Heading Home, With a Couple of Planes Added to the Logbook

With the Sony Meet done and dusted, it was time to head back home to Kolkata.

I had a morning flight out of Indira Gandhi International Airport, which meant an early start and the usual airport routine — check out, get to the airport and make sure there was enough time to get through all the formalities without having to sprint to the gate!

But being at an airport has one particular advantage for someone like me.

There are planes.

And if there are planes, there is always the possibility of some plane spotting.

So, before boarding my flight, I managed to spend a little time doing what I enjoy — keeping an eye on the aircraft movements and documenting a couple of aircraft that I hadn't yet added to my records.

Two more aircraft managed to make it into the collection:

IndiGo VT-IET — Airbus A320-232

And then there was:

SpiceJet VT-SGI — Boeing 737-8GJ (Winglets)

Not exactly the biggest haul of the day, but then plane spotting is rarely about quantity. Sometimes just adding a couple of new registrations to the records is enough to make an airport wait a little more interesting.

With the aircraft duly noted, it was time to put the camera and notebook — metaphorically speaking — away and head for the flight back to Kolkata.

The Sony Dealer Meet had taken me from Kolkata to Delhi, given me a whirlwind of product launches and demonstrations, a fantastic evening of music, an unexpected Metro ride across Delhi to Gurgaon and some quality family time with my brother.

And now, it was time to go home.

Delhi had been busy.

The Sony Meet had been spectacular.

And my aircraft records had gained two more entries.

Not a bad work trip at all!

Sony, The Delhi Metro & A Vishal-Shekhar Finale

The following morning started with breakfast and then, almost immediately, the pace picked up.

What followed was a veritable flurry of events, product launches and demonstrations, all done in typically spectacular fashion. Sony certainly knows how to put on a show, and the morning went by in a blur of new products, technology, presentations and demonstrations.

Then came the afternoon break.

We were all expected back later in the evening for the grand finale, which meant there was just enough time to do something other than sit around the hotel. And since I was in Delhi, I decided to make use of one of the city's greatest assets — the Delhi Metro.

So I set off towards Gurgaon to visit my brother.

The Delhi Metro is quite an experience in itself. Apart from being an incredibly convenient way of getting around this enormous city, travelling on the Metro also gives you a rather different perspective of Delhi. Instead of staring at the traffic from the back seat of a car, you get to see the city from above in places, with roads, buildings, neighbourhoods and the seemingly endless spread of Delhi unfolding below you.

But the real reason for the trip was, of course, my brother.

It was a worthwhile detour — a chance to catch up with family in the middle of what was otherwise a fairly hectic business trip. There is something rather nice about being able to squeeze in a family visit even when you're travelling for work.

Eventually, it was time to head back.

Once at the hotel, I went up to my room, freshened up and changed, before heading back down for the evening's big event.

And Sony certainly wasn't planning to let the day end quietly!

The evening saw a whole slew of new product releases, presented with all the glitz and production that one would expect from a major Sony event. But the big finale was reserved for the entertainment.

On stage came the dynamic duo of Vishal-Shekhar.

What followed was a mind-blowing performance that had the entire place buzzing. After a full day of product launches, presentations and demonstrations, the atmosphere had completely changed. Now it was all music, lights and a crowd thoroughly enjoying itself.

The performance carried on well into the night, past 11 pm, bringing the Sony Dealer Meet to a rather spectacular close.

From an early morning packed with product launches, to an afternoon ride on the Delhi Metro to Gurgaon for some family time, and finally an evening of music with Vishal-Shekhar — it had been quite a day.

And just like that, the Sony Meet was over.

One more work trip, one more city explored a little differently, and a little more of Delhi added to the turquoisechill travel archives.

Delhi, Dealer Meet & A Midnight Check-In

It was time to head off to Delhi, this time for a Dealer Meet organised by Sony India. A work trip, but as anyone who has travelled for work will know, there is always a little bit of adventure involved in getting there!

I took the late afternoon flight out of Kolkata, which meant that by the time we landed in Delhi, the sun had pretty much packed up for the day. Delhi at night has a character of its own, though perhaps that character is best appreciated when you're not the one sitting in a car wondering how much longer the journey is going to take!

Our destination was Vivek Vihar in East Delhi. Now, for those who don't know Delhi, that meant we had to pretty much cross the city from one end to the other. And so began our rather long night drive from the airport.

Delhi is a rather large city. This becomes particularly obvious when you're travelling across its breadth late at night, watching the landmarks and neighbourhoods change outside the window while wondering if the hotel is actually getting any closer.

Eventually, after what seemed like a considerable tour of Delhi by road, we finally reached the Kempinski in Vivek Vihar. By then, it was well past midnight.

The excitement of being in Delhi for the Dealer Meet was still there, but the immediate priority was considerably less glamorous — check in, get to the room and get some sleep!

After all, the next day was going to be about dealers, Sony and business. And hopefully, unlike tonight's journey, it wouldn't involve crossing the entire width of Delhi first.

Sometimes a work trip begins not with the meeting, but with simply getting to the hotel!

And this one had certainly started that way.

Friends Everywhere

This is really weird. I went to Delhi this weekend and while I was in Nehru Place on some work, I came across this shop. Well they were into DTP stuff and their name just rang a bell. Bondhu Tomar Jonyo in Delhi too. This Friends thing is mighty popular, isn't it?

The Unusual Suspects @ Turquoise Cottage

The unusual suspects were Abhay Tikku, Aditi and gang. Monday night partying. Anyway if you must party on a Monday the party at Turquoise Cottage.

Rock on people and keep the Spirit alive.