Don Curry in the unrestricted return flight

Don Curry wonders: How does a journey end? With gratitude?: What a wonderful time! With melancholy? : Why does it have to end already! With ennui?: Just get outta here! With anticipation?: Finally back home! Don Curry is not sure which is the truly appropriate feeling after five weeks of being on the road. At least the journey didn't quite end as he had imagined.

Don Curry heard the sea as he awoke. He took advantage of the first sunlight to mentally inhale the incredible view of a beautiful beach and an infinite sea from his veranda. The waves breaking gently glowed reddish, making the whole surroundings appear almost unreal. Was all this just a beautiful dream? Don Curry got back into bed. Today was actually a day when he would have time. And that's exactly what he wanted to enjoy. The steady waves lulled him back to sleep.

When he woke up for the second time, the whole scene was already bathed in bright sunlight. The first resort guests were spreading out on the beach, and Don Curry went to one of the ocean view tables for a leisurely breakfast. When he wanted to check out, he was informed that he could only pay in cash - not with a credit card. So he had to take some of the money that he had actually intended as a thank you for Prince. Well, there would be enough ATMs in Goa.

The only sightseeing destination of the day was the old Portuguese churches and monasteries of Goa Velha, the former capital of the colony. Well-maintained lawns with some impressive trees and blooming shrubs now extend between the individual churches; there are no longer any houses from that time. Don Curry started his tour in St. Cajetan, the former Theatine Church, which in its design and size emulates the Roman St. Peter's Basilica. But as there was a very noisy floor cleaning going on in the church, Don Curry stayed only briefly. 

Next, he went to Sé, the mighty cathedral, which still stands as the largest Catholic church in Asia. The massive, all white building reveals its splendid ornamentation inside, especially a completely gilded high altar and many elaborately crafted side altars testify to the high importance of this church. Here, like in all other churches of Goa Velha, photographing itself is not forbidden, but photographing people is - in order to counteract the pronounced Indian selfie mania. At least every second Indian tourist has a selfie stick with them, and it seems almost irresistible to take a selfie right next to a Hindu deity or a Christian saint statue. 

Even more significant than the cathedral is the Basilica of Bom Jesus, located 200 meters away, Don Curry's next destination. Besides the Baroque design, what attracts crowds of pilgrims and tourists here is the tomb of Saint Francis Xavier. 

Don Curry still took time for the Franciscan Church, the simple Catherine Chapel, the gloomy ruins of the Augustine Monastery, and the slightly remote Rosary Church, which offers a magnificent view of the wide Mandovi River. 

He also sat down for lunch in Goa's capital Panaji right on the banks of this river. Here, he wanted to indulge in the culinary treasures of India one last time, and being right by the sea, it was only natural to focus on its inhabitants. The waiter recommended ordering two main dishes with rice; otherwise, it would be too little. But when Don Curry saw the portions that were delivered, he wondered what calorie intake the waiter thought he was capable of: 2 large baked kingfish fillets on a kind of salad bed and a generous bowl of prawns curry with rice and rotis posed a real challenge. But Don Curry could take his time and enjoyed the wonderful view of the ship traffic, the accompanying Kingfisher, and the final coconut feni: here, they had the special Goa schnapps. Very satisfied, he returned to Prince. The only thing missing now was an ATM; but he would surely find one at the airport, at the latest.

Actually, he should have known: There was the typical Indian traffic chaos in front of Vasco da Gama Airport. Don Curry had barely left the car when a young man offered to help him with the luggage. Don Curry asked him if there was an ATM inside the airport; the young man confirmed it, but explained that Don Curry would have to show his ticket and passport when entering the building. Indeed, long queues had already formed at the various entrance doors as heavily armed security forces carefully checked the papers. But Don Curry easily made his way into the building, found an ATM, and replenished his reserves of rupees to be able to hand over a proper thank you to Prince for 3 weeks of wonderful company. He quickly wanted to leave the airport to say goodbye to Prince; but the security guard rudely and unambiguously turned him away. So Don Curry tried another door, showed his passport, but was brusquely prevented from leaving the building once again. By then, the young man with the luggage had joined Don Curry and explained that he could no longer leave the airport - it was impossible. Don Curry made it clear that he only wanted to say goodbye to his driver very quickly. But it was too late for that, the young man said, Prince was not allowed in without a valid ticket and Don Curry was no longer allowed out. Finally, he agreed to at least pass on the rupees and dollars to Prince, as an airport employee he could freely go back and forth between inside and outside. So all Don Curry could do was wave heartily, while the young airport employee explained the situation to Prince and handed over the money. What an undignified farewell! Prince waved back warmly, but was already being urged by security personnel to finally leave.

In the meantime, the young man showed Don Curry the way to the check-in counter. Here he was informed that all flights would indeed take place, but that his luggage was 10 kg overweight. Even packing it into hand luggage wouldn't help much with this difference, so Don Curry had to pay an excess baggage fee. Again, the young man led him to the appropriate office, where a young Indian woman in a sparkling emerald green sari was frantically working on several computers at once, serving a counter full of waiting passengers and now having to deal with Don Curry and his overweight problem; she offered him the seat herself. Fascinated, Don Curry watched as the woman, with her accomplished multitasking skills, actually managed to handle several processes at once. While, for example, speaking with a client at the counter, she leafed through a folder to find out how Swiss Air handles baggage fees. In the end, about €120 had to be paid, and she warned Don Curry that the credit card payment device was probably defective. She turned out to be right. The young man who had accompanied Don Curry so far was getting impatient. Since Don Curry had given all his cash to Prince, there was only one option: back to the ATM. However, in India, you can only withdraw a very limited amount per card per day, and Don Curry had already used one of his cards quite heavily 30 minutes ago. Nevertheless, he managed to get the required sum by using both cards together. Even the multitasking Indian woman was quite surprised: she knew that the amount couldn't be withdrawn with just one card. She now eagerly began issuing new tickets - handwritten and in multiple copies for all three flights that lay ahead of Don Curry. In addition, she made phone calls, answered questions at the counter, and entered data into various computers. The young man rolled his eyes quite annoyed. Finally, the task was done, and the young woman led Don Curry back to the check-in counter, followed by his previous companion. She quickly explained to the staff there what they had to do and disappeared sparkling in emerald green.

Checking in had taken a total of one hour. The young airport employee took Don Curry to the bottom of an escalator and then said goodbye. Through passport and security checks, Don Curry found his way by himself and shortly afterwards flew to his first stopover in Mumbai. Without any further incidents, he continued from this surprisingly pleasant airport via Zurich to Hanover, where his car was waiting for him. Would he be able to manage without Prince?