[You can follow our learning and adventures below.  If you continue to scroll down, you will see subsequent days of the trip reported by the assigned team.  We welcome constructive comments, thoughts, reactions and impressions. - Prof. Carr]

Team Two:

In what we hope will be an auspicious start to our trip, everyone showed up to LAX on time. “On time,” of course, meaning four hours early. The airport was crowded, the check-in baggage process would have made our Operations professor cringe, and there was no sitting room. But the mood was upbeat – in a few hours we’d be flying over the Pacific, to the other side of the world!

Our airline was top-notch. The food was tasty, the seats came with personalized TVs – not to mention dozens of channels – and the service was exceptional (albeit behind masks, as the Chinese are taking swine flu seriously). The airline’s quality was much appreciated, as our flight was fifteen long hours. Most everyone conked out for at least a few of those, and got in a movie or two.

Landing over Hong Kong made for an awesome sight: soaring apartment towers, one after the other, nestled between lush green mountains, covered by – surprise – smog. We had a relaxing break at the airport, drinking overpriced coffee and sampling some authentic Chinese food. Eric White ate a fish and seaweed snack which received dubious glares.

After the six-hour layover, the group boarded a relatively short (but very hot) flight to Bangkok. Whatever discomfort was felt was overwhelmed by the anxious feeling that we were already in Asia and only a few hours away from our destination: India! Even our in-flight menu options seemed to scream India. The menu went from offering an egg sausage muffin, to fish, to an exquisite rice curry.

Touchdown !!! The airplane retracted its flaps and the plane slowed into a controlled halt. Finally we had arrived to our first of many destinations. But the energetic glee coming out of the corner of everyone’s eyes had vanished. It had been a long journey. And now we were being held up by shuttle buses that hadn’t shown up to drive us to the airport.

Another delay, the buses arrived, and we raced past the immigration booth towards the conveyor that held our valuables. For a brief moment it seemed we were about to join the ‘lost luggage’ club of past MBAs. But after ten intense minutes of searching, everyone found their bags – technology managed to get all of bags to our final destination intact.

Welcome to India! Outside of the airport we waited for our bus to arrive and pick us up. And strange was the sensation that everyone felt as we waited outside on the hot and humid climate. Thus it was a relief to finally board the nice air conditioned bus that drove us past the many amazing construction sites that seem to define Delhi and the five lanes of traffic that formed on the three lane highway. After passing 500 rickshaws and a stray cow or two we arrived to our destination for the night and were welcomed with two generous gifts from our Indian sponsor, giving a much needed smile to some weary travelers who then sunk into their bed and recharged their batteries for the journey ahead.