A new beginning

A brand new year! Lots to look forward to, lots to discover and enjoy. I wonder what 2009 will bring for our family?!?... I hope to learn and grow, to love and live to the fulllest!

I have to start to unpack ... and get everything in order again! So far, this year have been a very exciting one! We survived 23 hours of travelling, hauling +106 kgs of luggage plus 16kgs of Fabi. Just like the movie, we rode "a plane, a train and an automobile" to get home in Erlangen. We're missing all our friends and family that we left behind in Mumbai, but we feel wonderful that we got a chance to get closer to them during our recent visit to India.

HAPPY 2009 everyone!

FELICES FIESTAS! - HAPPY 2009!

We have spent a very special Christmas Day (Mass in Goa, India) and we'll be spending our New Year's in Mumbai. We are thinking of all of our friends and family members who are physically far away from us, but so close to our hearts!

Best wishes from Mariluz, Ishan and Gaurang Fabian!

India en fotos

Fabian is visiting his birthtown after 2 years and 4 months. Lots of things have changed in Vashi, Navi Mumbai. I feel right at home! It's nice...and weird at the same time! Follow us in pictures.

Ya saque la cuenta: hace 2 anyos y 4 meses que Fabian y yo nos fuimos de India. Intentare actualizar esta pagina con anecdotas e impresiones de este viaje de visita. Me pueden seguir la pista en este album de fotos en FLICKR.

I am NOT impressed...

...with the services of consulates / embassies. I never have....!

Jueves Santo

"Maundy Thursday- the Thursday before Good Friday is celebrated by Christians with great significance. It was on this day that Jesus celebrated the Passover(Pesaha) with his 12 disciples, He washed his disciples' feet and then shared with them the Last Supper before His crucifixion. This was the institution of the Holy Mass.

On this day, the priests in Catholic churches carry out a ceremonial washing of the feet of 12 people following Christ's act".

Three years ago it was a Maundy Thursday when Fabian was born. This year another important event takes places on this day: Sopan & Priya have arrived from India to visit us for a few days.

Note: New pictures in my Flickr Album here!

Back Home

Travelling would be SO much more fun if it weren´t for the

PACKING

and UNPACKING

Here´s a picture of Fabi saying Good-Bye to his grandparents (Abuela & Abuelo) at the airport in Costa Rica.

We´re back in Germany just in time to enjoy the autumn! This is the view from our living room window. It´s good to be home!


A big "Happy Birthday!" wish to Fabi´s uncle, Alonso, who is enjoying his birthday weekend in Paris, France!

Crossing the pond

Fabi and Masalamom will cross the Atlantic pond Ocean -yet again- tomorrow. See you on the other side...

I've got lots of things I want to write about...but for now I have to go and finish packing and the next few days will be excitingly busy.

Nos preparamos para "cruzar el charco" una vez más! Nos vemos del otro lado! :)

Updated:

I think I just broke a record: I have finished packing and I still have about 10 hours before my flight! I think I might even sleep for the remainder of the night! It's been raining cats and dogs here. I hope the weather has improved by the time we have to takeoff.

Hace exactamente una semana empecé a empacar. Me sentía muy tranquila con todo lo que llevaba adelantado. Hice una lista de todo lo que quería hacer y la pude completar. Sin embargo me dieron las 11:00pm del día antes de mi viaje de regreso a Alemania y por fin pude terminar de alistar el equipaje. Llevo una maleta más de lo que traje :) Regreso a Alemania muy feliz porque aunque llegué aquí bajo circunstancias de emergencia, me voy en condiciones muy diferentes, de alegría, de paz...Luego escribiré acerca de esto más en detalle.

Musica

At least we know Fabi's uncle -Alonso- is making the most out of his trip to London. Hope he enjoys THE concert!

UPDATE

You're right, Rong: the concert was at the Wembley Arena...! Here's a cellphone shot:

A tale of a (semi)long trip - Part II/II

The real challenge of the trip began just as I thought I was about to board the plane that would take us from Caracas, Venezuela to Milan, Italy. Instead of hearing the common announcement of "Passengers with children, please step forward", I was asked to step in a different line and had to give EVERY single detail of the purpose of my trip. The pages of our passports with our German visas were scanned and after a long questioning I was told to wait aside (while the rest of the people made a line to board the plane).

