Thursday, October 12, 2006
A stands for airport and absinth.

What to say about Heathrow that hasn't been said? No Paris this time, but there were still long lines, and confusion, and much waiting for assistance to the gate (over an HOUR!). They finally got it under control, but not before giving the excuse of a "shift change" which oddly was the EXACT same excuse given to me at LAX. Whatever.
I amused myself by counting the number of times officers with machine guns (soldiers?) walked by on patrol.
So by the time I was on my way to the gate, they figured out that we had to use some sort of lift to get onto the plane. And that particular lift was...in the El Al terminal. Goody.
The El Al terminal is an interesting place to be at a time like this. I noticed something was up with it when we passed many Hasidic Jews praying against one of the walls. Interesting.
The air conditioning was off. Their security was out as usual. They have really tight security and told us that this "wasn't our gate".
We knew. They told us the lift didn't work.
So away we went....another 15 gates down, which is a long walk (or a long way to wheel me)...to a different place where we could get to where we needed to be. Finally after what seemed like forever, we got on the airplane...
Only to be told we'd be delayed another hour due to mechanical problems. This didn't irritate me as much as getting the run around (wheel around?) at the airport did, seeing as I'd rather NOT have to make an emergency landing somewhere over the English Channel. No thanks. So, I brought my patience along with me on this trip and waited it out with everyone else, not that we had a choice.
I just sat there as we waited on the taxi way and played Sudoku. What can I say? It passes the time. I also stole some of my seatmates' newspapers. Did you know they have a UK version of "The Apprentice"? Me neither.
Uneventful flight to Prague, but we did get there about 2 hours late. My first non-English mistake in Prague airport? Almost walking into a broom closet after using the bathroom. Oh so THAT'S why there was the big "X" on the door. It doesn't stand for "exit". Hmm. Those Czechs...very tricky.
By the time we got to the hotel (after listening to our guide tell us in broken english that the Czechs consume more beer than anyone in Europe?), I didn't feel like going anywhere in particular. It was past 10 p.m. and I don't speak Czech, which at that point was so utterly bemusing to me (still is). I was tired. So, I sat in the hotel bar and ate pasta and drank a beer with my coworkers who were also on the trip. I know, so much for low-carb. Shockingly, even with all the beer I still weigh roughly 10 lbs less than when I left. I like this diet; Pasta, beer, and 5 miles of walking per day. Fun.
While eating pasta, my coworker had a bright blue-green liquid set down in front of him.
I stopped mid forkful and said, "What is THAT?"
He leveled his gaze at the glass and said in his most Bond-like tone, "Absinth."

Oh. This was going to get good.