Omaze/How I Met Your Mother Experience/Los Angeles Trip (Part 2)
The end of December/beginning of January were kinda crazy. I submitted my MPhil thesis on Christmas Eve. The family started doing the preparations at home for the arrival of my sis-in-law's baby. My sis-in-law was pregnant and her due date was 2nd of February 2013. Initially, the Omaze experience was supposed to be at the end of January: 20-27. I asked the Omaze people for it to be moved earlier in case the baby arrived before time. One week into January - there was a cyclone threatening to pass close to Mauritius and I was worried for a while there that the weather would further deteriorate and prevent planes from taking off.
Every night when everyone would go to bed, I would go have a bowl of ice cream and come back to my laptop to plan stuff. We would be spending 5 days in LA and every minute would count. I started noting stuff in my trusty, small black and red notebook (see picture below and spot it!). I wanted to buy a tablet and so I noted all the places in West Hollywood and Santa Monica where Nexus 7 was available, like Staples, GameStop, etc.. My brother wanted me to buy some electronic baby monitoring stuff. So I noted the addresses of nearby Target department stores. I also noted the details of Starline Tours (one of the many companies which organise bus tours around LA). I would contact them there once we're settled in our first hotel. Along with the addresses and phone numbers, I also printed the Google maps of the different places I needed.
I was nervous about several things. Mom and I had never travelled abroad without Dad. He usually is the one who handles the credit cards and cameras when we travel. This time, I was in charge of all the travel/hotel documents, all the credit cards, the camera/camcorder/mobile phone. I had to be aware of them at all times. Moreover, would everything go on well? No problem at the airports? Would Mom be able to deal with the 44 hours of flight? Would we be able to do all the things we had planned? Would the weather be too cold? How would the Omaze people be? How would the HIMYM people be? Would I understand everyone's American accent? Would the baby give us time to come back to Mauritius? I have to admit, that last question worried me the most. We would be leaving Mauritius on Sunday 13th and on that Thursday 10th January, my sis-in-law had her doctor's appointment and the doctor said that at any time her labour can start. I was so scared that Mom would miss the birth of her first grandchild. You have no idea how many times I said to God, "Please let the baby come after the 20th, please let the baby come after we return, show me what You've got. Help me please."
We began packing on Saturday 12th....
...and finally Sunday 13th was here!
We went to the airport, said goodbye to the family, had a quick look at some prices inside the Duty Free shop and boarded the plane to Dubai. The flight was only 6 hours long, but the leg space was so cramped. So uncomfortable! And when we got out of the plane at Dubai International Airport, we had to go down the stairs with our hand luggage to quickly get into a shuttle that drove us for FIFTEEN minutes on the tarmac just to get us to the terminal. That's how big and congested Dubai Airport is at 6 am on a Monday morning. Mindblowing. We had a quick look around the Dubai Duty Free shops to check out a few prices and then back to the waiting room to board our plane to LA.
This time, the leg space was much better! We were so relieved. And just before leaving for the airport in Mauritius, I had checked-in online to choose our seats - the middle four seats. To our relief, there was a vacant seat next to Mom's just as we had planned. We used the two seats and each other's lap to sleep quite comfortably at turn.
We landed at LAX airport and made it to the exit! (no My Name Is Khan shit of any sort! Yes, I was kinda worried). It was sunny and around 12°C, but there was a crisp cold breeze and that was my first introduction to the cold!
There was Michael from Omaze, waiting for us. He apologised on behalf of Ali who had to stay at the office. I was more relieved that someone had come to pick us up! The ride lasted for around 45 minutes as there was heavy traffic. Mom, Michael and I talked the whole time. He was so easygoing.
We finally arrived on Hollywood Blvd leading the way to the W Hollywood Hotel. My first thought upon entering the hotel? HOLY SHIT AM I REALLY GONNA STAY HERE? I have been to several hotels around the world, 3/4/5 star hotels. But the Living Room and the Grand Staircase and that Chandelier were mesmerizing. Heart skipped a beat count: 1
There was a window seat in the room (I LOVE window seats). I climbed onto it and looked outside to see this huge poster of The Hobbit hanging on the other side of the hotel. Heart skipped a beat count: 2
We told the hotel concierge that we wanted to do one of those organized bus tours of LA. What did he immediately hand over? Pamphlets of Starline Tours! He called them and the Starline people confirmed that they would pick us up at 8.50 am the following morning from the lobby and asked for us to be ready.
Mom and I took a taxi and went to Staples only to find that the Nexus 7 tablets that had been in stock only the past Saturday were completely sold out. :( We came back to the hotel and then went for dinner at a small restaurant 2 minutes from the hotel. When our order arrived, it was a shock. 2 LARGE plates that my family of 5 could have eaten. From that night, whenever we would order something to eat, even breakfast, we would say, "One order. Two plates please."
