Current mood:	tired
Entry tags:	puzzles

Day 0 -- My Impression Now
Whoa, I'm in India!

Hi again, (every)body.  It's year two of my World Sudoku Championship adventures, and I thought I'd run down what exactly is going on.  It's either this or watching one of the 90 tv stations here at the Quality Inn in Mumbai, and since I can't decide on the Hindi language Kim Possible, the inexplicable Professional Bull Riding San Antonio event, or the local MTV (featuring house music performed by Caucasians), you get this.

While this year's trip to the Championship pales in comparison to last year's two-day marathon, it's still something at which to marvel.  In particular, I'm cognitively dissonant when I think about how, since I've last been to bed, I was walking around New Jersey, seeing a majestic waterfall only a couple of hours before my sister dropped me off at the Newark train station.  40 minutes later, I was on my way...to Penn Station.

60 minutes later, I was on my way...to Jamaica.  Err...the Long Island Railroad stop in Queens.

20 minutes later, I was on my way...to JFK terminal 4.

Despite my best efforts (i.e. leaving at 5:15 for my 9:30 international flight), I somehow was still cutting it close here.  JFK went mostly quickly, tho -- an extremely quick trip through the Air India line, a much needed quick stop at the Terminal 4 chapel, and even a perusal of the honest-to-goodness video arcade (only five games, but still) in the gate area.  From there it was just a quick stroll through the security line and...

Ok, let's try again.  After my hour-long wait in a not-particularly-long security line, I heard the "Last Call for Flight 140" info message over the loudspeaker.  This was a full hour ahead of time -- and it rather freaked me out.  But, alas, all's swell that ends swell -- I hustled onto the (half-empty) plane (instead of getting some food before the trip), and we pushed off...45 minutes later.  I still don't know why.

The flight itself went exceptionally well, especially for something that was going to last 14 or so hours, at least twice as long as the longest flight of which I'd ever taken (see: last year's WSC).  For any number of reasons, I'd never flown Air India before, but in spite of their hesitancy towards offering drinks (I "counted" one actual drink inquiry over the duration of the flight), I'm very happy with their overall package.  The food was good, the seats were comfy-ish, and I'll always sing the praises of an airline that only fills half of their seats.  Well, so long as there isn't good reason for that...

The in-flight entertainment was A-plus.  There was an enjoyable slate of options on the embedded tv thing, despite my balky touchscreen.  I passed on all the tv programs, but enjoyed a couple of movies.  No, not Casablanca and Bullitt -- I mean The Simpsons Movie and Ratatouille.  I took on the puzzle gaming section, getting a couple of good scores on the math/logic/trivia thing, as well as a humorous "Personality Quiz" outcome (which I've already forgotten -- I assure you, it was a real hoot).  I also had the top five times on the Sudoku game, with the inefficient GUI overcome by the combination of my superior puzzling skill and the fact that you were given 60-some numbers to start.

14 short hours later -- bam, welcome to Mumbai!  I met up with fellow US WSC delegation member Will Shortz, and the two of us took a non-A/C cabride (A/C-capable cabs were 20% higher on average, and the humidity is very very very high) with someone who knew neither where we were heading nor, well, English.  We actually found the pretty nice hotel (Quality Inn -- I mean, quality's right there in the name!) without too much needless effort, checked in, wondered if we should tip (and if so, how much), and headed back out to soak up some of that noted Mumbai nightlife.

As my half-written soliloquoy on my time in the tri-state indicates, I'd never really seen any traffic as crazy as in the Big Apple.  Little did I know that Mumbai is, like, NYC squared.  There are no lanes, there are no real traffic cops, and it's notable when a horn *isn't* being honked.  That "driving on the left" thing is mostly a suggestion.  We don't need no stinkin' traffic lights.  Guys driving these mini-cab things -- basically with the size, power, and noise of two connected Vespa scooters -- enjoy seeing how close they can get to pedestrians without hitting them.  The sheer number of dogs on the street is reminiscent of Mexicali.  I could go on.

Will and I had some chicken dishes at some random restaurant in the hotel's vicinity, and I had my first encounter with Thums Up cola -- I'd heard good things.  The chicken noodle soup was a mix between egg drop soup and a mostly noodle-free chicken soup, and certainly didn't compare to Mom's.  But it was cheap (I think) and shouldn't kill us (I hope).  And that concludes our tour of the Mumbai nightlife.

A couple of other things to note, before I turn in for the, err, morning.  Afternoon?  Whatever.

First off, I've been told to not drink the water.  Or even the bottled water.  I'm free to boil things to make them non-deadly, but otherwise...soda?  Should I brush my teeth using YooHoo as the solvent?  I don't know, but it's a kinda scary predicament.  Nobody needs to tell me twice to drink soda, but even if I get weak and want a beer -- you appear to need a permit to drink alcohol here!

Secondly, the guys out front the hotel are good people.  They also have "TRIG" writen on their hats, which can only mean good things.  And they're otherwise dressed like Mexican Federalis.  It's good to feel at home on the other side of the world.

Well, it's an 8:30 wakeup call for a 9am disease-dodging breakfast, so that's all for now.  Talk with y'all later.