INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, PUNE

TWO WEEKS LATER

The rest of the team was already in Australia. I was the last person to be picked for the team, and the paperwork had taken forever, so they had to leave without me three days ago. My ticket and visa had arrived the evening before, and I was at the airport waiting to board my flight. I arrived there a little early and had to kill time by roaming around. Later, after obtaining my boarding pass, I was free from my luggage and walked into a bookstore. I found many romance books beautifully lined up on the shelves but decided to pick up a book from the humour section instead. It was a satire on Godmen in India and had a quirky cover. It was going to be a long fight, and the Godmen on the cover looked like a worthy companion.

Finally, at 9 a.m, I boarded my Jet Airways flight. It was till Singapore, where I was going to board a second plane which would take me to Tullamarine Airport, Melbourne.

With all the last- minute formalities and late-night packing, I had not managed to get enough sleep the previous night. My mother had woken me up an hour before the time that I asked her to as she feared I might miss my first international flight. This had further shortened my already short nap. The door closed, I put my mobile phone in flight mode and fastened my seat belt, hoping to catch up on some sleep before I began reading the book. The announcements started and the flight attendants went throught their drill. It was my first ever international flight---but instead of being happy and taking tens and hundreds of selfies like most of the other passengers, I was bracing myself for the take-off. I knew that kids howled when taking off due to a change in the air pressure. Next to me was a family with a small child who looked angelic and continuously gave me a toothless smile. Then plane finally began to ascend.

Fortunately, the child's mother was well prepared. She stuffed the child's mouth with a mild bottle, and the baby did not cry during the take off, but many other babies did. We flew away from Delhi, and sleep flew away from my eyes. I took out my book and began to read as sleeping was out of the question after all the hustle and bustle. The gang of babies was at work non-stop until we landed.

I had very little time to explore Changi airport but I can tell you that it is anything but boring. It is proof that airports don't unnecessarily have to just be a complex of runways and buildings like most airports in the world are.

I wandered aimlessly for some half an hour while deciding on what to eat and got a sneak peek of its butterfly habitat and pool. After I grabbed a quick warm meal at one of the fast food restaurants, I headed back to my terminal. The place was buzzing with people from around the globe who were occupied in amusements like movie theaters, snooze lounges, spas and everything else that one can imagine. I got so engrossed in looking around that I lost my way back to my terminal and had to seek help from a staff memeber in a pink and purple blazer. She navigated through her iPad and gave me directions. Thankfully, I was where I was supposed to be just in time to catch the flight.

The first leg of my journey was over, and I was only six and a half hour away from Piyush. I finished reading my book in the waiting area. It was nearly time for the next flight. I prayed to God for no more babies to be close to where I was seated as I was in dire need of some sleep.

Thankfully, I was seated in the fourth row. The seats next to me were all empty. The flight was under-booked. Despite the lack of leg room, I managed to make myself comfortable by propping up my legs. I unpacked the blanket, adjusted the small pillows under my back and wandered into the world of my dreams.

I finally reached to my destination. The Tullamarine Airport, Melbourne. I collected my luggage from the belt----two black suitcases----and I already had a backpack. Once I managed to get it all, I headed out.

As per the last information shared with me by the travel team in India, a chauffeur from the company was to pick me up and drop me at the apartment- hotel where everyone else were staying.

For about the tenth time I counted my bags standing alongside the taxi belt----one, two, three. Honestly, had I lost anything during transit or while waiting for the chauffeur, it would have made a great story to tell to the future generations but nothing of that sort happened. By the time my plane landed, my stomach was doing flips and as I arrived at the exit gate nervousness took over me. For the first time in my life I was going to be exposed to a little taste of what the real world is like, away from friends and family; I was anxious to finally grow up.

As I stood waiting for a taxi outside of the airport, it was immediately apparent to me that Melbourne was something else, it was not like any other place that I had been before. At the airport, it seemed like everyone there was in a hurry to get to another place. After around ten minutes, I was greeted by an Indian guy who was impeccably dressed in a grey suit. He held my name-card. He greeted me in limited yet accented English and shook my hand. I asked him his name,' Anmol Barik, Mam,' he said, and bent down to pick up my bags.

'Are you really a chauffeur?' I asked him as we hit the road.

'Yes, Mam' he replied with pride, and then went on to explain. 'There is nothing wrong with any job, Mam. I drive cabs as it pays well. Better than my previous job. Moreover, I like the feeling of being my own boss,' he told me without taking his eyes off the road.

'Yes, I agree,' I said, a little embarrassed by my question. No job is small; no role is insignificant. Every position has its importance in the world. Your post doesn't define you; you define yourself. My grandfather's words came back to me. He had started work as a mason and eventually left property worth crores for his family---all because of his hard work and determination. What happened to the property worth millions? Well, that is a different story.

I admired the natural beauty on both sides of the road as we drove. Long stretches of green land, fewer cars than one is used to seeing in India and a bright-blue sky. It was 7 a.m, and the sun was out. The early morning sun had bathed everything golden. I rolled down the window on my side and let the pleasantly cool breeze caress my face, it was quite similar to the monsoon winds. Thinking about the monsoon winds, my tired but idle mind drifted back in time.