A Lousy Weekend!

This is in continuation to Reporting the Encounter..!! So you might want to turn the pages over, to get a hint of what this post is all about. For everyone else who managed to follow through, without getting bored and/or discontinuing, thanks a lot for your patience.

It was 1:00 am in the morning and I was surfing through internet to get a hang on the process I was supposed to follow from Monday onwards. I probably read the content of every single page listed in the first 10-15 results' pages on Google for all possible search strings for the situation in hand. Everyone from my manager, to his manager to the VP extended help and colleagues there in Australia or back in India searched for information and sent it too.

I wish I could say it for this one

I completely read through the website of ministry of external affairs, India and the Indian Consulate at Sydney. They require you to fill up a form for each case whether it was one like that of me or for a new passport application for an Indian resident staying in Sydney and so on. What confused me was that most of these links take you to the same page, having link to only one web based form. I was not sure if I should because the description indicated that it was meant for a fresh passport application, but I filled up the form and saved a copy of that on the notebook. It generated a random number saying AUSSI******* which is an identifier of your file. After doing all this, I suppose I fell asleep some where close to 3:40-3:50 am in the morning. 

Early morning at around 5:45 am, I went out to see if I could find some sweepers or  anyone from caretaker groups of that area. I  retraced the whole path once more but could not find anybody, I guess it was too early. I went back to the room and tried to catch a short nap, woke up again at around 7:00-7:30 and went on for the same journey. Luckily, this time I managed to find somebody from that group, I told him about what happened. He then talked to few more of those in his group but nobody had found anything. 

He then told me about a Chinese lady who had forgotten her bag, wallet, passport and other belongings in the same area a few days ago. They found all that stuff, which was then returned to the lady as it is. His assumption was that there is no reason that something lost in that area would not be found except for cases when somebody throws it in the dustbin or when it might have fallen in a water body. I then went on to find the office of the rangers who oversee that area. I did not have any luck this time as well. They told me the same thing as did that guy I talked to a while ago. I then talked to the folks in the all the remaining (open)restaurants/bars/bistros and souvenir shops in the locality.

I was then walking back to the hotel, when the tram guy who helped last night, asked me if I could get my passport back. I was amazed to see that he remembered. I told him that I could not find it and thanked him for being kind to ask that. 

My colleague called me up at around 9:47 am in the morning to inquire if had checked with the sweepers and other guys and if I had my breakfast. He told me that he would go out to check once. Later, he came to my room at some time around 11:30-11:45 am when he informed me that his wife and child are ill. At around 1:33 pm in the afternoon, he sent a detailed email to all the stakeholders with the summary of the workshop and next steps to be followed once we reach India. 

He invited me to his room at around 2:00 pm or so to be able to divert attention from the topic. I was still looking for more information on the internet, so I refused. He insisted, so I went to his room with my laptop. I did not know what to discuss, so I sat there for a few minutes and then continued my search while he was enjoying an animated movie. Since it was not helping, I went back to my room after 5-10 mins. 

In the evening, he suggested that we should catch up for dinner. While we were going towards harbor on the same lane, I asked him of the bistro he went to, so that I can ask the folks if they found something. He said that he did not think that it was lost there. Since there was no harm in trying, I asked him a few more times. When we reached near the same spot as the previous day, and I pointed out to one of the bistros asking if that was the one, he said he did not think so. I thought may be he does not remember, so I suggested that I would go and ask in each one of them. He did not like the idea and said that he did not think it would help. I insisted and then he finally told me the place he went to. I went in and asked the lady at the bar. While she went on to check inside, he said that he did not think that he put his hand in his pockets while he was there. The lady came back with no good news.

After going back to the hotel, it was just a few more calls, texts etc.

I called up the police and rangers a couple of times asking for my passport over the course of that day. Those people are really nice, they remembered me by the time I called them up the second time and tried reassuring each time that they will reach out to me as soon as they find something.

to be continued..

Reporting the Encounter..!!

This post is next in line with First Ever Visit to a Police Station..!!

As soon as we stepped in the police station, I noticed the difference with those we see/have in India, or at least in movies.

Anyways, coming back to the point, I saw two cops indulged in their work. As soon as they noticed us, one of them came to the counter to attend to us. I started speaking and hence informed him about the loss of my passport. He started asking me questions like:

"Was it an Indian passport?": Yes, it was, so did I say to him.

"How and Where did you lose it?": I informed him of the walk from our hotel to "The Star" and that as soon as we reached the destination, my colleague acknowledged that it could not be found. 

He then inquired "your colleague acknowledged": I informed him that the passport was with my colleague along with reason. He then looked at my colleague and so did I, saying that the passport was in my colleague's pocket. My colleague then nodded in approval too and said that it was with him.

So to conclude, I said, it should have been lost somewhere on the way from Holiday Inn, near Sydney Entertainment Center to The Star. My colleague interrupted and said that as per him it should have been lost only somewhere near the harbor because he remembered that's the only time when he put his hand in the pocket. 

