This blog is almost done. I have made hotel reservations, airline reservations, still need to fine a pot of money as I am in the hole big time. I need to add some comments about overcoming jet lag. There is a tried and true diet. I have used it it works and failed to use it and paid the price. I will post that. A new blog has been started Camille's Big Trip Home. Unlike this blog it will be more of a travelogue providing I can find time and a web link
I will update the blog this blog with the hoops that we go through once she gets home. There will be progress reports that we will owe the officials in India plus we need to finalize the adoption here in California
je
01 February 2009
26 January 2009
Time to Fly
Dooh, I forgot to add in that one of the sites I used to help me find some of the hotels is this site.
http://www.travelmasti.com/indiahotels.htm
IND: +91-11-45566666
1800-1022-666 (Airtel Users)
US: 1-877-INDIA-07
UK : 0845-277-7569
AUS: 1800-629-618
Before heading to a new location and choosing a hotel that is company affordable – read they say it has to meet the the published government per diem, I take a look at the hotels in this link
There is another site that I use for US hotels but that is not germane to this blog. One word of caution. There may be more negative comments about a hotel than positive. That is the nature of humanity. We tend to complain and gripe about the bad experiences rather that shout out about the good ones. For that reason I am suspect of the love fest that people put out for e-bay ratings
Big Jet Aeroplane
It is now time to look again at airline reservations. Michelle K has gone traipsing around the world a few times. I pinged her about who she used and she came up with one that she used and others that she inquired about. I hit all three a few months ago and one didn't respond pone said they would get back to me and one did the full monty. Michelle used the first one of these three listed below.
http://aroundtheworldtickets.com/index.php
Also recommended but not tried is Trip planner
I have used this for many trips in the US looking for the best deal Multiple Search
other folks that have travelled with our agency have used
Rog (he is Indian) at
Worldwide Travel Inc
651.6448800 or 800.6600126
email wwtmn@wwt-usa.com
www.wwt-usa.com/direct-flights-to-delhi.htm
Another consolidator that has been used with success is
An adoption forum sent me this site which is a travel company that has been in the biz for over 60 years.
http://www.azumano.com/adoption/
Call 1 800-777-2018 E-mail us at info@azumano.com
ask for Kristy tell her I sent you.
http://www.suntimes.com/business/1382675,TRA-News-adopt18.article
Adopting overseas? Ask for discount on airfare
HELP IN THE AIR
Some airlines secretive about specialty airfares
January 18, 2009
BY JAE-HA KIM
Irina and Andy Prutch of Yorkville traveled to Russia last year to adopt their daughter, Anastasia. They were surprised that a one-way ticket for Anastasia would cost more than a round-trip.
It's been drilled into our heads that the best way to get a cheap airline ticket is to buy it well in advance of your travel date.
But parents adopting children from overseas often have no idea when that date might be. And once their adoption agency gives them the go-ahead to bring home their child, they typically have only a matter of days to make all the arrangements.
TIPS:
If you're adopting an infant, ask your travel agent or the airline reservation clerk to seat you in the bulkhead section with a bassinet (provided on a first-come, first-serve basis at no additional cost). Bassinets will hold infants up to 20 pounds and 26 inches. Also, ask if they offer baby meals on the flight. Some airlines will provide jars of baby food.
Don't forget about buying your child's one-way ticket. Infants under the age of 2 years will need a lap ticket (generally about 10 percent of an adult fare) to sit on parents' laps. Older children will need their own seats and will be charged the same fare as adults.
Rather than get stuck paying a premium for last-minute tickets, parents can benefit from adoption airfare discounts. For example, Northwest Airlines "Special Delivery" program has benefits that include 65 percent off the price of full-fare coach tickets, open returns and no penalties for cancellations or changes. (Parents must show proof of U.S. residency and provide legal documentation of the adoption.) Details at Nwa.com/features/adopt.
Some 17,438 overseas adoptions by U.S. parents took place this fiscal year, according to U.S. State Department statistics.
Not all airlines are eager to publicize news about these special adoption fares. The media relations spokespeople for other major airlines either ignored our queries about discounted air fares for adoptive families or point blank said they didn't offer any. However, when we called the reservation lines for Delta, United and Cathay Pacific and questioned the customer service reps, they all said they offer discounted fares.
"Airlines are very secretive about specialty air fares," says Ed Perkins, contributing editor for Smartertravel.com. "They don't advertise them and they're just not going to tell you about them unless you specifically ask. So ask."
