Day 1 (and 2?): Jellicles can and Jellicles do!

The car met us in the parking lot at 5:30am as promised and we made our way to JFK. We got there super early and our flight was delayed. So there was a lot of waiting around and people watching. As a child living in Japan, I’d jumped the pacific ocean numerous times, but I’ve never gone the other way. I was excited to fly over Europe and have a layover in Dubai, and I was flying on Emirites Air – one of the swankiest airlines I have ever been on! My seat was spacious enough to sleep comfortably (no more illegally slipping onto the floor under the seats to catch some zzz’s). Also, the food was top notch, and I had my own personal entertainment unit. All in Economy class!
Usually I never travel ten minutes from home without a good book and my trusty booklight. However, my dad wisely convinced me that a book light would be unnecessary as the plane would have overhead lighting and I probably wouldn’t be doing too much reading during the conference. Plus, it would save space in my luggage – leaving more room for books :)Unfortunately, my seat was the only one in the whole place whose overhead light was not working :( So, I wasn’t able to do much reading (my preferred way to pass the time), but I did watch some episodes of Mr. Bean, listen to CATS the musical, and play some online games! I could have even sent emails in-flight, but it costs a dollar and I am too cheap!
The flight from Dubai to Dhaka was a great introduction to Bangladesh. People had bought so much stuff at the Duty Free shops in the airport at Dubai that flight crews were having trouble accommodating all the bags in the cabin. People were sitting in the wrong seats and pretending not to notice, arguments and yelling broke out, and people were cramming past each other seemingly unaware of any laws of personal body space. We arrived at the airport and I was reminded of Okinawa. The air was thick and hot and smelled sort of musty sweet.
We took a quick van ride to the hotel, and I was struck by the mix of affluence and utter poverty. Air-conditioned Mercedes were cruising along right next to crammed buses that seemed to be made of duct tape. Interestingly enough, neither was given preferential right of way in the chaotic streets. Buses, cars, beat-up trucks, and luxury vehicles were all honking inches from each other whilst pedestrians casually strolled in between. I thought of America and how poverty is often compartmentalized. I wonder which is more jarring, having money and seeing poverty everywhere or having money and seeing poverty nowhere…