I was quite surprised to hear that and said "You did not even remember that I had given my passport to you when we reached "The Star" and now you remember when did you put your hands in your pockets?" The police guy was writing it down in the report when he repeated that it was lost between the Holiday Inn and the Star. My colleague tried repeating that he is sure that it should have been lost somewhere near the harbor. I told the cop that we can't be 100% sure, it could be any place between the two points.

The constable then asked my colleague if he has checked his pockets well. My colleague said yes, trying to check it once again in front of him.

He asked us of our purpose of visit to Sydney, for which I told him that it was a business trip.

I asked him about the procedure thereon and if he knew how can I get back to India. I must admit that the constable was extremely helpful. He immediately searched for and gave me as many numbers as he could find, of the Indian Embassy on the internet. He did tell me that it would be closed any way since it was weekend and that I would have to wait till Monday. I was worried and he could sense that well. He said that I should not worry for the consulate should be able to issue a fresh passport to me in 48 hours or so. He keyed in the information and gave me a card with the event number indicating that report was lodged.

I tried all of those phone numbers but none of them worked. He looked for another number and passed it on to me. I tried that number as well and luckily that one took me to a voice mail box. I dropped a message, stating my name, nationality, current location & time, reason for travel and that my passport was lost, and that the same has been informed to the NSW police at Day Street Police Station. 

The constable then called rangers(these people take care of things, lost and found near the Darling Quarter) to see if they had got it. But they hadn't. He passed on that number to me as well so that I could check with them the next morning. He then suggested us to retrace the path back to see if we could find it.  I informed him that I had already done that almost twice. He did suggest to talk to people at all the nearby restaurants.


After listening to what police officer said, I decided to retrace the path from the harbor to "The Star" back. So when we reached the bifurcation to our hotel and the harbor, I did let my colleague know about it. He said that we should grab something to eat first. I said that I would rather go and check there first. He repeated that but I took the road to "The Star", conveying my intention to try once again to him and he followed. When we reached the entrance of casino again, I asked the representative who was managing the crowd if they found any Indian passport there. He suggested me to check with hotel reception, at the rear side. I asked him the way to it. He hurriedly said something.

So, I just started walking into that direction. My colleague continued to say that he does not think that it had fallen over there but I was not convinced. I had nothing further to lose, so I wanted to give it a last shot. When we reached downstairs, I signaled him that we need to take the right to reach the reception. His feeling was that there could no way be a path to the reception within the building and we should go out, walk around the building to enter it from the other side. I did not think so, my feeling was that it was a huge mall, should have been well connected and there should be a way to get in there through the mall. So, I followed my gut. He replicated his wordings, that we should go out and try find a way to the rear entrance. Within a few minutes, we could reach the reception, cutting through the crowded food court, and then the lobby. I asked the lady if they found an Indian Passport but they had not. I gave my contact details & business card to her so that she could inform me just in case they find it.

I was talking of visiting the restaurants on our way back to hotel  but my colleague did not like the idea. I said I would go and talk to them and I visited around 2-3 of them, that's when he joined me. I talked to another 6-7 of them and handed over my business card to the folks at the restaurant.  I tried to find the people who clean that area but could not. Staff at a restaurant suggested us to try early morning next day. My colleague then suggested that we should grab something to eat first for we have not had anything yet. I could not think of food at that time and thought of making a few calls to the folks back in here(India) to inform about it. I went back to my room and called up my manager, parents etc., posted about being stuck in Sydney on the Facebook wall. Many friends, colleagues & well-wishers reached out to talk, share ideas, offer help, and whatsoever and I am really thankful to each one of them.

My colleague managed to get the return tickets cancelled by that time. He came to my room while I was still on a phone call. As soon as it was all done, he reminded me that we have not had dinner. I was in no mood to eat anything and conveyed this to him. He insisted, so I told him that "I can give him company but I am not hungry." We went to Mc Donald's, nearby, he ordered a meal and insisted me to get something as well. I wanted to get back to the hotel quickly, so I agreed. The only veg thing available was the pack of potato fries. He suggested that we may try another place, but I was not in mood to do that. I simply asked him if we can get back to the hotel.

As soon as I returned to my room, I wrote an email to Indian Consulate at Sydney enclosing a copy of my lost passport, details like how/when, the event number, police station and name of the police officer in charge who lodged the complaint.

to be continued..

Edited: I had forgotten to include this part when I wrote it yesterday, an amendment to make a note of each & every thing that happened.

First Ever Visit to a Police Station..!!

This post comes next in the sequence of my earlier post Unforgettable Discovery of Loss.!!

After experiencing a peculiar reaction from my colleague about the loss of passport, the only thing I did say was that "We need to go to the police station". My colleague was baffled and inquired, why would we need to go to the police station. I said, now since the passport is lost, we don't have any option but to go the police station. He insisted that we should first trace back the path to see if we can find it ourselves. I was skeptical about the idea and once again mentioned that " The path we navigated through, to reach "The Star" was pretty crowded. I did not feel that we would get it back retracing it, so I mentioned, instead we should directly go and lodge a complaint with the police first. 

