The move next door :-p

Well not really next door, but just a mile away, so you get the picture ;-). Its been 3 weeks already - first week being too busy to even think about writing a post, second week thought about it, but my PC was down and the third week I got a new laptop, still was too lazy to write anything :-D.

Anyways we moved from here:




To here:




It looks like an upgrade (the extra floor), but actually its a downgrade (it has 1 less room and no garage). To tell you the truth, I didn't really want to move at all. After living in the house for 3 years and having the life-changing experience happening there (if you don't know, Snugli was born while we were there), the house felt like our first home as a married couple. Yes, we were in Bangalore for about 2.5 months and then in 2 other apartments here in US for 6 months each. But this was the house we started building the nest in, so to speak. We bought furniture, our TV all there.

But (there always has to be a "but"), the 3 rooms were unnecessary. Snugli still sleeps in our room , albeit in a crib, so we literally had 2 rooms extra - 1 of which we used as an office and a God's room, other we didn't use at all. So a move to a 2-room house would be the logical thing to do. Saving a little bit rent money was a plus. The problem we encountered was the you cannot find a 2-room, 1-floor house. All the 2-rooms I have seen here are duplex houses. And you hardly get independent ones. Well, a town home was our only choice.

I was worried alright, about the move with Snugli around and more than that, about how Snugli would behave around the stairs. Earlier when we moved from house to house here, there were only 2 of us and we did everything - booked a Uhaul and we literally hauled everything. But with Snugli, we have food/milk schedules to maintain and her getting in the way of the move (we cannot really push her into a corner :-p). We did book an Uhaul truck, but we also engaged some labour through Craigslist (2 labourers for $20 an hour).

We didn't know how it all would work out, but it did wonderfully. The labourers were absolutely awesome. They were quick, organized and worth the $100 we paid them after 2 hours. We had initially thought of only getting the bigger items moved by them, but they moved almost 85-90% of our items! When Sri tried to help them out, one of them absolutely refused to let him, saying "This is what you are paying us for"!! Sri and the 2 guys took care of the major moving, while I took care of Snugli's food and getting the boxes ready for the guys to move :-D. Next day we were done with cleaning the house and giving the key back.

I felt bad when we were leaving, seeing the house so empty, yet so full of the times we had spent in it, but after we came to the current house, somehow I totally became indifferent and got adjusted. Don't know whether I'm still in shock and if the realization hasn't yet dawned on the fool thats me :-\. Whats even more strange that whenever we have moved from a place, be it earlier with my parents or later with Sri, visiting the older house is very rare. But in this case, the old house in on the way to anywhere for us. So for quite a few times, I used to feel a pang whenever we saw the old house, but recently, we have another shorter route we are taking, so its been sometime since I saw it.

The best part of it all was that Snugli got adjusted to the new house so well. She cried the first night (she wasn't used to the window next to her crib ;-) :-D), but then things simply fell into place. She loved the stairs, she goes up saying "Aane, aane" (elephant) and comes down the stairs holding the wall. We watch her all the time when she's on the steps, but thank God, there haven't been any incidents so far. We have decided, upon seeing such a good progress to not even install the gate we have with us :-D.

There are still things that need to get into some kind of order (the closet space is less here than the old house), but we were set into a pretty organized environment the first week onwards. I can only hope that this house will be as good for us as the previous one was :)).

Moooooing to new pastures :-D

Well what can I say? We have already moo(v)ed to a new apartment ;-). But the process of shifting is unlike any shifting I've seen in India. In India, we have 2 options. One book a matador van and move all the stuff into it. The driver drives to the new place and you move all the stuff out. You can opt to hire some labour for the moving. The second, you book one of these packers and movers who do everything for you, with a bit of a higher cost. Here in US, both are available, but the cost of manual labour is very high, no matter whether its about driving for only about 5 miles or carrying stuff in/out. So most people living in US prefer only one thing, U-HAUL.

As the name suggests, you haul all your stuff. They just rent out either a container which you can tag along with your car, or a min-van, or other different size trucks according to your stuff requirements. The fact that the renting itself costs a lot, is another thing altogether. But its of lesser cost than anything else.

