Hassled at Kathmandu Airport
So, here’s the deal….I haven’t been able to blog because a) I was out of town for 3 days, b) when I did try Wednesday, I lost all my data and c) I finally was able to hook-up my computer and get on-line…….
….I wrote this last wednesday…I realized that I really like to tell my horror stories of traveling, maybe someone will learn something.
FIRST LESSON: If you bring 2 laptops by carrying it on the plane, by all means, let someone else carry it through to customs upon arrival so you don’t get exploited by another country.
Okay…so here’s the deal.
I had a hell of a time coming back to Kathmandu from Bangkok. Man. First of all, I arrived early, got my luggage out of storage in the Bangkok airport and went to find my gate. I flew a new airlines from Nepal, Air Nepal International.
They opened the office at 1, and the flight was at 3. I don’t know what they were thinking. There were only 3 ticketing agents available, one for first class, the other two, were peon class. And somehow a 4th lines was made, which I mistakenly went to stand in, I didn’t understand how the lines went, since Nepali’s don’t wait in line, they just shove until they get through. So that line became nonexistent and I saw another line, which I tried to determine if it was for First class or Peon class. I checked like 3 times so that I wouldn’t get in another non-existent line.
So, I’m standing in this line which is slowly, slowly moving. And this family or group, signals over the another line and in come 3 people, each with a trolley filled with their shit, moving up ahead of me.
I’m like what? This is bullshit. I was standing behind this couple, and when the line moved, I moved up with them and suddenly the people that were in front of me, were side by side. Anyway, by this point is almost after 2 pm, and there were still a lot of people who hadn’t gotten their boarding passes and I’m like oh man, is this Royal Nepal Airlines, and they just tricked us? For those that don’t know, RNAC, is notorious for being HOURS late. Because they only have a certain amount in their fleet, if they are delayed in one city, you are so screwed. Not just like 20 minutes late, but 5 hours late. Yeah, had that experience last year from Bombay to Kathmandu.
The staff of Air Nepal are Thai and Chinese. They should’ve known better. So this ticketing agent come from behind the counter and says if you are on stand-by please step to the side. Well, turns out the family of 3 that turned into 9, were all stand-by as were many people. So I just left my luggage cart where it was as they tried to trick the agent that they somehow had tickets and went straight up to the counter.
Well, it wasn’t good enough that I had a ticket. My bags which were under 65 pounds and 62 pounds in Florida, were apparently overweight. Even though on my ticket is said 80 kgs for luggage. In my thoughtful preparations for my final leg, I put my backpack in my suitcase because I didn’t need anymore, plus 2 books I accumulated since I left florida. Well, she told me they were overweight and I had to pay. I asked her why my ticket said 80 kg’s and she just dismissed me with a wave of her hand. I was going to unpack my bag and take my back pack and lighten the load in my luggage, but they were on the conveyer belt already.
She also asked me for my stupid immigration departure card. The one you fill out on arrival into a foreign country. Well, I completely forgot it was in my backpack. So she gave me a new one to fill out.
So I attempt to pay, and ask her how much it is, it’s around 2100 BT, which is around $26USD. So whip out my card and she tells me that I have to go to Thai Airways and points (between Terminal 1 and 2) to pay the penalty and the COME BACK to the counter to get my boarding pass.
Man…I was so over it. I just told Archangel Michael to make this really smooth and trouble free or something better. So lug my two laptops and camera bag over to the Thai Air Ticket counter pay for the excess baggage and go back to the Air Nepal counter. It was 2:30.
So I got my ticket, and now I needed to change money to pay the 500 BT airport tax. So after doing that and standing in line at immigration, she asks me for my original departure card, I told her it was in my suitcase. So she made me go to another place.
It was a small office behind the immigration counters, it said, OVERSTAY. At first I panicked, because I thought that meant me. Even though an American citizen automatically get 30 days visa upon arrival. And for some reason I still panicked. So I handed this woman my passport with my new departure card so that someone could stamp it. I don’t know what the big deal is because my passport is stamped with the same one they stamp the arrival card with. So by this time it was already 2:50.
So I run through, thank god it was gate number 4, which is still a way away, and I’m hauling my carry-on behind me as I try to push pass people meandering through the hallways.
I kept glancing up at the list of airlines and saw mine flashing RED RED BOARDING BOARDING….
So I finally get there…sweaty and pissed. I have to get on a bus to get to the plane, where I’m standing next to the people who were in front of me in line with their 9 member group. How they got on there before me I’ll never know.
Tags: Asia, customs, laptops, Travel
Administrator
that is crazy! … man i’d probably have ended it right there and said screw it. reminds me when in newyork i was freaking out that i’d miss the flight cause the flight left at 11 and we were still on the interstate at like 10:30. -ha i just skipped all the lines and slided my ass in front of them. . . well hope everything is going well in nepal. talk to you soon. !
hugs
asha
Hey Girl!
Thanks for posting! Come back and see ya heard!
Mampaka mesa! haak-thuck-a!!
HEY ! I WAS IN THE SAME TROUBLE WITH DELHI AIRPORT……………DHOTI ALWAYS GIVE TROUBLE TO NEPALESE THAT WE HAVE FAKE PASSPORT AND VISA
OH GOD! WHEN WILL THESE DHOTI HAVE GOOD AND POSITIVE MIND FOR NEPALESE………………………JUST SEND THEM HELL
Yeah, you can’t go through T.A w/o some kind of BULLshiyat happening.