Perkins cautioned that consumers need to know the ramifications of their discounted tickets if they can't leave or return on the dates they booked. For instance, will the airline charge a premium to change a ticket if your child is too sick to fly on the date you've planned or if bureaucratic red tape is holding up your departure?
"Given how complex some of the airline policies can be, the best bet in some of these situations is to pay a travel agent to handle this for you," Perkins said. "He or she will have access to consolidator deals and will know which airline is offering the best fare. This is one case where it makes sense to pay someone to deal with the hassles for you."
Portland, Ore.,'s Azumano Travel American Express has been in business for 60 years working with corporate and leisure clients. For the past 15 years, they've also become one of the go-to travel agencies for adoptive parents booking flights overseas. Azumano has adoption fare contracts with a number of airlines, including Cathay Pacific, United, Delta and Northwest.
"A lot of our parents do their research and already have a general idea of what these flights should cost with a few weeks notice," says Erle D'Penha, an Azumano travel consultant. "They could probably do it themselves, but what they're paying us for is our knowledge, relationships and ability to get them seats when the online sites say they're all booked. Sometimes people will look online and won't see options to leave from the cities they want to, but we'll be able to find other hubs. The travel Web sites won't always look for all of those flights. We can help find more options."
Indeed, we gave Azumano dates for a hypothetical trip to Seoul, South Korea. We came up with a $3,000 economy fare with two days advance notice. Azumano came up with a nonstop flight on the same carrier for less than half that price.
Not all carriers offer discounted fares, but there are other ways to get around paying full price. Check to see if you have enough airline miles to use toward a ticket. When Yorkville's Andy and Irina Prutch traveled to Russia last year to bring home their adopted daughter, they were surprised to find that a one-way ticket for their child would cost more than a round-trip ticket. But they weren't allowed to purchase a round-trip ticket for her.
"It would've cost us almost $3,000 for a one-way ticket for our daughter," says Andy Prutch. "We ended up using my miles on American Airlines for her seat. My company's travel agent didn't charge us any fees, so we only paid $52.70 for her total airfare. It was definitely the way to go for us."
Also, it never hurts to be nice to the reservation clerks.
While Shannon Mogilinski of St. Charles didn't get any discounts, she did get an upgrade.
"When my husband and I traveled to Russia to adopt our daughter in 2003, we mentioned to the reservations clerk at British Airways that we were adopting a child and that we were carrying humanitarian aid to several orphanages," Mogilinski said. "She gave us a complimentary upgrade to business class. If we hadn't said anything, we would've been sitting in coach."
Jae-Ha Kim is a locally based free-lance writer.
11 January 2009
Hotel Choices
DELHI:
Ginger Hotel
200 meters from New Delhi Railway Station
Cheap clean does not have a bathtub just shower and sink, flat screen tv one big bed. Spartan and economical. Part of the TajHotel chain
www.gingerhotels.com/delhi/hotel_profile.aspx
Delhi Bed and Breakfast
Friends Colony East
This is a home stay and is close to the Ginger hotel. Pluses are, its a B&B and for some extra $$ you can request dinner too.