When Sri first told me about it, believe me I was scared. Not for myself, but a truck is a huge thing on road. Just a small turn and you can hit a poor car. I asked him repeatedly "Are you sure about this?" as he was the one who was driving :-D. So many times, that probably he got fed up with me, but he never showed it. What he did show was a kid-like amazement at the thought of driving a truck. I guess every boy's dream is to drive a truck :-D. I have never seen that kind of enthuasism on his face before, not even when we bungee-jumped :-D. Though I was reluctant, I said "Ok this is another adventure" and went for it. This is the truck we drove - a 14' Thrifty Mover:




Not a very good photo, I know. Its taken from the uhaul website. I wanted to take a picture of it, but our camera was packed somewhere, so couldn't. Anyways, thankfully it was a bit smaller than I expected, I really thought we were going to drive one the size of an Indian lorry. This one was a bit bigger than one of our Indian tempos :-o ;-).

We had started packing everything on Friday, 9th December 2005 night, so we had only last minute fridge-items packing remaining. Moreover since we were moving to an apartment inside the same town, no elaborate packing was required. On Saturday, 10th Decemeber 2005 morning, Sri went to the U-HAUL office to get the truck. I couldn't resist taking one last photo of the lawn in front of our house as I had taken one similar in the summer before. So here's the summer one:




Here's the one I took, before we shifted, at the same place:




Look at the bare trees!! And yup, thats snow on the lawn. It had snowed the previous night, but thankfully the day was bright and sunny. Still we did have a couple of difficulties as we moved our things from the house to the truck. One was that the house was in first floor, so the stairs were one big hurdle (or several hurdles :-D). The second was that we had to walk quite a bit to the parking lot. The paths were a bit slippery due to ice formation. But somehow we did manage do get most of the stuff into the truck. The only really heavy items we own are the bed parts i.e the bed itself and the box its kept in. These we had to double up (i.e me holding one end and Sri another) and transfer them to the truck. Rest were all ok. I am so thankful that apartments here come with a refrigerator, washer and drier. Otherwise, I don't know how in the world we'd have managed to carry those!!

After moving all the stuff came the adventure part. I was a bit apprehensive as I sat next to Sri in the front of the truck, but it was much easier than I imagined. The lanes are very clearly defined on the roads of US and hence Sri found it pretty easy to manage the truck within a lane. Moreover it seems that all the other people driving in cars recognize an U-HAUL truck when they see one and keep their distance :-D. I guess they have a right to be more apprehensive than I was :-D. Anyways the move was very smooth and we didn't encounter any hinderances as such :).

After we reached the new apartment, it was pretty easy to move stuff inside as the house is in the ground floor and right next to the parking lot. We dumped all the stuff inside (only kept the fridge items inside the fridge) and were off to U-HAUL to give the truck back. We returned the truck, finished all pricing formalities, had lunch at the nearest Pizza Hut and went back to the old apartment.

To clean it up ;-). Most of the apartments in US (I think, all) are owned by a group rather than a person. So they clean it, repaint it and rent it out immediately to somebody else. And if there's major cleaning/carpet replacing required then all that cost is cut from the deposit the previous resident would have paid. So we had to make sure that the kitchen and bathroom counters were all shining. Basically, make sure that the house looks and feels clean. We didn't have any carpet stains, so that was good. We finished some of the cleaning and completed the rest the next day.

Meanwhile, we didn't finish it on the same day since the internet guy had fixed up that time with us for the internet connection at the new apartment. So as soon as we reached the new house, he came along and was done with it. That was the best part of the move. The internet/phone were working in a matter of hours ;-) :-D. Then we still had the unpacking to do. But we finished almost everything within the end of saturday. Phew!! But it was worth it :). And here's the photo of the new house:




The new apartment name is SteepleChase apartments :). And we live in the ground floor, right side apartment on the photo :). Everything's settled now and is as comfy as it can get. So that was it, yet another adventure to yet another perfect end :).

