And the flight landed. I don’t know why but I felt like cheering out loud, like the passengers of those low cost East European Airlines do every time a flight lands safely. But I didn’t dare move, you are in the Middle East for heaven’s sake, you don’t mess there. “Earn your Riyals and move on” my friends had advised me. So finally here I was, the dream destination, goes without saying it was just a dream an Oasis which was nothing close to what I had imagined.
The Airport was little larger than the Shantinagar Satellite Bus Stand and it had planes ‘if only you could call them so’ parked haphazardly. My Passport doesn’t boast of many entry / exit stamps, but I have had my share of domestic travel and I must say, the Sultan Qaboos Airport was among the smallest and least crowded that I had ever seen. Anyways, now that I only had a one way ticket, I decided to follow the de-planing passengers and open the next chapter in my book of destiny.
Middle East they say and I realize has this odd and consistent thing. Whenever anybody returns from their home country, the first couple of days are spent in absolute depression, no matter how long the person has been abroad. Believe me, it is a fact. In the two and half years I stayed out, I have come to India more than 7 times. That adds up to coming home once every four months. Still every time I land back at the Muscat Airport, I feel so low, not home sick, but a feeling of loneliness as if I have lost something. When you come out of airport, you literally search for reasons that could take you back, like you pray that your Visa is expired, or your driver has not come to pick you up or at least US has attacked Iran. But as always, when you expect something goes wrong, it never does. Your Visas are intact, Driver is at the Airport before time and US is more interested in Af-pak. You have no way other than following the driver.
Another thing peculiar to Middle East, at least to the place and company that I worked for is that one thing of yours, that you never get to keep is your passport. I had heard of it, but thats for uneducated labourers, I am an Engineer with a post graduation in International Business I thought. “Passport please”, commanded the driver. “Why, what, who the hell...” all these questions came to my mind. “Here” I said handing him my prized possession meekly. I would get it back the evening I fly out of the country and till then it would be in the company locker for what they call ‘SAFE CUSTODY’. Who the hell would be interested in my passport, I thought. Anyways, you don’t ask questions, especially when you are in Middle East and that too when you have just handed over your passport to a complete stranger. The driver had seen many Prasheels and half way through the drive, he said “even the company MD’s passports are in the company locker”. Must say that was a consolation.
The drive was un-eventful, so was the scenery if only you could call it so. Only thing exciting was the Camry Car that had come to pick me up. I had seen many posh cars, but a Camry coming to pick me up was flattering. This high however didn’t last long as a quarter of the taxis that plied in the city were, I found out- Camry. Fighting my loneliness I reached my accommodation, a leased building of six floors. Each floors had four flats fully furnished with all amenities, bed, A/C, Sofa, TV, Fridge, Washing Machine, attached bathrooms with hot and cool water, bath tub., nothing short of a three star facility. The top floor had pantry that served veg and non veg food cooked by company’s cooks. The driver introduced me to the care taker and the care taker lead me to my flat.
All employees of Saud Bahwan Group are provided accommodation. Some get villas, some furnished houses, some stacked in rooms that resemble poultry farms, all based on whats written on the Visa that allowed you inside the country. I had a single room with attached bath furnished with a TV, Sofa, Bed and Fridge that could conveniently take in a full grown ostrich. Dropping my stuff in the room the driver drove me to the office.
Thus began a very interesting phase in my life. Finishing the HR formalities I was escorted by to what would be my abode for the next 29 months of my life- my office.
Ford is advertised as the Largest Selling American Car in Oman, but an annual number of 1200 units in a market of 75,000 does not in any way do justice to the tall claim (not that its a false one, the other American Company GM sold 1180 cars that year). So its office, my office was well... uninspiring to say the least!!! A dungeon on the first floor of the Ford showroom that had files piled all over, the old carpet had a shade of brown that deceives you into thinking it was matched to the mahogany furniture. An office that had a lift with only one floor to service, no stairs and no fire exit. They say the President of the company once used to operate out of this office and the over sized bathroom and the remains of what was once rich furniture do make you believe the hearsay. ‘What am I doing here?’ From a proud Area Sales Manager for the sixth (must admit it was seventh back then) largest automobile company in the world to a Product Executive for a dealer who sells 1200 cars a year! I never hated myself more.
I hated the office on day one and I hated it till about 2 months then on. Then I fell in love with it. Not because it grew on me, but because the dungeon gave me an ideal den to bury myself, far from the nagging senior management. Once in the office, it was like being on an island that somehow didn’t find a place in ‘maps of the world’, unexposed, hidden, cool and free. This is the place where I would spend 325 days every year, the other 40 being in India.
A day in my life
Life is easy in that part of the world. At least it was so for me. My previous stint at the Hyundai Motors’ West Regional Office in Mumbai was, well back breaking to say the least. I used to slog in office from 7.45 AM to 8 PM. Add one and half hours of to and fro travel with a local train journey from Borivali to Mumbai Central and back six days a week and you have a tortured soul who will be ready to take up an assignment in Tora Bora. So when I had this job that required me to reach office at 8 only to go back home at 1 PM for a 2 hour siesta was heaven. I would then be back to office at 4 for a 3 hour work. The Air conditioned coaster and later my Ford Focus made the 15 min travel a pleasure.
Coming up .... ‘A Day in My Life.. Contd’, ‘LTFL Policy’ ‘License to Live’, ‘Friends are for Life’, ‘Dance Bar’, ‘Chastity Preserved’...
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