Monday, August 29, 2011

Welcome to Bangladesh

Hello to everyone from BANGLADESH!!!!! 

What a LONG, overwhelming, and exciting past 72 hours!

On Saturday, August 28th, Roslyn and I boarded a plane in Kansas City, Missouri and some 28 hours later touched down in Dhaka, the capitol of Bangladesh.  I would love to tell you that my "roughin' it" began on the plane ride over, but that's just not so.  The flights from Kansas City to Chicago and from Abu Dhabi to Dhaka were not full, so we ended up with tons of space on each.  Also, when we reached Chicago, we checked in with Etihad Airways (the carrier taking us the rest of the way) and were able to (accidentally?) sweet talk the very handsome airline worker into letting us sit together.  He was having some difficulty finding two seats together and stopped to think for a moment.  Then, with inspiration on his face, he looked up at us and said, "Just a moment!"  He came back to announce that he had found us "the very best seats!"  Exit row seating!!!!!!!!!!!  We had so much leg room, it was ridiculous.  On a 14 (turned into 15+) hour flight, you really can't ask for much more.  Aside from a dead sprint across the Abu Dhabi airport and an interesting expierence with security (isn't it exciting to see what two American girls have packed in their carry-ons?), the entire experience was as pleasant as any 30+ hour international trip could possibly be! 
**Also, I should just mention that every international flight I've taken on a foreign carrier (especially an Asian one) has been about twenty million times better than any international flight on an American carrier.  I suppose it's because most of the foreign carriers base their business on international flights, which is obviously not true for United, Delta, or American.
Once we arrived at our student apartment (which is quite posh by Bangladeshi standards, I'm told), Roslyn and I showered, took naps, and held a mini worship ceremony for the French press that Roslyn was so smart to pack.  Then, we headed out to deal with mobile phones, find me a salwar kameez (which is the standard dress for a Bangladeshi woman, made up of loose, haram-style pants, a loose-ish fitting tunic, and an orna, or a scarf of sorts that is draped over both shoulders - the picture below is an example), and just generally explore the area.

So...  Since I don't have any pictures to share, and since it is currently 5:00 in the morning here (I woke up around 4 and needed to kill some time until I felt tired enough to go back to sleep!), I'm going to save the rest of the first day story for later.
I'll be back soon...

1 comment:

  1. Yea, Katie! What a fantastic beginning to your Bangladeshi adventure! So glad to hear that you are there safe and thanks for posting! Enjoy that French Press! :)
    Jayme

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