Namaste! I’m in India, and I’m 35 years old here.
I’m still 34 back in Flagstaff, though, so let me ride that one out for a few more hours.
It’s about 7:30 a.m. on my birthday here, which means it’s about 7 p.m. on the day before my birthday back in Flagstaff. Delhi is apparently 12.5 hours ahead of Flagstaff, and I’m not entirely sure where that extra half-hour came from, but I’m just happy to be here.
Also sleep-deprived and slightly delirious.
Before I get too into it- did you know there is a Holiday Inn Express literally INSIDE the New Delhi airport? Because there is. I booked it a few weeks ago, and at this point in time, I can confidently tell you it is the best $150 I have ever spent in my entire life*.
*sent from a king size bed with a fluffy mattress topper in an air conditioned hotel room on the fifth floor of the New Delhi airport after a solid seven hours of sleep after a long 30-ish hours of travel
It’s incredible. You don’t even have to leave the airport. You just clear customs, wander around outside of International Arrivals past, like, six broken ATMs, and the green Holiday Inn logo will appear before you like a sign from whatever gods you believe in.
And then you just approach the front desk, give all your personal information to the respectful gentlemen working there, follow your insanely kind guide through the back hallways and bowels of the airport’s Terminal 3 while they porter your luggage, and you are eventually led to a very cozy room that is the MOST welcome after, like 30 hours of travel including two layovers and one biiiig 16-hour flight.
All this to say- I made it to India! I left Flagstaff at about 6 a.m. Saturday. I flew from Flagstaff to Dallas/ Fort Worth, Dallas/ Fort Worth to New York City’s JFK, and JFK to New Delhi.
I have a flight later today from New Delhi to Dehradun, and from there, I will take a taxi into Rishikesh. And then maybe like, an auto rickshaw to my ashram? I haven’t figured that part out yet.
My flight from New Delhi to Dehradun was supposed to leave in like, 10 minutes, but it was pushed back to 1 p.m., so now I have all morning to enjoy my fancy hotel room inside the New Delhi airport.
Up until this flight delay, my travel has been blissfully uneventful. I woke up in Flagstaff panicking because my flight from Flagstaff to Dallas was delayed by like, 15 minutes, and when you have THREE connections to get to your final destination, the last thing you want is for your FIRST flight to be delayed.
But, it ended up working out. We left on time from Flagstaff and arrived in Dallas 15 minutes early. I panicked a little bit more in Dallas because I landed in one terminal and departed from another and my layover was only like, one hour, but I made it to my gate in Dallas right when boarding started, which worked out perfectly.
I am an anxious traveler. I know, huge surprise. I always pack really light (the photo of me above with my big backpack and my Gen Z-approved sling bag is all the luggage I brought with me for the next almost two months) and because I pack light, I get really nervous about having to check my bag because like, everything short of my passport and credit card is in my bag. So if I had to check it? Chaos and dysfunction.
Which means, yes. I’m one of those people cueing up early to board as soon as my group is called. Yes, I know that my seat is assigned. I’m not lining up for my assigned seat. I’m cueing up for that precious overhead bin space!
I was in boarding group 6 for all of my flights, and I was almost positive I would therefore end up comically trying to shove my oversized pack underneath the seat in front of me so I didn’t have to part with my toothpaste and puffer jacket, but somehow, there are now 8 boarding groups for American Airlines and my boarding group was somehow not even close to the bottom, and I was able to board with the first 50% of passengers.
So, overhead bin space. Yes! Also, window seats! It’s been forever since I’ve booked a real flight since I usually fly Spirit or Frontier or whatever basic economy flight is available, so I was pleasantly surprised to see that our late-stage capitalist hellscape has let some perks of flying — like choosing your seat in economy without a $80 fee — continue to exist on some airlines.
I also suck at flying on planes, so I was fully prepared for 16 hours of sheer misery on my flight from New York City to New Delhi, but I was actually able to nap a bit (my Apple Watch recorded two fitful four-hour naps with looots of “awake” periods) and I finally got around to watching Barbie via the in-flight entertainment system.
So, the flight went by a lot faster than I thought it would. We left on time and actually ended up arriving an hour early. It only took me about an hour to get through customs and immigration, and then another 30 minutes to find my hotel’s information/ help desk.
During my check-in process at the hotel, I ran into two other Americans from Washington, D.C., who immediately asked me if I had voted before leaving the country.
(Which, by the way, yes I did.)
After they confirmed that I voted and I apologized profusely on behalf of Arizona for Kari Lake, they were very excited to tell me all about their plans to trek through Nepal, Bhutan and India, and excited to hear about what I had planned for my time here in India.
Hotel staff led the three of us to the check-in counter, and I immediately showered and passed out for another five-or-so hour nap.
It feels like I’ve aged an entire year in the process of getting from Flagstaff to Rishikesh.
Hah!
Anyway. All this to say I’ve made it here to India, and I’ve made it here to 35.
And also the Lions won.
I continue to remain in awe of this beautiful life I’ve made for myself, and I try not to take a single second of it for granted. Aging as a woman in our society can be really challenging — especially as an unmarried woman without a husband or children.
But I am so fortunate. I’m grateful I’ve been able to carve out so many incredible experiences for myself. I’m grateful I’m able to be here right now, about to embark on this adventure, knowing I have a stable job and a supportive life partner back home.
And I will definitely be bringing this gratitude forward into every day on this trip and every day of year 36.
