It was only appropriate that I left for India on my birthday, June 26th. The day before departing, I had hiked one of the highest mountains in my hometown, and the night before departing, I had shaved my head (after growing my hair out for the past 6 months). It was a brand new start for me and a new chapter in my life that I was ready to begin. Since I had hardly slept the days before my flight, the trip there went by so fast and was kinda a blur. My stops included Atlanta and Paris. BTW, Paris is one of the most disorganized airports I have ever had the pleasure to be at. I almost missed my flight even though I and most everyone else coming from the US had been there for at least 2 hours. Anyway, I did make my flight and got into New Delhi around midnight.
After looking around for 30 minutes for my hotel driver, I decided that I had to get my own driver. I went to one of the counters and ask for a cab to Greater Kailash II (where my hotel was located). He asked for 400 Rupees and I gladly paid just to get to my hotel as soon as possible. Once I walked outside, I was immediately struck by the heat. It was probably 90 degrees. It felt good but was strange after being in planes and airports that were probably 65 degrees. Anyway, after showing my driver where to go, he refused to take me. I thought to myself “ And the shade begins…” . I then went to his colleagues and asked if anyone spoke English and explained the situation. One guy went to Police and the Police man forced him to take me to my hotel. After getting lost a few times we finally arrived to my hotel around 1:30am. He demanded a tip. I gave him nothing for the grief I went through. I bitched and complained about not getting the hotel driver and then went to my room, set up my wifi internet and didn’t go to bed until 5am.
My days in India were very busy. I was coordinating going to SCI and going to my dentist to get some major work done. I was required to give 3 sperm samples every other day I was there, starting on the second day. On the second day I also took a blood test to ensure I was drug and disease free, which I was (whew!). On my fourth day I toured the SCI facility, met with the head doctor , Dr. Shivani, and spoke about next steps. She was very patient and understanding and answered any questions I had. Looking at her calendar, I could tell this was a busy lady. She was delivering multiple babies a day, meeting with potential couples, and monitoring all of the egg donors and surrogates.
I was impressed. Meeting her convinced me that I had made the right decision in this clinic. During my days at the clinic I met people from around the world. They were all straight couples. I met couples from Africa, Uruguay, England, and Sweden. It was an eye-opening experience. There was part of me that was proud of myself for doing this alone. Toward the end of my trip I got my sperm results and everything was in order. That was a pretty surreal experience. Once I got my results, I realized that there was nothing else in my way to achieve this dream of mine. I was excited yet still trying to get my head around the entire process… Next post, I talk about the egg donor selection.
After looking around for 30 minutes for my hotel driver, I decided that I had to get my own driver. I went to one of the counters and ask for a cab to Greater Kailash II (where my hotel was located). He asked for 400 Rupees and I gladly paid just to get to my hotel as soon as possible. Once I walked outside, I was immediately struck by the heat. It was probably 90 degrees. It felt good but was strange after being in planes and airports that were probably 65 degrees. Anyway, after showing my driver where to go, he refused to take me. I thought to myself “ And the shade begins…” . I then went to his colleagues and asked if anyone spoke English and explained the situation. One guy went to Police and the Police man forced him to take me to my hotel. After getting lost a few times we finally arrived to my hotel around 1:30am. He demanded a tip. I gave him nothing for the grief I went through. I bitched and complained about not getting the hotel driver and then went to my room, set up my wifi internet and didn’t go to bed until 5am.
My days in India were very busy. I was coordinating going to SCI and going to my dentist to get some major work done. I was required to give 3 sperm samples every other day I was there, starting on the second day. On the second day I also took a blood test to ensure I was drug and disease free, which I was (whew!). On my fourth day I toured the SCI facility, met with the head doctor , Dr. Shivani, and spoke about next steps. She was very patient and understanding and answered any questions I had. Looking at her calendar, I could tell this was a busy lady. She was delivering multiple babies a day, meeting with potential couples, and monitoring all of the egg donors and surrogates.
I was impressed. Meeting her convinced me that I had made the right decision in this clinic. During my days at the clinic I met people from around the world. They were all straight couples. I met couples from Africa, Uruguay, England, and Sweden. It was an eye-opening experience. There was part of me that was proud of myself for doing this alone. Toward the end of my trip I got my sperm results and everything was in order. That was a pretty surreal experience. Once I got my results, I realized that there was nothing else in my way to achieve this dream of mine. I was excited yet still trying to get my head around the entire process… Next post, I talk about the egg donor selection.
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