After a sleepless night in a hotel at Toulouse airport, we made the BA flight to London without any problem. We even got the seats that we had booked—a first for BA!
We checked into the Sofitel Hotel for the day. A first for Doug! The Sofitel is linked to Term 5 & it proved ideal for our needs. We had the room until 6pm which worked well. It enabled us to have something to eat & then a rest, shower etc. before embarking on the next leg. A bus ride to Terminal 4 & we were quickly checked in & through Security & ensconced in the Lounge. There is a lot to said for Business class ticket! We took off just after 9pm on Friday & arrived in Mumbai at 11h30 Sat. The trolley dollies on the flight were beautiful & the service 1st class. I managed to sleep quite well as the seats went completely flat but Doug wasn’t t so lucky although he did sleep some of the time. 6ft 3ins tall & aeroplanes don’t really go in the same sentence.
In Mumbai we transferred to a local flight & arrived at Mangalore mid afternoon. We were met by a car & driver & so began a very ‘interesting’ journey. The roads are terrible, the driving remarkable & what I think is probably about a 1hr trip took 3 hrs. I had every confidence in our driver & he never took risks but tooting the horn is de rigeur along with pothole avoidance. We arrived in one piece to be given a traditional Indian welcome of Namaste (all yogis will understand) & our foreheads anointed with oil.
Our chalet is delightful & the whole Retreat is beautifully done. There is a high ratio of staff to guest & we feel truly pampered. We were exhausted last night but did manage dinner on the beach & a bottle of Indian wine.
New home at Ribatou