Back to our room, we showered and I began my nightly routine of charging my phone/camera/camcorder and later tablet. Mom fell asleep rapidly. I watched some tennis and finally fell asleep absolutely tired to the TV showing the Australian Open, while listening to a radio station on my MP4 player, which I finally turned off at 4 am on Tuesday morning.
Every night when everyone would go to bed, I would go have a bowl of ice cream and come back to my laptop to plan stuff. We would be spending 5 days in LA and every minute would count. I started noting stuff in my trusty, small black and red notebook (see picture below and spot it!). I wanted to buy a tablet and so I noted all the places in West Hollywood and Santa Monica where Nexus 7 was available, like Staples, GameStop, etc.. My brother wanted me to buy some electronic baby monitoring stuff. So I noted the addresses of nearby Target department stores. I also noted the details of Starline Tours (one of the many companies which organise bus tours around LA). I would contact them there once we're settled in our first hotel. Along with the addresses and phone numbers, I also printed the Google maps of the different places I needed.
I was nervous about several things. Mom and I had never travelled abroad without Dad. He usually is the one who handles the credit cards and cameras when we travel. This time, I was in charge of all the travel/hotel documents, all the credit cards, the camera/camcorder/mobile phone. I had to be aware of them at all times. Moreover, would everything go on well? No problem at the airports? Would Mom be able to deal with the 44 hours of flight? Would we be able to do all the things we had planned? Would the weather be too cold? How would the Omaze people be? How would the HIMYM people be? Would I understand everyone's American accent? Would the baby give us time to come back to Mauritius? I have to admit, that last question worried me the most. We would be leaving Mauritius on Sunday 13th and on that Thursday 10th January, my sis-in-law had her doctor's appointment and the doctor said that at any time her labour can start. I was so scared that Mom would miss the birth of her first grandchild. You have no idea how many times I said to God, "Please let the baby come after the 20th, please let the baby come after we return, show me what You've got. Help me please."
We began packing on Saturday 12th....
...and finally Sunday 13th was here!
We went to the airport, said goodbye to the family, had a quick look at some prices inside the Duty Free shop and boarded the plane to Dubai. The flight was only 6 hours long, but the leg space was so cramped. So uncomfortable! And when we got out of the plane at Dubai International Airport, we had to go down the stairs with our hand luggage to quickly get into a shuttle that drove us for FIFTEEN minutes on the tarmac just to get us to the terminal. That's how big and congested Dubai Airport is at 6 am on a Monday morning. Mindblowing. We had a quick look around the Dubai Duty Free shops to check out a few prices and then back to the waiting room to board our plane to LA.
This time, the leg space was much better! We were so relieved. And just before leaving for the airport in Mauritius, I had checked-in online to choose our seats - the middle four seats. To our relief, there was a vacant seat next to Mom's just as we had planned. We used the two seats and each other's lap to sleep quite comfortably at turn.
We landed at LAX airport and made it to the exit! (no My Name Is Khan shit of any sort! Yes, I was kinda worried). It was sunny and around 12°C, but there was a crisp cold breeze and that was my first introduction to the cold!
There was Michael from Omaze, waiting for us. He apologised on behalf of Ali who had to stay at the office. I was more relieved that someone had come to pick us up! The ride lasted for around 45 minutes as there was heavy traffic. Mom, Michael and I talked the whole time. He was so easygoing.
We finally arrived on Hollywood Blvd leading the way to the W Hollywood Hotel. My first thought upon entering the hotel? HOLY SHIT AM I REALLY GONNA STAY HERE? I have been to several hotels around the world, 3/4/5 star hotels. But the Living Room and the Grand Staircase and that Chandelier were mesmerizing. Heart skipped a beat count: 1
There was a window seat in the room (I LOVE window seats). I climbed onto it and looked outside to see this huge poster of The Hobbit hanging on the other side of the hotel. Heart skipped a beat count: 2
We told the hotel concierge that we wanted to do one of those organized bus tours of LA. What did he immediately hand over? Pamphlets of Starline Tours! He called them and the Starline people confirmed that they would pick us up at 8.50 am the following morning from the lobby and asked for us to be ready.
Mom and I took a taxi and went to Staples only to find that the Nexus 7 tablets that had been in stock only the past Saturday were completely sold out. :( We came back to the hotel and then went for dinner at a small restaurant 2 minutes from the hotel. When our order arrived, it was a shock. 2 LARGE plates that my family of 5 could have eaten. From that night, whenever we would order something to eat, even breakfast, we would say, "One order. Two plates please."
Back to our room, we showered and I began my nightly routine of charging my phone/camera/camcorder and later tablet. Mom fell asleep rapidly. I watched some tennis and finally fell asleep absolutely tired to the TV showing the Australian Open, while listening to a radio station on my MP4 player, which I finally turned off at 4 am on Tuesday morning.