getting up early. I turned to the other side trying to feel somewhat cozier to prolong the sleep but there comes the jerk, my big fat bums, "Ya I have got reasons to wake up early".

I rushed upstairs in my nitesuit to fill my mug with tea. The only thing I like in this hostel is tea. The sun shone timidly outside. I got down the stairs slower, I was afraid that I would spill the tea, the hard-earned tea - you gotta climb two floors to drink tea. But I don grudge the stairs as my neighbours do. This is the only exercise I do in the whole day.

You know there is thinness in the air these days. Less oxygen in the air and everobody gotta look thin-lean just contrary to my big-fat bums. The sisters next door are a sight. My arms are thicker than their thighs and they get the shock when I climb upstairs in my nightwear.

My bulk adds imagination to men I guess and by now many of you must have gone to orkut or facebook to check how fat I look. Don't check, there is no greater pleasure than suspension of disbelief.

Now having gulped down two mugs of tea let me come to the point. You should know that Koramangla has a charm of its own. Its streets want you more than you can afford to grace them.

So to kill my hunger, I walked down to Amritsar in my wrap-around. I was cordially greeted, as a single woman usually receives. I placed a slim order but my bulk did not convince them. The attendant wanted to push in more stuff than my stomach can actually take in.

Food came...I relished tandoori chicken under the shade of trees amidst cool breeze against a backdrop of couples. After consuming two pieces of chicken and one masala papad and one plain kulcha I sizzled my throat in Masala chhachh...I was houseful...I felt like lying down there itself with my former crush 'Wills Classic Milds'...The bill for this quantity was heart-rending and I have vowed no more eating out without friends...

This place is great for families. If you have friends and you are guys/gals who drink and smoke...Oye Amritsar is all for you.

Bangalore's not so chic pet called Chikpet

2009-09-13T00:15:00.000-07:00

Chikpet has nothing to do with anything that is chic, but all that you can like more is goods of better quality at lesser price...All my friends have told me that one can buy sarees and suits at an affordable price from Chikpet.

I don't shop much but I love window shopping...Shopping is an art and what I understand is people who have had romantic relationships converted to marriage are the best shoppers.

Shopping, romance etc. are all a matter of perceptions, reactions and actions...and let's not philosophise all that here.

I actually went to Chikpet with the purpose of seeing than buying...But those who actually went with me there were potential buyers and who wanted value for money...

One lady went on showing me a lot of stuff but I was not interested in any one of them. She was coaxing me a lot but I was not keen...Then there was another woman who was just observing us. She spread two sarees which caught my attention...and I finally zeroed on one and bought it. The potential buyers in quest of value for money did not show much keenness except one saree which they did not buy because they felt it was priced too high and they started bargaining in the "fixed rate shop" but the shopkeepers did not budge.

Then my friends made a big deal with the wholesalers who did not have products with price tag...This is where you need real bargaining skills. My friend bought four sets at a price she wanted...While I finished choosing mine, I counted every minute for her to finish.

She was surrounded by a variety and it was tough selecting from the impressive colours that shone around. She said she would only pay 250 for each and then she bought a third one for which the shopkeeper charged 290. She gave the third back and left. Soon the shopkeeper called her back and she picked it up again at 250.

As we walked down, we overheard the shopkeepers saying "we shud not have reduced for the first set itself". They regretted the reduction in margin of the profit they incurred had they dealt otherwise.

Not being a hard-bargainer, I ended up buying two sets, each for 550 without receiving any discount in price.

Now coming back to the shopkeeper brothers, who are originally from Rajasthan, could speak all the south Indian languages. One brother had the attractive skin colour, which is a typically south Asian aspiration, and was actually doing the talking, while the brother with the serious look watched.

Now having made such a small unattractive profit the attractive brother said "you should not lose a customer" but the serious brother was not convinced.

Similarly is the game of love. You fall in love, play games and hook the guy/gal or sleep with him/her and then regret...The insecurity of losing him/her, makes you love him/her more and then entrapped in love and the fear of not getting another you settle down with the deal you have at hand and tell yourself it better than not getting anyone at all (LoL).