found them at www.bnbchoices.com/india/delhi.bnb
OTHER DELHI
Imperial Hotel ~$500/night www.theimperialindia.com
Intercontinental at Nehru Place ~400 to 600 /night
Hyatt ~$400/night
Hotel Diplomat right next to the US embassy www.thehoteldiplomat.com
B&B New Delhi www.bnbnewdelhi.com
Incredible Home Stay more like an apartment building rather than a home in Karol Bagh New Delhi, not where our agency wants us. www.incrediblehomes.in ~$85/night
AGRA
Trident Hotel ~$200/night not sure if this is still valid but it is/used to be a Hilton Hotel. If you go the the Hilton site and look under the list of properties it is still listed. However the interactive map has zero when it comes to India
Trident Hilton Agra
Taj Nagari Scheme
Fatehabad Road Agra 282 001
tel 91 0 562 233 1818
138 room no suites
OTHER AGRA
Taj View http://www.tajhotels.com/ and now called Gateway
Oberi Amarilas starting at a mere ~$800/night
ORISSA Bhubaneshwar airport(BBI)
Hotel Trident ~220/night again it may or may not be affiliated with the Hilton
Bhubaneswar Trident Hotel
CB-I
Nayapali
Bhubaneswar 751 013
tel 91 0 674 230 1010
59 rooms 3 suites
Hotel Ginger http://www.gingerhotels.com/bhubaneshwar/hotel_profile.aspx
07 January 2009
ICPC – What I don't know
We have been waiting for that last piece of paper to get signed. In the state of California on the government web site, one finds out that ICPC duties have been divvied up by county. For LA there are about 5 different folks. One does incoming , one for outgoing, two for who knows but the web site shows no folders – I think that means they don't want any extra paper just the ICPC form. Finally there is one for private adoptions which is what we are doing. I called the contact to see where my paperwork is and after getting my name and the agency info to them they say, “We don't do state to state ICPC you need to talk to the agency that did your home study” Now this is a very odd thing to say at the acronym for ICPC includes the word INTERSTATE. Oh my gosh, I have hit the bureaucratic nemesis. Well if I can't get any satisfaction from the county then might as well head up to their overseer -go to the capitol – Sacramento. Once again there are 5 folks listed on the web site and so I start with the top. Unfortunately they are on their way out to a meeting and I ask the receptionist for the duty officer in charge that day for ICPC. She transfers me and I get a voice mail. 24 hours later they have not called back... expecting not get a call back I then hit our agency contact, the home office and finally the home e number of the agency president. Later that night I get an email that the form is signed – I want a copy of that for my records so I can tell you which office it should get to. This ICPC is not done by the adopting parents but is done between the adoption agency in Texas and either the adoption agency or the Home study agency in California. It does get countersigned by the state ICPC representative.
Here is a link to
California ICPC general site
State ICPC contacts
California County ICPC contacts
Form A that gets filled out before you get your child
Form B that gets filled out after you get your child
je
Post script: 10jan09
late afternoon update
Just got of the phone with the adoption agency that we went through to get the home study done. They are authorized by the state to sign on behalf of the state. Texas signed the papers sent it to them they then countersigned it and have just today sent it back to Texas. So in about a week we should be getting a green light from Texas to make plans to go to India – woo hoo.
je
06 January 2009
Side Trips, Culturally Smart
Our travels will take us to Delhi and Agra. The wife has asked that we find home-spun cloth. Patterson New Jersey used to be known for the silk cloth works in the USA. I said humm I bet India has something similar. Sure enough, there is an industry that has just what the doctor ordered. One of the books said the state of Orissa is the place to go. We have to go through Orissa so if time permits a side trip may be in order. From the book
DK Eyewitness Travel
India
(2002 with revs in 2005, 2008)
ISBN 978-0-78948-395-9
Cuttack is Orissa's most populous city, and was the capital from the 10th century onwards until 1956, when the capital was moved to Bhubaneswar. There is little evidence today of the city's historic past. The gateway and moat of the 13th century Barabati Fort in northwest Cuttack, are all that remain of this great citadel which once had a nine-storeyed palace. The eastern part of town is more interesting, with silversmiths' shops in Balu Bazaar and Nayasarak, where Cuttack's famous silver filigree jewellery is made. Nearby, in the shops on Jail Road, the full range of Orissa's beautiful handicrafts are available, including ikat silk, carved hornware and paintings.
In this area, a cluster of green domes marks the 18th century Kadam Rasul Mosque, where the Prophet Mohammed's footprints are carved on a round stone.
So what the heck is Ikat http://www.india9.com/i9show/Ikat-Silk-Sarees-51566.htm
Orissa is famous for its unique Ikat Silk sarees. Ikat is a process of creating patterns on the yarn used for weaving, by tying and dyeing it. The silk used in the weaving is locally produced. These sarees have an extraordinary metallic finish. The borders feature heavy embroidery, while the ‘pallu’ (falling edge of the saree) contains geometric patterns created with ikat dyeing. The centuries old weaving process for the Ikat Silk sarees is complicated. The tools are of primitive nature. The outlines of the designs are traced on a paper for the weaver’s reference. Based on these outlines, the yarn threads are laid down in the required length. Knots are made on specific points of the threads, to form dye resists, according to the patterns. The threads are dyed, along with the knots, in single or multiple colors. The knotted sections of the threads are not affected by the dye. This gives rise to the required color combination on the yarn. Following the removal of knots, the yarn is attached to the spools of the loom and the cloth is woven. The multicolored yarn gives rise to beautiful patterns on the cloth.