Around the world in 34 hours :-D

Lookie lookie at the right panel!! Yup I'm in Lexington, KY and will be here atleast for 6 months :) Wanted to write a Babye Bangalore blog before I left, but didn't have time at all what with all the packing to do, stuff to remember and all that ;-) Ok I'm just giving excuses :-p :) I came to Lexington on Friday the 13th May 2005, 10:00 PM PST. Friday the 13th sure turned out to be lucky for me :) Moreover as my mom pointed out the date was exactly 6 months from the day Sri and I met ;-) :)) Here's an account of my tedious and tiring journey whether you want it or not :-p

Bangalore

On the dark, not-so-cold night of 12th May 2005, I set off to accomplish the impossible task (:-D) of crossing 2 oceans ;-) The first phase of my long journey was to catch a Sahara airways flight from Bangalore to Bombay. As soon as we (me, my parents, in-laws, Darsh, Lekha and my chikappa's family) reached the airport and dumped my two each-weighing-31-Kg-suitcases into the check-in, we found that the common phenomenon of flight delay had occurred. Since I had a 4-hour wait in Bombay which I had resigned on spending alone, this looked like a blessing in disguise as I could wait the wait with my family + had gotten about an hour to spend with them :) After the very sad parting with my family (don't want to go into details of that one, as its still capable of making my eyes water), I was on my own...

Mumbai

At the mumbai airport, I stepped confidently towards the baggage claim. I knew what to do thanks to my hubby and our honeymoon trip to South Africa (henceforth referred to as HMT). Lifting my heavy baggages was not easy done as easy said :-p Somehow managed it and headed towards the door to catch an inter-terminal bus to the international airport :) Imagine my shock when I see almost 80 people waiting in a queue for the same!!! Since the buses were scheduled evey half an hour and could take only 35 people at one go, I had to wait about 1.5 hours for my turn!! By the time I reached the international airport, there was only 1.5 hours for my British Airways flight to leave. As the standard reporting time is about 3 hours before the flight, the airline officials made a fuss. I had to explain and sort things out. Later immigration and security check-in weren't a hassle at all (refer HMT :-D). Only after clearing security check-in, did I notice that there were no STD/ISD booths after that point! How sad can an airport get!! I had promised to call up my parents and I knew they'd be worried if they didn't get my call. Finally, managed to borrow a mobile from some lady and call up. Phew! Thanks lady, whoever you are :) I also had promised Sri that I'd call him up. But he'd told me that he wouldn't expect a call as anything might happen. Oof, glad he said that, otherwise I'd be feeling guilty as hell :)

I had always eyed Boeing 747. This British airways double-decker flight was the one I had wanted to fly in for a long time :) Though the first floor was only for the executive class, it didn't lessen my excitement. After settling comfortably in the window seat, with an Indian couple next to me, I trifled with the monitor in front of me and the channels on my armrest. Was excited but apprehensive at the same time. At the expected time, i.e 2:15 AM early 13th May morning IST, the plane rocketed into the skies tossing me into a new wave of sadness. As I watched the receding mumbai shore, the only thought in my head was "My land gone, dunno when I'll be back" :(

London

The flight to London was a 9-hour one. I slept for more than 6 hours which was good. British airways lived up to its name of being the best flight across the Atlantic, with good food and good service. The best part was that I was able to make out the snow covered alps from the plane :) Landing and formalities at London were no problem at all. The problem was the 5-hour wait to my connecting British Airways flight to Chicago.

London Heathrow airport is sooooooooooooo huggggggge man! I landed in Terminal 4 and since my connecting flight was also at the same terminal, I wasn't allowed to go anywhere else. Terminal 4 itself is sssssssso big! I first freshened up and then window shopped for about 2 hours. God!! So many shops! I had actually told mom that I'd try to call her up if possible. But the payphones there accepted only pounds :( I didn't want additional hassles of foreign exchange. There were a few coin foreign exchange machines, but all 3 of them didn't work!!! And this was London!!! Looks like London bridge is falling down :-p I gave up! Decided to call mom only after I reach Lexington :)

My flight was scheduled to leave from Gate 24. It was a 15 min walk from the main terminal to the gate!! You have horizonatal conveyor belts and beautiful photographs all along the passage way. I was like a kid with candy :-D And man!! The planes!!! There were about 15 Boeing 747s visible together from the lounges. Wow!! Flights taking off 1 min after another, flights arriving one min after another, God!! That was a sight to see :)) I just laid down my head on my vanity bag watching the take-offs and to my shock, fell fast asleep. I woke up with a start to realize that I had slept for 1 hour with my cabin luggage unattended in front of me!! Then splashed some cold water on my face and walked here and there just to avoid sleeping.

