Leaving today.....

If I'm not ready to leave at this very minute; there is truly something wrong with me. My bags have been packed for weeks, I've had my shots, I've said last minute good-byes to the T's and Jamie and the Bang shower week-end is history. I have to confess , I'm in love with Sophie Badia....she is so cute, her mind operates like the biggest computer IBM has ever made and she adores Bishop. (That old expression "love me, love my dog" does extend to cats, or at least mine).
Doug has given me last minute "just in case" instructions, told me the best place to exchange dollars for rupees. where to get a pre-paid cab and phonetic instructions on how to tell the cabbie where I want to go - The Singh Son Hotel in the Channa Market, near the Karol Bagh Metro. That will probably be the mantra I will be saying as a sleep tonight . The flight is fifteen hour's long and a non-stop Chicago - Delhi. . . I hope they have a good movie or two or three or four or.......that my Tylenol P.M. works.
I think I have memorized (my pronunciation is probably horrible and I won't be able to be understood) the following "Words to know" which DFO has told me I need to know:

NAMASTE (Hindi) Hello and goodbye (literally "I salute the divine within you")
SALAAM ALEIKUM (Urdu) Hello
DHAN-YA-VAD (Hindi) Thank you
SHU-KRI-YA (Urdu) Thank you

TA-SHI-DE-LEY (Tibetan) Hello
TU-JAY-CHAY (Tibetan) Thank you

JEW-LAY (Ladakhi) Hello, good-bye, thank you, It's good. DFO said it is the most
important word you can
know in Ladakh and by
far the most fun to say

Until I get to India ......Namaste