Travel Turmoil

On August 7th I boarded an Air Egypt flight out of Mumbai; destination Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. After arriving, I was comforted by the fact that I would be spending the night in a fancy Malaysian airport. As I searched for my Penang flight leaving the next morning, I was a bit disconcerted. No where on the screens did I see my flight number. After asking the information desk, I was told to go a different terminal 15 minutes away, where the budget airline AirAsia.com chartered their flights. Hot Malaysian air hitting my face, I stared out the taxi window excited. But oh was the terminal really meant for budget travel. The small terminal was packed with people sitting outside on the concrete or laying on metal benches. Why did they not sit inside the AC terminal where there were chairs?, I wondered. But the people claiming an outside spot, I later found out, were the smart experienced budget travelers. Once inside the terminal, I settled in a corner on the floor with my blanket and book. Immersed in my reading, I was startled by an airport official escorting people out. Apparently, the terminal closes for a few hours in the middle of the night, to prevent budget travelers like my self, from squatting in the airport. For the first time in my life, I felt close to being homeless. All the benches outside were taken and so I sat on the concrete, leaning against the wall, internalizing the absurdity of the situation, half laughing, half crying. After four hours I was allowed back into the airport to wait another 3 hours for my flight. Finally on the one hour flight, I thought the rest of my trip would go smoothly. But boy was I wrong. Once in Penang, no one seemed to have any idea about the ferry going to Belawan, near Medan, Indonesia. So I hopped on a public bus to the main port in hopes of finding a boat to my final destination. After an hour bus tour of Penang, an island off the west coast of Malaysia, I ran to the ferry ticket office only to find out that I had just missed the boat by half an hour. I was incredulous, pissed off, defeated. Was God testing my resolve? Why hadn’t I taken the direct flight to Medan? Dazed and confused I walked the streets of, isn't it ironic? Little India, in search of accommodations/cheap flights. After visiting a few travels agency, I realized that flying to Medan would be the cheapest, quickest option so I was scheduled on an evening flight. Back at the bus stop I waited for nearly an hour only to see the bus turn the street before reaching my stop. Angry and with tears flooding my eyes, I ran a few blocks anticipating the bus route to barely catch it with loud banging on it as it pulled away. Once at the airport, I waited for another four hours, almost passing out from fatigue and no longer proud of my sense of adventure. Thinking shit could not hit the fan any worse, it splash me in the face with a flight delay. So after some deep breathing and stretching, I was on to my final destination: Indonesia. Once in the Medan airport, I smiled as I was taken to the money changer outside because the visa office machine would not take my wrinkled up dollars. Hit me with your worse Indonesia, I thought, for Malaysia had just spanked me in public. After the short inconvenience, I was on the streets of Medan asking other backpackers about cheap accommodations. Saved by the Blue Angel, for that was the name of the Guest House, I showered and finally slept.