I thought I was getting special attention and that soon, a crew member would escort me to my seat. In the meantime, I recognized a couple of Indian men who were also being questioned throughly. The instructions were being shouted at them and it made me mad to see that immigration officers didn´t realize that the Indians were not deaf...it was just that they didn´t understand Spanish. I got really mad when I saw that the Indians had to wear a special reflector vest, that looked like it was necessary to point them out from the crowd. "That´s racism!", I thought. But then my real surprise came when I was told to wear the same vest...and I started to get really nervous when someone from the airport staff warned me not to let go of Fabi for one second. I thought he meant that Fabi could be taken away from me (kidnapped?) if I was not holding him at all times.

A young airport staff member gave me and the Indians some instructions. We were to follow her -always walking directly behind her in a straight line and to have our luggage keys in our hands. I translated for the Indians and they obviously felt very relieved, but I think the staff member felt more relieved because she didn´t have to use her poor English anymore when addressing the Indians. I still didn´t know what was going on and everytime I tried to ask I was given a very short reply to "wait for one moment, please".

After a very uncomfortable wait, the airport staff member lead us down some stairs into the airport runway! In the middle of all those airplanes and buses and luggage carts! No wonder we needed reflector vests! No wonder we´re suppossed to stay together - in a straight line behind the staff member! No wonder I´m not suppossed to let go of Fabi! But....why are we on the runway (when everybody else is comfortably bording the plane upstairs?)

Well...because we were "randomly" chosen to undergo an extra luggage check...in the presence of army soldiers! (I have to mention here the fact that in Costa Rica there is no army and that the sight of a soldier right next to me holding a huge rifle while I opened my suitcase with one hand and held Fabi with the other one, was very intimidating!)

Luckily, my suitcase was not too messed up once it was opened. And I was glad to get help while closing it again. The other (Indian) passengers also successfully passed the check and we were guided back to the waiting room where the rest of the passengers where boarding. By the time I had to go back up the steps with Fabi and my hand luggage I thought I was going to loose grasp of something...everything was just too heavy and I had to slow down the pace ---while the others just watched!

I could not believe when I realized that we were being guided to the end of the (very long) line of people who were still boarding the plane. The split second I was just about to react and protest, someone tapped on my shoulder and said: "You just came back up from the luggage check at runway level, didn´t you? You don´t need to stand at the end of the boarding line. Go ahead and walk into the plane and find your seat." Ah! Finally someone who makes sense!

The long flight from Venezuela to Italy was very pleasant (actually, *ANYTHING* would have been very pleasant after the horrible experience at the airport in Caracas). When we reached the airport in Milan, I had to collect my luggage and wait for a few hours before my flight to Frankfurt. I was able to put all my luggage in a cart and leave it in a storage room during the time of my wait. I don´t remember what I paid to have my luggage stored, but it was expensive. However, to me it was worth every cent because it allowed me to only worry about Fabi (his food, his diaper change) and it made it very easy for me to get familiar with the airport as I needed to find the place where I had to check in for my next flight.

Fabi and I walked up and down the airport in Milan for hours (actually I ran after him most of the time). We spent so much time at the airport in Milan that I was starting to feel at home. I don´t regret the decision I made to travel without a stroller, and the idea of having him strapped from his waist to my wrist at all times was a complete success!

By the time I was checking in for the 3rd flight of our entire trip, Fabi had slept on my shoulder. However, I didn´t have trouble getting help from a German passenger to hand in my heavy luggage at the Lufthansa counter. Even later, when we were boarding our (4th!) plane from Frankfurt to Nuremberg I was surprised to see so many kind gestures of German gentlemen helping us.

Finally when we reached Nuremberg, we met Ishan who was waiting with a cab that would take us to our temporary apartment in Erlangen center. I was very curious to see Fabi´s reaction towards his father after six long months. But he recognized him immediately ("Papa! Papa!") and walked straight into his arms. I was very happy about that, especially because that meant I could go to the toilet *all by myself*. :)

And that, my loyal reader, is the end of the long story of the trip that brought our family together in Erlangen, Germany in the middle of December of 2006.

A tale of a (semi)long trip - Part I/II

When Fabi was 15 months old, I travelled half way around the world with him from India to Costa Rica. The trip lasted 35 hours and everything went very smoothly.

