Uddan - Flight

For our trip to India this time, we chose Qatar Airways. Seeing its publicity on BBC - Qatar Airways, one of the fastest growing airlines in the world. Taking you more personally! - encouraged us to book with them. This airline, based in Doha, Qatar, covers around 70 international destinations. Check-in at Paris was smooth, although they were very strict about luggage weight.

The in-flight service was good, with very comfortable seats offering ample legroom. The quality of the food was better than what we had experienced before, and there was a good selection of films and music on demand. In short, it was a good service for the almost 7-8 hour long-haul flight. However, the airline was let down by the ground services at Doha airport, which were awful. The airport was too congested, with no available seats and overloaded toilets. Most of the workers there were South Asians in blue-collar jobs, and the services at the airport were very poorly managed.

Qatar Airways generously provided free dinner coupons for the 4-hour stopover, which is rare in the age of no-frill airlines. Finding a long queue and no place to sit, we opted for a quick stroll in the small duty-free section. The duty-free had all kinds of perfume from France, small souvenirs, wines, cigarettes, and yes, our beloved yellow metal (gold) shop. Every Indian seemed to be making a pilgrimage there, showing that India’s fascination with gold never lessens. We, too, went there, especially Pamela, who is no less enamored.

Having watched Syriana a few days before, it felt like some of its scenes were playing out there. Arab men in their white dresses and women in black, just four feet behind them, were a common sight. The same went for the South Asian working community in the Middle East.

It was time to board our next flight from Doha to Delhi. Everyone was in a rush to get on the flight, displaying their so-called Indian etiquettes, as if they had bought the flight and it was going to leave without them. Again, the in-flight service was good, along with the food menu. As the flight landed, people from the rear end seemed to be in more of a hurry than those sitting at the front. The best part was the person from the back, who came running to be the first to exit from the economy class, asking for help at the Immigration counter because he couldn’t fill out the form himself.

May God bless those Indians! Otherwise, the rest of the journey was peaceful.