Arriving

So this was it. The farewell at work went along nicely, luggage was done, as far as I am concerned the apartment was ready. Thanks to a lovely colleague I arrived at the main station, my trust in the German train system not yet betrayed. While my suitcase and the trekking backpack were chilling in the downstairs compartment of my train, I was sitting upstairs oscillating between falling asleep again and the fear of forgetting something essential.

The Flight

Having reached Berlin via train I got greeted by my mum and my grandfather, making it even more emotionally difficult to get to terms with leaving the country. Afterwards, checking in lugagge, going through security checks, finding the gate, is business as usual as I have been at BER before. But after boarding, my first experience with business class begins.

Usually I find myself feeling out of place due to my height, especially in airplanes. But here it is not only possible for me to move my legs, it is almost absurd how much space there is. Both flights even blessed me with having no neighbor, making it all the more comfortable and allowing me to switch to the window seat. After sitting down, I got greeted with a beverage (choose out of four), which was very welcome to calm me down a bit. This was immediately reversed when I got handed the menu after we reached cruise altitude.

So I was very surprised to see the actual meal in front of me. Put on a tablet, yes, but that was also covered by a cloth. Five trays for the different parts of the meal. Drink choice? Red wine from Turkey, why not, it really works well with the dish. Despite the first flight being only three hours, I want to try out converting the seat into a bed and lo and behold, I was actually able to sleep.

The beginning of the second flight was a bit chaotic, instead of queues there were bundles of people. Even after entering the plane, departue was delayed due to ongoing preparations like topping up the fuel. Other than that, same procedure like switching to the window seat, checking the menu, tasty food. Due to this flight being longer there was a bag of goodies at my seat (the earplugs were most welcome). So everything was ready for a relaxed flight, watched a bit of the in-flight entertainment and went to sleep. Until the light went on, breakfeast was served and I curiously observed our plane descending into Dhaka airport.

Into the country

First impression: it is really warm here. Only half awake I stumble through the airport to the actual entry through the border. My visa was more like a stamp with handwritten details accompanied by a document explaining that the special visa printer were out of order. This combination stumped the officer checking my documents, leading to a short discussion with his colleague. It did not help that the additional piece of paper, to be filled in during the flight, contained my official reason of being there as “house husband”, leading to a chuckle. At this point the guy from the flight before who asked me how to fill in some details, like if the visa number is supposed to be his credit card, was already past the passport check. After a few more minutes of checking my passport while checking the computer I got handed back my documents and was left with a smile and this unexpected remark.

Sorry for the delay.
— The officer after checking my passport and visa

Luckily I did not have to wait long for my luggage, the number of the belt was announced soon and when I got there my suitcase and backpack were already laying there, both in one piece. With these in hand I spontaneously choose the wrong exit of the airport. “No thanks” I immediately have to reply to the first of many taxi drivers wanting to bring me into the city. While I try to look for familiar faces - “No thanks” - and check my messages for forgotten instructions, I decide to go back (“No thanks” to the next taxi driver) into the airport. Of course going the correct way soon leads me to the delighted faces of Katharina and the driver of her team. Apparently my flight vanished from flightradar at some point and combined with the delay this lead to a rising worry on their part.

Finally we get into the car and drive directly to the new apartment. The streets are already busy early in the morning, when the city seems to just wake up. Looking at the traffic I start to think that I will very likely not drive here at all on my own.

First day

With some peace and quiet I can take a look at the flat and realize there is really a lot of space. In the middle the living room, with four additional rooms around it, all separated by a door. The biggest bedroom is ours, though its door is only frosted glass, while the others consist of nicely decorated wood. There is AC everywhere, of course, and no shortage of air purifiers. These are necessary, not only because the cat Findus is leaving hair everywhere, but because Bangladesh - especially Dhaka - is struggling with air pollution¹.

Once I am left on my own, I decide to not give in into the temptation of sleep and instead try to setup all of my devices and cables on the nice little workspace with two screens. The maid in the background is working as usual, not at all distracted by the loud click-clack of my keyboard. Once I am done and unable to stay awake any longer, I say goodbye to her and fall asleep. The rest of the day is uneventful and I stay in the apartment the whole time.