By the time we were scheduled to travel from Costa Rica to Germany, Fabi was a little over 20 months old and I was very anxious about the trip eventhough we were travelling a "shorter" distance.

We had to fly from San Jose, CR to Caracas, Venezuela to Milan, Italy to Frankfurt, Germany to Nuremberg, Germany. Due to the fact that I was not able to change my destination on my return ticket from Mumbai to Frankfurt, I was simulating to stay in Milan for one day (in order to get my luggage), so I could catch a flight from Milan to Frankfurt with another flight ticket.

My biggest concern was...how was I going to deal with a 10+kg baby and 40 kgs distributed in 2 different pieces of luggage in Milan and manage to catch a flight on time?

Well...as it turns out...that should have been the least of my concerns!

Our trip started off very smoothly. Monday, Dec 4th at around 7am, my parents went with us to the airport in Costa Rica and we had plenty of time to say "Good Bye". Our flight left at 10:30am and we reached Caracas about 3 hours later. We only had a snack on the plane.

Once we reached the airport in Caracas, I took a wrong turn and by the time I found the correct line for the check-in of our next flight, I had to wait for my turn hoping Fabi would not run out of patience. I had to hold him for a long time to avoid him from running away from me, so my right arm was already numb from holding his squirmy weight.

Little did I know that the next part of the trip was going to be the real test! Normally they ask passengers who need assistance or with little children to be the first ones to board the plane. But in this case...it looked like they were trying to do the total opposite.

It was *ABOUT* time!!!!!! --UPDATED--

I never wrote the gory details of what it's like to go through the process of requesting an entry visa for an Indian citizen who wants to visit Costa Rica.

Let me tell you the (very) short version:

• Indian passport holders need a so-called 'restricted visa' to go to Costa Rica.
• This means having to write an application letter, filling out a form, submitting proof of economic viability and giving all these papers to the Honorary Costa Rican Consul in Delhi.
• Then you patiently wait for the Consulate's office to send the application to the Immigration offices in Costa Rica (after they are done with their 'internal proceedings', whatever that means).
• Then you will most likely receive a rejection from the Immigration offices in Costa Rica.
• So the next step is to have someone in Costa Rica submit another application.
• Second time around, if the application is accepted, with luck, the applicant would not have to pay a significant amount of money as a deposit (which would be returned after the visitor went back to India).
• The concerned authorities between Costa Rica and India communicate through fax. They take a LONG time to reply to each other's messages (which have to be translated).
• The visas that are granted by the Immigration offices in Costa Rica always come back with restrictions, such as: 'Must get passport stamped withing 30 days after the visa was granted', 'May only visit Costa Rica for one month'.

Remember...this is the SHORT version. I will spare you with the agonizing details, but I will tell you that I went through this hell twice: for MasalaDad when he came to Costa Rica in 2003 (for our wedding) and for Fabi who also has an Indian passport.

After Fabi's visa got rejected...it took 6 months (!) for the application to go through. Since the visa was valid for only one month, it already got expired and I had to go to the Immigration offices again and get it renewed.

Dealing with all these bureaucratic procedures wears me out and I have come to hate them in a way I have never hated anything in my life!

That's why you might understand the reason of my excitement this morning when I read today's newspaper:

The front page of the newspaper announces that, as of July 14th, 2006, indian citizens DO NOT REQUIRE a visa to come to Costa Rica (and may stay for up to 30 days)! Let me repeat that: Indian citizens DO NOT REQUIRE a visa to come to Costa Rica!

The last time I felt THIS excited was when I learned that I had been accepted as a student at the Technische Fakultät. It's the same type of excitement that makes me wildly jump up and down with joy!

So....now you know....if you're an indian citizen you now fit in the category of "Have passport, will travel"....as long as your destination is Nepal or Costa Rica...you don't need any other formal document.

When are you coming to Costa Rica?!?!

UPDATE: (Aug. 2008)

I visited Costa Rica one year later and learned that SADLY, it was all temporary. Apparently Indians need a visa to go visit Costa Rica again. I don't know if a 'restricted visa' still applies. If so...well...I will have to be prepared for the next time MasalaDad wants to visit CR. It's a good thing that Fabi now owns a Costa Rican passport.