June 25 – 27

The next morning, given the long lead time between waking up and eventually getting food on the plane, we opted to enjoy the hotel breakfast at 12-Euros apiece and were very glad to have done so as it came a close second to the one we had experienced at the Meininger in Bordeaux.  It was all one could ask for with a variety of meats, cheeses, cereals, pastries, bread, yoghurt and just about anything one could imagine.  We even opted to make a couple of small sandwiches to tide us over before our flight.  And as the day would play out, this would prove to be a wise decision. 

Travel to the airport is simple; we walked to Sendlinger Tor and took either the U1 or U2 to the Hauptbahnhof, where we could select from either the S1 or S8 S-Bahn, one or the other arriving at 10-minute intervals with the journey taking a little less than hour.   Our flight was scheduled to depart at 11:15 am and having come close in 2002 to missing our flight out of Munich, we allowed ourselves a full three hours to check in, get through passport control, and clear security. 

That time in 2002 was the classic example of a perfect storm of small incidents that blew up all our best intentions.  We had arrived with more than enough time to spare and so we killed an inordinate amount of it shopping to spend our extra Euros.  That mission accomplished we made our way to passport control and were shocked to find an incredibly long line backing up from the only two open windows.  As the minutes ticked away, we began to get worried about getting through in time. 

Fortunately, airport personnel recognized the problem, opened another station and we hustled down there and after a short wait, made it through and got to the German version of TSA to have our luggage inspected.  As Joanna’s bag passed through the x-ray machine, it got flagged and pulled out for a secondary inspection, which means just about everything comes out until they find the offending item.  And what was that dangerous implement with which we could have hijacked the plane?  It was the titanium spork that Joanna had overlooked when packing that morning (one got checked at the counter).  For those of you not familiar with this item, it is simply a combination fork and spoon.

They identified it as not being a threat and let us go, but to our dismay our having switched lines at passport control funneled us to the TSA line that didn’t serve our gate.  So, we had to go up to a walkway and head down to the one that did, which meant that we had to go through the inspection yet again.  This time we pulled out the spork to show them and they let us through without delay, but our flight was scheduled to depart at noon, and it was now 12:05.  We ran to the plane and fortunately, they’d held up the few minutes it took for us to get there and we boarded, the last to do so and extremely grateful that we had made it. 

Adding insult to injury, when we arrived at Dulles International in Washington DC, while clearing passport control when asked if during our trip we’d traveled or hiked through farm country, we innocently answered yes which led to another complication.  At this time the global community was dealing with Bovine spongiform encephalopathy, commonly known as Mad Cow Disease.  To ensure that the illness wasn’t brought into the U.S., they informed us they would need to clean our boots. 

We were ushered into a back room and waited for what seemed like forever, likely less than an hour, but just enough to have all our layover time elapse and as such, we ran from one end of the airport to our gate hoping we’d make it in time to board our flight to Los Angeles.  Imagine our relief when we checked one of the departure boards to see that our flight had been delayed enough for us to not have to worry, one close call adverted. 

Fast forward to this trip and it all went smoothly this time which gave us a about an hour to kill once we were on the flight side of the terminal.  We used some of that time to carefully select just the right number of items from a gift shop that used up the bulk of our cash Euros, leaving us with a small stash to bring home in anticipation of whenever we might next find ourselves back here.  Although it was not even noon yet, it somehow seemed appropriate to drink one more beer, which we did from cans we purchased with the last of those Euros. 

Our flight to the States went well, especially as we opted to upgrade our seats on all four legs to Delta’s Comfort Plus, a seat upgrade from the main cabin that offers up to 3 inches of additional legroom and dedicated overhead luggage space.  In the States this upgrade also comes with free drinks, a perk one might view alone worth the extra expenditure.  But, as a bonus, with Delta one can upgrade using miles, which we have used on any flights longer than an hour or two. 

Our carefree journey home came to a skidding halt when we landed in Detroit and turning on our phones were informed by an email that came not long after we’d boarded and turned off the phones, that our light to Los Angeles had been cancelled.  Normally this would be a cause for panic, envisioning standing in a long customer service line to get re-booked and at the worst, having to spend the night at the airport. 

Fortunately, Delta had rebooked us automatically on two separate flights, the first to Nashville and then on to home.  Having to clear customs in Detroit took up most of the layover time we had and so we had to hustle to catch the Nashville flight.  On both flights we were lucky to get to sit together, but the longer of the two on the way home meant we sat in the last row of the plane, directly across from the lavatory, whose delightful odor only increased as the flight wore on and to add insult to injury, those seats didn’t recline. 

Having counted on grabbing a quick bite to eat in Detroit in-between flights, the short transitions between our two connecting flights meant no food for us.  And at that time, American didn’t’ offer any purchase aboard food options so what saved us was those two sandwiches we had made during breakfast at the Premier so much earlier in the day.  Of course, we had an energy bar or two apiece (we always carry one) to augment our meager repast, providing us with enough fuel to get home without running out of gas. 

Through it all, we were just glad to arrive back in Los Angeles, if you can believe this, abut 20 minutes earlier than originally scheduled.  I’ll take that option any day of the week.  And as an additional bonus, all our luggage made it as well.  Finally, I followed up with Delta not long after returning to see if I could get a refund of the cost of the Comfort seating upgrade and that was accomplished simply and in an entirely reasonable time frame.  Kudos to Delta.

And just like that, regardless of the length of any trip, it must eventually end.  At a little under a month, it was a short one in comparison to our six months in 2014 and three months in 2017, more like those we took when we were working when a month off seemed like a fantasy.  Regardless of length, one almost always wants the trip to keep going and yet, when you’ve set the return date in your mind, it becomes easier to reconcile going home to familiar surroundings and the people you count on to fill your life with happiness. 

We’ll wrap up the trip with a summary in the next post.  Until then, keep on traveling. 

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