Success!!

Life can be so unfair sometimes.  That I can afford to benefit from this unfairness is both humbling and frustrating.  Humbling to recognize how lucky and blessed I have been but also frustrating that others are so conversely unlucky.  I wrestled with this reality on my 23 hour flight to Bengaluru. Even more so as I landed in Doha, Qatar and thought about the number of people that have had the opportunity to see Doha.  What an incredible city, constructed at the intersection of the desert and Persian gulf. Mountains of steel and concrete erected in the middle of the desert. A sea of unknown languages washed over me as I tried not to stare at everyone, in all of their exotic beauty, as they tried not to stare at me in all of my similarly exotic beauty.  One is forced to ask himself how there can be so many different colors and languages in one world.  

In West Africa, although I was indeed a foreigner I could, to a degree, blend in with the locals.  Here in Doha, there was no hiding and I became intimately aware of my difference.  Aware in a manner that only happens when one is… the only one.  That being said, it was a beautiful, refreshing, and exhilarating experience. 

Moving on from Doha, we landed in Bangalore at about 2:00 am.  To my supreme astonishment, we had no problems making our way through customs or securing our checked bags.  We even found a taxi, told him where we needed to go, and convinced him to actually use his meter.  We were not however successful at getting our driver to drive on the right side of the road, at the posted speed limit, or in a rational manner.  We arrived at our dorm after an hour long roller coaster ride and checked in at about 3:30. 

Success!!