Saree is a traditional dress worn by women in India. The term 'saree' is a corrupt form of the Sanskrit word 'chira,' which means a 'wearable length of cloth.' The saree is an unstitched length of fabric, five to six meters long, draped around the body. Saree is worn along with a blouse. The draping of the saree is an art and the style of wearing differs from region to region. The saree is believed to impart a look of elegance and refinement.
Be Smart – Understanding the Culture
Finally I have been reading a book on how to be a good visitor to India. Although the book is small it is packed with good information. I highly recommend this book if you want to gain some insight to why our culture in the USA is so foreign to Indians. We are quite culturally different and if we do not understand the differences we will come off as quite arrogant and rude. It is my hope to not be insensitive while I am there. A very good read.
Culture Smart
India
by Nicki Grihault
(2003)
www.culturesmartguides.com
ISBN 978-1-85733-305-3
24 December 2008
Regrets – Rules R Rules
There is nothing I can do about this, but it has been bothering me for some time. Based on our combined age and number of children already in the home we were “allowed” to only adopt one child from India. There are exceptions to the rules, such as adopting a sibling set. One couple we know is adopting 3 siblings that range in age from 9 down. When adopting multiples the cost differential is not that much in the grand scheme of things. If you are already $35k into it what is another $5 - $7k? Our daughter is now 2 ½ and I am quite sure that she has a special friend at the orphanage. When she come home she is going to be leaving everything she knew: sounds sights, smells, language, family...and she will be leaving her friend. Not much that can be done now, however one wonder what might have been if we had put in our paperwork for 2? What is the worse they could do – say no? At this juncture our best bet is to find out who this mystery child is and if possible find out if another family is in the process of adopting her/him. If it is in the us then there may be a way to keep some sort of contact.
I have been testing Skype for the past few weeks. Cool – the video link seems to work ok. A sister lives in snow country and she took her laptop outside to show us the backyard covered in snow – brrrr.
Still waiting for ICPC between Texas & California. Once this gets done we are cleared to go, probably about 35 days post notification. Time to re-look at the hotel choices, get some more paperwork updated. The end is nigh.
je
20 December 2008
VISA, ICPC, Grants
When we were told by the agency that they had received a mailed copy of the court docs they then started to prep the ICPC. It is at this point that you will want to mail in your Passport, photos, to get your Visa to India. It takes about 2 weeks to get them back. The Visa takes up a whole page in your passport and they want you to have at least 3 empty pages along with a passport that will not expire in the next 8 to 12 months.
Back to the ICPC Since the home office is in Texas and we are in California there is one more official piece of paperwork that needs to be competed before we make airline reservations, hotel... Although the India courts have given us guardianship if for some reason we are unable to care for our child then she would be remanded back to the adoption agency. As the agency is in Texas the court papers go to Texas. I guess if we did not go to India and she came here escorted we would have to go to the home office to pick her up. The ICPC is an Interstate Compact that says “hey California, we Texas have a ward of the state but we are sending her to you, is it ok?”
A few months ago I started looking at hotels and such, I'll post more details soon as now I really have to narrow down the choices and get ready to make the reservations.
I just finished up on our next to the last grant application. We have 12 grant requests that we have put out. Some will respond only if they grant the grant. So far we have heard nothing. It has been rather disheartening as I think grant funds have dried up. Part of this is peoples attitude. Kinda weird as we get questions like – Why do you want to take a stranger into your house? You know she is going to have problems and will be disruptive. And closer to home we have an individual who call our daughter as “That girl in India”. Up to this pint I have made an effort to keep identities private as you really don't have a need to know. Thus I have not yet posted any photos. When she is ours I will rectify that. But let's suffice it to say that “That girl in India” has a name and her name is Camille. We are about $13K short if what we need to get her home. Looking at one grant location I noted that their max was $10k that they give 3 to 4 times a year. Once you dig deeper I found that this year was not a good year as they were only able to fund a total of $4k. Signs of the economic times.
je
19 November 2008
SHE'S OURS .......SHE'S OURS
1207 hrs today I got a call from the wife, who got a call from one of our representatives at the adoption agency. Our papers have passed the court system and we will be able to go get her either at the end of December or early January.
je
15 November 2008
"Free" Calls
Of course as I am going home the other day I thought, "Hey, I have this Skype (http://www.skype.com/newtoskype/) account, jengineer is the handle."
