navigate:
Saturday 2005-09-17 - Amsterdam, the Netherlands
“Can you take your shoes off, please?”
I go downstairs with my luggage a bit early and just when I step out the taxi arrives, with Carla and Gwendoline on board. We have a smooth an luxurious start of the trip: we’ll be able to lug our luggage more than enough later! Amsterdam is quiet at this time — but the airport is crowded.
Security after check in is interesting: the gate beeps at me (as I expected since I have a metal buckle on my belt; a lady frisks me. So far normal. Then comes the surprise: “Can you take your shoes off, please?” OK — I’m expecting she’ll take a good look at my shoes, but no: first my feet are frisked, too, and then my shoes have to go through the scanner!
After that we shop a bit, then go to the gate; we leave on time.
Saturday 2005-09-17 - Frankfurt, Germany
Feathers
As I expected (and half hoped) we have to go through the most interesting airport tunnel I know: the 270-meter long tunnel from concourse A to B on Frankfurt airport could have been a bore to walk through but they made an artwork of it: there’s indirect colored lighting along the walls, changing colors randomly, accompanied by interesting sound effects, all computer-controlled. The whole effect is quite interesting — and relaxing — but in addition the sounds make an interesting combination with the sound of the wheels of my little suitcase on the moving walkway.
At the gate we board on time but just when everyone is settled in their seats the captain comes on the speaker: there’s a problem with one of the engines, and it needs to be checked before we can depart; he apologizes he could not stop the boarding but suggests we’re better off waiting at the gate: the checkup may take 2 hours. When I go out I overhear a purser saying they found feathers on the engine: apparently they caught a bird…
After only 45 minutes we’re told we can board again but many people actually left the gate. The personnel took their boarding cards which the passengers can get back on presenting their passports. The girls at the gate make a game of it, reading out the names, picking up a stack of cards (stacks alphabetically sorted) and pulling up a card triumphantly. The result is that everyone is smiling and no one grumbles at the delay. Then when we’re back on the plane we sit and wait some more, and are told four passengers didn’t turn up: now their luggage has to be taken off the plane for security reasons. All in all we leave two hours late; a Chinese passenger next to us worries he’ll miss his connection in Beijing.
Meanwhile I feel I have a heavy cold coming up.
