Canada Visit -This Time as A-PR - 601 ,

    8th Canada Visit , This Time 

       As A Permanent Resident 

The advancing age makes Each passing year that much more tiresome . Starting at near 6.00 PM from Ambasamudram by Train on the 18 th and landing at Regina in Canada on the 20 th at 11.50 PM Local Time  ( which is   11.20 AM at Ambas on the 21 st  ) or close to 60  hours is really hard on a person , even more so when you are in your 70s .

The 06004 Tirunelveli to Tambaram Weekly Special which goes via Ambas - Tenkasi was the only Train where we could manage to get Reserved Berths in 2 Tier AC Coach inspite of the nearly 8 Trains Running in this Section . The 27 " Luggage will go underneath the Berths of only 2 Tier AC Coaches . My previous experience of Air Travel has taught me this .

We arrived at Tambaram on Schedule at 9.00 AM and being welcomed by torrential rain the previous night at Chennai which recorded 17 Cms in Rain around the Meenambakkam Airport . Many Arrival flights were diverted to Bangalore and a few out going Flights were also Cancelled.  

Our own Flight at 4.20 AM by the Etihad EY269 to Abu Dhabi on the 20 th morning was delayed by near half hour though  we arrived there on time to board the Etihad Flight to Toronto after a 2 Hour Transit at Abu Dhabi at 10.00 AM Local Time . The good part of the Chennai to Abu Dhabi sector was that the flight was almost half empty and we both could stretch our leg in the 3 seats and catch a few winks of Sleep .

The Abu Dhabi to Toronto by Etihad EY141  was all of a 13 Hour  Flight . We had pre booked seats at the TAIL END with only 2 seats for the both of us with a bit more of leg space . The Plane was fully  booked and all 336 seats occupied. Asian Vegetarian Food came at regular intervals as did the Coffee or Tea . 

We arrived at the Toronto Airport at the Sheduled Arrival Time of 2 PM . 

At 30000 Feet above , viewing a Plane from inside our Plane . 

Our PR ( Permanent Resident) Document Presentation Process took almost 3 hours . 2.5 Hours was spent in the queue to await our turn for the interview. The actual interview was for just 10 to 15 minutes. With both my Daughter and Son being Canadian Citizens speeded up the process in a big way .

The number of people waiting in the Queue was a big surprise . Nearly 200 people from almost all countries were waiting their turn at any given point of time. The Permanent Residency plan of the Canadian Immigration Authorities seems to be a big all around success. 

Our Son met us as Scheduled at 5.00 pm and we were delighted to meet our Grand Children. We had our Dinner and Boarded the Flight to Regina at 10.00 pm . Our presence at Regina was a must to receive our PR Card and complete other formalities. Our plan is to Visit Toronto for a few Months during our return to India .

All in all , a very tiring but a fulfilling and happy time ahead with all in my family .