Traveling Mercies

I am back in Bangalore after a super long and exhausting journey from Sydney. One not exempt of glitches unfortunately.

Glitch # 1

Customs stopped me to investigate all my camera gear and informed me that I was carrying too much and unless I could prove to them that I had taken it out of the country, I could not bring it in without paying a hefty amount of money and I’m talking enough money to buy a new lens! Of course I was NOT going to pay them anything because it’s not new gear and it was all bought in India and I could prove it with my receipts BUT the receipts were all in Bangalore and not on me personally. Anyway, thankfully my fiancé Rob was waiting outside for me and I drew confidence from him to stand my ground. They initially said they would detain my bag and I could come back to pick it up with my receipts and I explained that I had to get back to Bangalore TODAY because I was getting married in two weeks and I couldn’t come back to Bombay with receipts.

Thankfully, they were not sadistic officers and after sitting me down for a lecture on what is permissable and what is not and what I have to make sure I do when I travel abroad with all this gear again, they let me go with a warning.

Glitch # 2

I was so anxious to just get out of the airport and spend about an hour with Rob before I got back on my last flight to Bombay that I didn’t even think about what happens to my checked in baggage? I knew it was checked till Bangalore but I had no idea that I was supposed to collect it in between and take it through Customs in Bombay! Blame it on the fiasco with my camera bag and 20+ hours of traveling, lack of sleep and general exhaustion. I also wish they would have announced it on my flight from Singapore to Bombay.

Anyway, I finally made it home at around 7am on Monday morning and slept pretty much the whole day. Jet Airways has been stellar with sorting out my baggage and getting it to Bangalore. They initially said I would have to go to the airport to pick it up but I managed to convince them to have it delivered to my place. They usually do that for free but in my case, because it had to do with Customs and not technically a fault of Jet Airways, I will have to pay for the service. Oh well. I’m okay with not having to see an airport again for a while! And I am just grateful to have my bag back!

On my last day in Sydney, I shot the second wedding ceremony of Ram and Ruwanie. I shot their Indian wedding here in Bangalore in July and was absolutely honoured to witness their Sri Lankan wedding! I stayed at Ruwanie’s parents’ place in Sydney for my last fews day in Australia and was honestly humbled by how they made me feel like a part of the family.

When I started off this photography business, I wanted it to be more than just earning a living or even doing what I am passionate about. I wanted it to be about relationships and service and I think finishing off 2013 with this wedding was such a fantabulous confirmation of that goal. Shooting for Ram and Ruwanie didn’t feel like ‘work’, it felt like a great big celebration with family and friends and for that, I am inexplicably grateful.

Cannot wait to share this set with you. For now, a tiny little sneak peek: