I’ve not travelled overseas this close to my birthday since I went to Mexico about a decade ago. It’s almost like a birthday present to myself doing a trip like this. First, I’d get to spend a good portion of the day with Carmen. We started off at Northala Fields parkrun, for her 250th volunteering session - a big milestone celebrated with cake that I helped hand out after I’d run. I also spent the time buying an eSIM from Nomad to use in India. I originally thought I’d get a free one with the tour, but all mention of that had since been removed from Tour Radar, so I realised I wouldn’t be getting one. I thought 1GB would probably be enough, for a few pounds more I could get 5GB, which would be far more than I could possibly need.

By midday we’d made it to the Water’s Edge in Ruislip for a carvery, and a walk around the Lido. The day had passed by quickly, and before I knew it, the Uber had arrived to take me to Heathrow Terminal 3. Every single overseas trip for me this year would at some point pass through this terminal that until recently I’ve rarely used. It’s the one used in Love Actually, during the opening monologue:

“Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion's starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don't see that. It seems to me that love is everywhere.”

I can understand that; especially in recent years with so many ongoing wars. One of those wars more than once had made me wonder if this trip would be possible. I still wondered whether our trip to Germany and Poland would go ahead later this year. Maybe that reminder that everything isn’t as bad as it seems, isn’t a bad thing.

The bag drop and security were about the same as ever, leaving me with plenty of time in departures. With Virgin Atlantic, you can pre-book which meal you want on the flight ahead of time, so I knew that in a few hours time I’d be eating - but it was still about nine hours between meals. I decided if I bought a meal deal from WH Smiths, I could have the crisps as a snack to keep me going for a few more hours, and save the sandwich for lunch tomorrow so I wouldn’t have to think about that.

I then found somewhere quiet to sit, close to gate 18, and waited until boarding. Having a middle seat with no option to change was not ideal. I should really have tried changing it on the website since their app hadn’t allowed it at check-in. I’d have to live with it now.

After about an hour into the flight it was time for their meal service. The starter was a Kuchumber cumin yoghurt,with Masala dippers in lime chutney. The main was then a choice of either chicken coconut curry with cumin pea pilau and onion pakoras, or aloo bhindi with tadka dal and lemon rice. The latter is essentially an Indian stir fry with lentils in a spicy sauce. That would definitely be a meal to try whilst in India, but for this meal I went with the curry. The dessert was then a plant-based vanilla rice pudding. Whilst eating this, I watched ‘The Anaconda’, a sort of homage to the horror movie of the same name.

With the first food service complete, it was the equivalent to almost 03:00 Delhi time with about five hours until they’d be serving breakfast. Maybe it wouldn’t be much sleep, if any, but I’d got my neck pillow with me to at least now try.