The Road To Chennai

My original plan had been to catch the train and visit the ruins at Hampi, before catching another train to Chennai. But when I spent some time working out how long I'd need I realized I didn't have enough time so just booked a cheap flight from Mumbai to Chennai.

I was wondering what would happen at the airport given my last experience there...after some bartering with the hotel managed to get a taxi for a reasonable price.

At 3am the taxi driver arrived and I agreed the price again with him before setting off. After five minutes he demands more money saying it was late at night and therefore would cost more. So I told him that I was only prepared to pay the original price or I'd get out...

Five minutes later he pulls up at the side of the road and tells me he doesn't know which airport to go to. So I showed him my ticket and he made several phone calls to find out, and then demanded extra money for having worked out where he should be going.

So I told him to take me back to the hotel and I'd find another taxi. Which he refused to do. So we headed off towards the airport.

After another five minutes he demands more money as the original price was to go the "slow way" - and if I paid more we could go by the "fast way". So I told him in no uncertain terms that if he didn't get me to the airport on time he wouldn't get any money and there'd be serious trouble.

And then it started raining...

So he demands more money because it's "dangerous driving in the rain" - which he was right about as his windshield wipers didn't work and he kept having to hang out the window to wipe the water away. I told him to forget it and that it was his problem.

As we're driving along the free way, I can just make out a lorry blocking the road, but the driver doesn't slow down and we're racing towards it at a fair speed. So I start braking really hard - which does nothing as I wasn't actually driving...and there weren't any brakes on the passenger side :-)

Next thing - he starts to brake really hard and we nearly run over a police man who starts hitting the taxi with a stick while shouting at the taxi driver. It turns out the free way is closed, and the lorry is a police road block, so we have to make a detour and I'm starting to wonder if I'll make the flight.

I've never been more happy to see an airport terminal - although it took a while for him to get the right one - even though I kept pointing it out on the road signs.

As we pull up at the drop off point he asks for a generous tip to which I tell him to get lost, grab my bag and jump out. Rather annoyingly I didn't have the exact money, and he refused to give me change, so I told him if he didn't give me the change I was going to report him to the police - and as there were a number of police nearby - it seemed to persuade him (kind of) as he gave me half the change...

...so I let rip and he finally paid up. Just what you don't need on the way to the airport...

I had twenty minutes to kill and on a whim bought a ticket to Sri Lanka for the following week, had a coffee, and then enjoyed another excellent Kingfisher Airlines flight. Ahhh - Kingfisher...

If Carlsberg started an airline company - it would probably be Kingfisher...enough said...