Arrived Delhi 9pm last night. Refresehed.

I checked in to Newark and my boarding pass read "Seat 20A Window". At least it was in an exit row. Walked up to the friendliest flight attendant just before boarding and, with all the smile I could muster (as if that would make a difference), said, "Just checking to see if miracles really happen". She looked up, smiled and said "if your name is...(then looked quickly down at a ticket) Gerald Thomas Crispin they do".

Yes!!! Scored 1st class at the buzzer.

Flight uneventful but put off catching up on films I saw 30 years ago and the many TV series I don't now watch nor will I 30 years from now for reading my collection of articles and making notes. Seat mate was a 40ish head of a small software firm. Polite enough. Headed over to India, Chennai, for the 11th time this year, 2nd time this month. Hires 3rd party whenever and just pays little attention. Bored and preoccupied he apeears and sounds burned out. Shoot me when I look like him.

Picked up 1 bag but not before realizing that another had "people-to-people" luggage tag and discovered a few rows away was a colleague also headed late to hook up with the delegation. Together we breezed past a few thousand signs to spot Sandeep, our guide and lifeline to get to The Grand hotel, one of the newest in the city.

It took about half an hour and while we rode I learned that my colleague had acutally gone to the same graduate school and program in Organizational Behavior as I when she had worked for Bell Labs albeit a couple years apart. Same profs and a few friends in common.

This omens are good.

The hotel is very grand. The road getting there was a bit dusty, the air smoky and although it was dark, I wasn't sure it was all paved but will save these impressions for now. The only disconcerting piece which i should have expected was as the car pulled up to the palatial entrance of the hotel, two soldiers appeared and checked the baggage and underneath the car- then quickly moved on to the next car. Life in the 21st century.

I ended the day after checking in with a quiet celebratory drink of a Cabernet from India- quite good by the way or maybe that was just me.

It is now 7am on Tuesday and I need to collect my notes for the three stops today- one university and two companies. Back later.