It has been 5 years since I have taken a transcontinental flight. It has been since college since I took one on my own (I was about to write never but then remembered two trips to London and Amsterdam senior year).
Quite a bit has changed since then. I am a mom now. Flying across oceans and to different countries in this day and age is much harder than when I was single and fancy free. Being away from the kids for 8 days felt even worse.
I started to tear up when saying goodbye to the kids Monday morning before Jay whispered that the way I reacted would dictate the rest of the week for him and the kids. So, I bucked up and gave big hugs and kisses and smiles when I said goodbye. Then cried in the car.
Eventually, I started to get excited. Sweden. How cool is that??!??
Being a mom also has its advantages. I packed my carry-on well. Gum, snacks, cosmetic bag with toothbrush/toothpaste, and enough Kindle books to take me around the world in 80 days. I also decided to carry light and securely packed my laptop in my suit of armor suitcase. I had the iPad after all.
Funny line: while waiting for security in Nashville, the agent was telling everyone to remove their shoes, belts, put liquids and computers in tray, make sure to take out any cell phones, guns, and bombs. I looked at him and asked if he just said stuff like that to see if people were listening. He did. They don’t. I was the only one in a line of 30 that even looked at him funny.
At the airport in DC, I chatted with a woman while waiting in line. We talked about the upcoming flight, her trip to Nice and my trip to Sweden. She then asked, completely unprompted, “Is this your first trip without the kids?” Really??? Am I that obvious?
I had three flights total, Nashville to Dulles, Dulles to Zurich, Zurich to Sweden. Unfortunately, my last leg was on an tiny little airline called City Airlines, and Nashville could not even print me my tickets. She could print me out 3 baggage check notices. Remember that for later. But for now, I know that I am being sent to a plane which does not even have a system to connect to and is called “City Airlines”…is it a bus? I once took a plane named after a beer (Kingfisher in India) so I think I can handle it.
Amazingly enough, all three flights were on time leaving and arriving. My luggage in Zurich was not. Nor was it in Sweden. Oh well.
I was able to sleep on the flight as well as watch two movies. The bottle of wine helped with both. I did not read as much as I thought, so I have a very in depth library waiting for me when I get back.
We arrived in Zurich and I actually had to physically walk to my next plane, so I truly consider that I have been to Switzerland. The Zurich airport seemed very cool. Very high end shops and I quickly passed a Spiderman Swatch watch which I really wanted to buy for Thane but the luggage fiasco and long walk prevented that from happening.
I had aisle seats everywhere except the last leg which actually gave me some leg room. I did not get to take as many flight pics as Jay would like but here is a sampling.
His prompting kept me looking out the window long after we took off from Zurich and were in the clouds. And there, I saw the Alps. Wow. It was breathtaking.
Everyone told me that when I arrived in Sweden, I would not get a stamp in my passport. I assured them I would. I may not have had bags, but I did have the desire to get a stamp. So I walked up to Customs Control, knocked on the window, and pled my case. They laughed. And they stamped. Woo Hoo.
