Travel and Arival to Dhaka, Bangladesh

The trip to Dhaka was a leg from D.C. to Dubai then to Dhaka, Bangladesh. I never knew if it was night or day. I could not sleep on the airline. There were frequent offerings of food, hot towels, drinks, etc... The service was so much better than any domestic travel in the states. I was a little obsessive with the wipies that I brought on board but that is the way I am. I feel so sorry for people that are taller that my 5 foot one inch height. I don't know how they fit in the seats I can hardly fit into. I did not talk to many people when I got into Dubai because it was mostly men and it is not very acceptable in some cultures. I just waited for my next flight and got a lame sandwich with no lettuce.

When I was in D.C. I told Ashley that I did not get the treatment for malaria. With a look of shock she said she needed to call the Embassy in Dhaka. I had a little freak out!!! Ashley suggested to get some "OFF" for the trip and we would find out if it would be okay for me to go. I raced to CVS,bought the store out and stuffed some into every bag. Well, I guess it was okay and went anyway. IREX doesn't want to loose anyone to illness (haa...hmmm). The minute I got off the plane about 5000 mosquitoes swarmed my juicy white skin. YIKES. I grabbed into my cutie-pie Lilly bag and started spraying everything within my reach and then some. My host said that they are somewhat immune to the mosquitos. That meant I was the target for the entire trip (boo-hoo).

There were many people waiting for me in the airport and the first thing I had to do was retreive my luggage. I could see Rashid, Samira, a colleague, Rashid's brother, Mamun, and the hotel people waiting. They all had to pay a special fee to wait inside the gated area behind glass away from the passengers. What a blessing to be received so lovingly.

As we went on our journey to the hotel, one of the first things I saw was a train with children running on the top like "Slum Dog Millionaire". I turned to Samira and asked her, "Is that real?" She said, "Yes, and those things about the poor children are true in the movie." It was a surreal experience especially after no sleep for about 28 hours.

Dinner out that night was at a beautiful restaurant called Baton Rouge that had over 101 menu items in a buffet. It overlooked the city and I found out that Dhaka has planned blackouts in the city to help save power.