Sleepless in Bangalore

Jetlag is least fun when the changes don’t turn the days upside down. Heading for England or Canada from Down Under isn’t usually too bad because the time switch is so severe there is no option but to adjust quickly. Being in India is trickier for east-coast Australians, who have to deal with a difference of between four-and-a-half and five-and-a-half hours. It doesn’t sound like much, but it’s enough to upset the balance. After three visits here in three years I haven’t found a solution.

I’m determined to focus on India time, but that plan falls down when thinking about contacting my family. In Australia my two babies wake between 4am and 6am, so while I’m not always up with the sun, I’m usually starting to stir (Dear wife, please stop laughing). The upshot is that In India my usual wake-up time is the middle of the night, meaning dozing to 4am counts as my longest sleep-in since the second baby arrived. I’m still waiting to feel refreshed.

So it’s now 6.43am and I’ve been up for almost three hours. I feel like I’ve slept worse than Cameron White and Jason Krejza, who are waiting to find out if they get their first baggy green today. It’s going to be a long first day at the cricket for a few people.