So this is another option for communicating to those back home. High speed connections should be available at the large hotels. I have read that connection speeds are faster in other countries, I do not know about India. There are other VOIP's that you can use but I think Skype is known big time. Best part is that Skype is free if you are going to another Skype user. So my siblings will be able to talk to us but unfortunately the parental unit will not. One PU would be on computers but the other PU is averse to them so to keep peace they have a 15 yr or more Mac sitting under wraps.
Hey I should see how early this Mac is because the first ones are now worth $$ I bet this one does not qualify as one that was made in the garage.
je
10 November 2008
Blog in the Bog
Sorry about letting this blog get bogged by only updating once a month. Nothing and I mean nothing happened during the month of October. As you know we passed NOC but are now waiting for our case to work its way through the court system. Nothing happens in October as there are 13 high festivals/holidays in October. So we continue to get ourselves prepped for our now 2 ½ year old. I have been looking at hotels, racks and B&B. One chain is The Ginger. It reminds me of dorm room living. Maybe a little bigger in square footage but not much. The rooms have a flat screen tv, a bed, a small counter to write on and a shower with toilet – no bathtub. Compared to other hotels this Spartan one is only about $60 a night where others are about $150 a night. Unfortunately this hotel chain is not in all the cities we will be visiting. The next “cheaper” place is the B&B. It is run by an engineer and Psychologist in Delhi. As a bonus it is possible to arrange evening meals in addition to breakfast.
Phone Home
So once we are in country how do we communicate with the folks back home or possibly some of our contacts in India? Obvious solution is to get a throw away phone while there. Doesn't help much if mom and dad want to call to see how things are going and to say hi to their new grandchild. So how about re-chipping your current cell? Well to do that you need to crack the cell to let it accept other company chips. Oh and you need to make sure your phone will work in the country you are going to something about GSM and broadcast frequencies. For the provider we will use in country you need a phone capable of GSM 900/ 1800/ 1900 or a GSM 850/ 900/ 1800/ 1900 Suffice it to say google will be your friend. If you decide to crack your phone, also known as unlock, on your own be careful because if you choose the wrong program you could turn it into a brick.
So AT&T doesn't like to use the word crack they call it subsidy password. When you take out your chip and put in someone else's it will ask for a password. Essentially it unlocks the phone so that it will recognize another network. The crack software does it by recoding the internal program of the phone and makes it universal to accept other chips. The password method keeps the same program that came with the phone. Since I am somewhat phone unsavy this is the method I took. Since we have been with the same provider for a year or so all it took was a 10 minute phone call. The password that the company gives you is specific to a single phone. Now to find a chip and plan for India
Finding a provider and plan is not too messy – google again. There are a few providers that I found and as usual the glom around high population locales. The one we are going to use will only work in Deli which is ok. http://www.roamsimple.com/products/Roam-Simple-India-SIM-Card.aspx use the Idea network. Initial outlay is $19 and calls are at 30 cents minute when you are done you return the chip. The calls are cheaper at http://www.cellularabroad.com/SIMcards.php which uses AirTel but the cost of the chip is over $80 – you keep the chip.
Schlep a PC?
Not sure yet one. All our documents have been scanned in and are available to print and are also on a flash drive. There are a bunch of monster laptops out there. Space and weight are killers whn\en it comes to laptops. MSI mobile has a 10 inch laptop called the wind. It has built in Wi-Fi b/g/n blue tooth and a camera too boot. Might be the ticket. Who uses pen and paper anymore? Could try a blackberry or cousin of the bb but that would mean another learning curve to tackle. See more at http://www.msimobile.com/nblist.aspx?screen=10.0
Brought to you by
humm this blog is looking like an advertisement. Oh well
Treats
Our suitcase is filling up with clothes for the children at the orphanage – gotta make sure we don't low the weight limitations. Did a Costco run to get toothpaste but the tooth brushes are too costly. The parental unit gave us a hook-up for a dental supply house that will be able to set us up with brushes for about 50 cents or less a piece. We still need to find a site for band aids and “neosporin”.
Lose your referral?
One of the adopting parents created a forum that is limited to those of us adopting from our agency. Today I saw an note that one of the parents lost their referral. Unfortunately they did not give any detail but it happened sometime after they accepted the referral. This could mean that they sent in their acceptance form, you get this after you say yes to a particular child. That means that it either got kicked back during the NOC, Court hearing, or something changed in their home study that adversely affected their status. Rather sobering news.
je
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