Mumbai to Ahmedabad – 14 March

During our transfer to the airport, our driver stopped so we could take a picture of the amazing Haji Ali Dargah Mosque.  The transfer went smoothly, but we encountered problems at the check-in counter because our bags were over the maximum allowed weight.  Well, there’s a first time for everything.  We’ve been over at most check-ins and there hasn’t been an issue as yet.  We took a bunch of stuff out of our bags and put them in the "bingo” bag I tucked in the case.  It’s really that big $25 promotions purse you get at the Body Shoppe filled with various products.  I knew that darn thing would come in handy.  We tucked a bunch of heavy things like the hikers, shoes, books and such to bring the luggage weight down, then we took it with us as carry on.  Really, I am not sure what difference it makes?  It’s the same weight going onto the plane.  At any rate, rules are rules.

It was a short uneventful 1 hour flight to Ahmedabad (pronounced Am-da-bad).  Anything that does not involve a landing strip that ends with a mountain, like the flight to Lukla, is uneventful.  J

We are staying in another Heritage Hotel, the House of Mangaldas Girdhardas (or House of MG, for short) and it’s just gorgeous.  Our room is so large with high ceilings and fully netted bed.  It includes an awesome jhula swing (fastened to the ceiling) and I could lie down and swing on that thing all day.  The hotel was formerly a family home and there are family trees and old pictures of the family throughout the hotel and in the suites.  It’s really interesting to see the family growth and events.

After settling in, Greg went to his meeting at the Civil Research Laboratory, where he met with a former graduate student Nirag and presented to a group of his colleagues.  I spent the afternoon blogging, catching up on e-mail, and you guessed it, swinging.

We went for dinner at the Global Desi restaurant with a Nirage and a couple of his colleagues.  The food was all vegetarian with various levels of spicy and hot, which we topped off by sharing a chocolate decadence desert including ice-cream, truffles, cake, mouse, sticks, and sauce.  It was a nice way to wash down some of the hot stuff that actually, and embarrassingly, made my nose run.

Haji Ali Dargah Mosque in Mumbai