There were again no problems getting into my next flight. I was hoping my luggage had also had no problems ;-) I met a nice couple on this flight Sherry and David. They had just spent their 25th anniversary (realllllllllly uncommon in Americans ;-) ) in Paris and were returning home to New Mexico :) Spent a long time talking to Sherry :) Also watched 2 Robert De Niro movies - "Meet the Fockers" and "Hide and Seek" and enjoyed them both. Filled up the I-94 and Customs forms as directed by Sri (So sweet of him to download sample forms, fill them up, scan them and send them across to me :). He had also given me step-by-step instructions on what to do when, where to go, how etc. What more can I ask for in a hubby? :-D) and kept them ready for landing. Had a headache but couldn't sleep at all, except for an hour or so :(

Chicago

My flight landed in Chicago on 13th May 2005 noon at about 3:30 PM PST. The weather was not so good, so we had a couple of turbulences before we reached there. It was as if somebody was shaking the plane like a milk shake :-D Man, that was fun (I said this to one of my friends, Chans, that's you and she said "Lady, your idea of fun is weird" :-D). Once landed, I said my goodbyes to Sherry and David and proceeded towards immigration. I was so excited as now I was only about 5 hours away from Sri :) There was a looooooong queue for immigration, but the I-94 stamping as such didn't take any time at all. Next was the baggage claim. Boy!! Was I glad to see my 31-kg-each suitcases intact ;-) After a struggle to download them (hehehe computer term) into the trolley, I was off towards customs. Didn't even have to go into the green channel. The lady there asked me what kind of food was I carrying (I had declared food in the customs form), I said "processed food, no meat" and she allowed me to pass. Then I had to check-in my luggage in the American Airways counter at the international terminal itself and there was another loooooooong queue there. After removing the locks on my luggages (its a rule here) I waited for my turn and got them checked by the officials there (they wipe a tissue and subject it to some check, guess for some microbes etc). I was glad again to notice none of the uppinakai (pickles) (that mom had packed despite loud protests from me) had leaked ;-) :) Ok luggage dumped. Now had to dump myself :-D

I had to take a transit system to the domestic airport from the international one in Chicago. Which was absolutely no problem :) I loved the monorail. It was way cool, though the trip was very short. After reaching my terminal, had to walk a bit to reach the gate my plane was stationed at. There were huge crowds flying to all sorts of places (probably as it was Friday). Security check-in took about an hour due to the queue :-p. Had about an hour to my Lexington flight. Sri had given me calling card details, so called him up from there :) Also, my flight had been delayed by 0.5 hours then, informed him of that ;-) Spent rest of the time window-shopping. Went to a food court to have coffee and was shocked at the prices (my friends tell me this is the initial dollar-to-rupee-conversion-syndrome :-p). I love Cafe Mocha and was shocked to know it costs almost Rs. 200, while even in the costly Coffee day shops of India its only Rs.60 :-p Had a Rs. 60 worth Espresso :) Will definitely take some time getting used to it :-p. My flight came in at about 7:00PM 13th May 2005 PST. I was supposed to land at Lexington at about 9:30 PM. But the bad weather was continuing and the plane was delayed by another half an hour :( This after I climbed the plane, so couldn't even inform Sri! The plane was a small plane and the seat next to me was empty. So could sleep for about half an hour :)

Lexington

As the plane neared Lexington, I couldn't contain my excitement. I would be seeing Sri after 40 whole days :) Atleast he had gotten to see my latest photos :-p I had nothing but a voice on phone for more than a whole month :( There was a feeling of thrill, apprehensivenes and joy - all churning one-by-one inside me. I got down an escalator towards baggage claim and there he was, my dearest hubby, standing right where he had promised to be. As soon as I saw him, I knew.

I WAS HOME :)