im leaving tomorrow and packing today.
updates and fill-in-the-blanks soon.
march = washington dc.
Showing posts with label pre-flight. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pre-flight. Show all posts
24 February 2009
08 February 2009
less than twenty
plane tickets are booked, my visa is expiring, and i am leaving on the 25th of february.
the anxiety is not unfamiliar. i remember feeling a little like this about a year ago.
im excited to see familiar things, people i miss, and places ive forgotten.
at the same time confused and sad to go.
im not sure where home is, if its here, or there, or both, or someplace yet to be discovered.
until then, there should be enough time to figure out how to get out of the country in a somewhat organized way, finish as much work as possible, drink some good chai, and go for a few more bike rides.
in whatever order makes most sense.
03 March 2008
take that, delhi belly
knowing that probably half of this will go unused, im still glad to feel well-armed against whatever may come my way. i keep thinking i could cut this amount in half, but what would be the fun of that? at this rate i can open my own store...
to compensate, im taking an uncharacteristically small amount of clothing and shoes. priorities.
to compensate, im taking an uncharacteristically small amount of clothing and shoes. priorities.
timing is everything
the indian consulate that handles most of the north atlantic region is in new york city. recently, all indian visa applications have been outsourced to a separate agency, cutting line time, headache, and hassle. still, nothing is seamless, and it does pay to get there early. perhaps not at 7am, but by 7:30, there was a small line. the office opens at 9am, and being first in line is nice. and you are in a better position to get the visa when they re-open for pickup at 4:30pm. it makes for a very long day, but if the weather is decent, its more than tolerable.
it also pays to have paperwork organized, in hand, with duplicate proof-of-addresses, photos, etc. although they are quite happy to make a photocopy of any original document you cant part with. there are several computer stations available to fill out the on-line application, although its not so fun to wait for 2 hours to use a computer lab and get back in line. being anally organized allowed me to walk out fifteen minutes later, sans passport, with a receipt for pickup. although i had been waiting since 7. i probably could have queued up at 8:30 and not been in too much trouble, as it was a dismal february tuesday and the crowd seemed atypically small.
and killing time in new york is fairly easy.
the forecast called for a lovely wintry mix, driving rain in the morning, and highs of 35f. somehow, it maintained a balmy 40ish-ness all day, without any substantial rain or wind.
all in all, i walked about 13 miles, more or less by choice. i picked up some fun stuff for the trip, was awed by the institution that is b&h photo, and spent some quality time in the nj transit lounge checking my passport status. with the new outsourcing system, the passports can be tracked by number online, and arriving for pickup with out first confirming status is apparently discouraged. its not fun to haul up to central park unless you know youre going to walk out with your visa, and you will also be asked, repeatedly, if you have tracked your passport.
after that its a breeze. you simply sign, and your passport is returned, visa and all. my neighbors in line seemed to be at ease with the whole thing too. much less painful than the nj dmv.
serendipitously, the laptop i was hoping would get me though the next nine months was somehow upgraded in system components, not price, and in stock. crossing get-new-laptop off the list, and avoiding fed-ex delivery anxiety. timing was incredible.
still the best part of the day was this:
this man is spectacular not because of his long flowing hair, his pleather windpants, or even his flashing electric violin. but simply because he was playing britney spears 'baby, one more time' with a vigor i cant do justice in describing.
all in all, not bad.
it also pays to have paperwork organized, in hand, with duplicate proof-of-addresses, photos, etc. although they are quite happy to make a photocopy of any original document you cant part with. there are several computer stations available to fill out the on-line application, although its not so fun to wait for 2 hours to use a computer lab and get back in line. being anally organized allowed me to walk out fifteen minutes later, sans passport, with a receipt for pickup. although i had been waiting since 7. i probably could have queued up at 8:30 and not been in too much trouble, as it was a dismal february tuesday and the crowd seemed atypically small.
and killing time in new york is fairly easy.
the forecast called for a lovely wintry mix, driving rain in the morning, and highs of 35f. somehow, it maintained a balmy 40ish-ness all day, without any substantial rain or wind.