My colleague asked for trying ourselves one more time. Ultimately, I agreed and started to follow the same path, with utmost attention, provided that I am good at and like observing things, in spite of being stressful this was a cakewalk for me. I quickly retraced the path back to the hotel and till the tram station at the other end but all in vain. While I was walking back towards the harbor, covering more than halfway, I saw my colleague coming back from "The Star"(I was so deeply indulged in finding the document back that I had lost track of where he was and the speed with which he was heading back towards the hotel), this is when I also noticed a tram heading in the same direction as I was. I waived at the driver. He stopped and then I asked him the address of the nearest police station.

My colleague managed to come nearby and asked what am I trying to do. At that time, this tram guy was telling me of the directions and the name of the police station. My colleague asked once again "Police station?" I informed him that I have already traced back the path 1.5 - 2 times and could not find anything. He suggested to try one more time. I was in no mood to pay heed to him this time. I simply asked him to continue searching while I go and lodge a complaint with the local police.

My colleague suggested that probably I should continue searching while he would go to the police station. It was strangely astonishing and hardly made any sense to me. I asked him of what would he do going to the police station without me. I was the one whose passport was lost and hence, I should be the one to go & lodge an FIR while he could continue looking for it if he wants. He was then interested to come along with me to the police station. I was ok with it. So, I continued asking the tram guy who then offered that he would drop us to a place very close to the police station. Very soon did we reach the drop point and the police station was just a couple of blocks away from there.

We reached the police station by 9:50 pm. 

to be continued..

Unforgettable Discovery of Loss.!!

This is the subsequent part of my previous post And When You Turn Your Instinct Down..!!

My colleague suggested that it would be a good idea to catch a tram from the junction at the right hand side of the hotel. We waited for a couple of minutes at the stop but all in vain. Soon did we hear the the crackling sound of fireworks, every Saturday sharp at 9:00 pm occurs the show at Darling Harbor. We did want to witness that but had completely forgotten about it. So, we decided to buck up, take the other route alongside the Harbor, as soon as I came up with the proposal. But, we missed that anyway. Since, I had googled about it a couple of days back, I did not remember the exact location of 'The Star'.

When we reached halfway, we decided to get the direction reaffirmed with someone around (possibly a local resident). While my colleague decided to go, check with guys at a bistro, I simply asked a guy at the harbor, as there were quite many people around. When he returned after a few minutes, I asked him if he found out anything. He nodded in denial. I had already found out and conveyed the same to him. We continued walking in the right direction. We finally did reach our destination in another 5 minutes or so. 

Soon we took the escalator cutting through the mall, reached the entrance of the casino only to discover a mob of people and a couple of guys who were asking these people to form a queue & show their passports as the proof of identity to get an entry. 

This very moment, I asked my colleague to hand over my passport back to me. I guess he did not notice my utterance. He conveniently took his passport out and stood in the queue. So, I requested him once again to give it back to me. That's when he smiled and asked if I ever gave my passport to him. I was surprised to hear that and thought he was just kidding, for there was a smirk on his face and was more or less laughing. I once again asked him for my passport, saying that I gave it to him only a couple of minutes ago. I was surprised that he had forgotten. He finally conveyed after searching all his pockets that he does not has it. 

I still could not believe that he was serious for there was still a grin on his face. I could not find it funny at all. I was kind of worked up, asserted the same only to find out that he really meant what he just said a few times. It was annoying to observe that kind of a behavior for the loss of a valuable document like passport. The only thing that I said next was that we need to go to the police station. 

..to be continued

And When You Turn Your Instinct Down..!!

Trust your gut. It knows what your head hasn't yet figured out - Source Unknown

I hadn't ever rebuked my instinct so blatantly as I did a few weeks ago. I am still trying to organize my thoughts so that I can paint the whole scene up here. 

I did this in Sydney, an evening prior to my scheduled return to India, while I was on a business trip with a colleague. We met outside our hotel at around 8:45 pm in the evening, all set to visit The Star, the second largest casino in Australia. When I reached downstairs, my colleague reminded me of carrying along my identity proof i.e. the passport. I had forgotten to bring it along, so I rushed back to the room to get it. While I was back in the lift heading downstairs, a strange thought popped up in my mind "What if I lose my passport while I am here(in Sydney)?". Before I could answer the question, I had already reached level 0. 

As soon as I stepped out, I realized I was not carrying my bag, just had the money in my pocket and the passport in my hand. As it was just a 5-10 mins walk, I asked my colleague if he can keep my passport along with his own. He agreed. Now this is really strange, that right after the moment I handed it over to him, I again got the same feeling, that I had while I was in the elevator. For once I thought of asking him to give it back to me but it did sound really rude to my own self and I could not think of a reason for asking it back. So, I dejected my instinct.

..to be continued