all in all, i walked about 13 miles, more or less by choice. i picked up some fun stuff for the trip, was awed by the institution that is b&h photo, and spent some quality time in the nj transit lounge checking my passport status. with the new outsourcing system, the passports can be tracked by number online, and arriving for pickup with out first confirming status is apparently discouraged. its not fun to haul up to central park unless you know youre going to walk out with your visa, and you will also be asked, repeatedly, if you have tracked your passport.
after that its a breeze. you simply sign, and your passport is returned, visa and all. my neighbors in line seemed to be at ease with the whole thing too. much less painful than the nj dmv.
serendipitously, the laptop i was hoping would get me though the next nine months was somehow upgraded in system components, not price, and in stock. crossing get-new-laptop off the list, and avoiding fed-ex delivery anxiety. timing was incredible.
still the best part of the day was this:
this man is spectacular not because of his long flowing hair, his pleather windpants, or even his flashing electric violin. but simply because he was playing britney spears 'baby, one more time' with a vigor i cant do justice in describing.
all in all, not bad.
24 February 2008
why everything is for sale
the main point of this blog is to record the daily process of fulfilling my grant. before, during, and after. this is important to me for two reasons: first, keeping in touch. its like a super deluxe mass email, only its at-will, and wont fill your inbox. second, i can use it to create my mandatory monthly reports, something im sure i would rather do last minute, but would be better with piecemeal observation. these benefits outweigh my instinctual reluctance and apprehension to 'blogging' so i hope i get in the habit of making an effort. and because these reasons are more or less self-serving, i hope to make it a good show.
also, i learned some good tips from past grantees blogs and hope to make this somewhat useful for whomever is in my position next year.
anyway, right now things are mostly chaotic. pre-departure organizing has been an adventure in communications and paperwork, and thats just the bureaucratic side of things. the to-do list is tiring and long. one task of this weekend is to purge. you would be surprised at the interest in a moving sale on a weather-threatened saturday morning.
its not just me, 'home' home is moving too.
packing lightly is always a good thing, and double relocating is all the more reason. just as long as the 'trash and give away' pile remains bigger than the 'keep' pile, its progress.
maybe not everything though.
also, i learned some good tips from past grantees blogs and hope to make this somewhat useful for whomever is in my position next year.
anyway, right now things are mostly chaotic. pre-departure organizing has been an adventure in communications and paperwork, and thats just the bureaucratic side of things. the to-do list is tiring and long. one task of this weekend is to purge. you would be surprised at the interest in a moving sale on a weather-threatened saturday morning.
its not just me, 'home' home is moving too.packing lightly is always a good thing, and double relocating is all the more reason. just as long as the 'trash and give away' pile remains bigger than the 'keep' pile, its progress.
maybe not everything though.
23 February 2008
snowed in
after the last two years of boston winters under the influence of global warming and spending the majority of this years on a west coast beach, it was nice to wake up to this:
the forecasted blizzard was actually nothing but 6 inches of soft pretty mess. doctors and shots were still open so i can check hep A off the list. according to the cdc, its a good idea to get lots of shots before you go on a trip like this. while my doctor may not agree, id rather be overly safe. hep A breeds in places with unsanitary conditions, fancy bars in new york, and is quickly passed through food and water. at the least it will screw up your liver. so my left shoulder takes one for team healthy.
the forecasted blizzard was actually nothing but 6 inches of soft pretty mess. doctors and shots were still open so i can check hep A off the list. according to the cdc, its a good idea to get lots of shots before you go on a trip like this. while my doctor may not agree, id rather be overly safe. hep A breeds in places with unsanitary conditions, fancy bars in new york, and is quickly passed through food and water. at the least it will screw up your liver. so my left shoulder takes one for team healthy.
22 February 2008
with love, from mom
its time to start packing. or at least unpacking things to pack. this is my favorite so far:
i really cant imagine another situation in which my mother would so enthusiastically gift me a set of hypodermic syringes.
i really cant imagine another situation in which my mother would so enthusiastically gift me a set of hypodermic syringes.