Monday 12 January 2009

Airport

I don't think I've mentioned it much on this blog, but since Jan 1st we've been enjoying the pleasure of our son's company, his rapier wit (got it from his dad, who has none left), and learned quite a bit about Locke and Hobbs. He's been writing an essay for his Uni course, which they wanted to be handed in today. And it would have been, if they lived in the real world and accepted submissions by email, or kept the office open until midnight. It turned out not to be possible for him to get the damn thing to them, because it has to be accompanied by a signed declaration that it has not been plagiarised, and a digital version on a CD (digital version via email? No). It's all a bit unhelpful of them, considering that the next term doesn't officially start until 19th Jan. And they dropped a bombshell on him by not bothering to tell him he has an exam on the 14th. He only found out about this by accident. His original return flight had been booked for that day, so I then had to pay EasyJet an extra 24 Euros for the higher fare that applies to today, plus a fine (I can think of no other word) of 30 Euros for the privilege of having their computer change the booking.

Anyway, he is one of a very small number of people who can say 'I went to Madrid and built a snowman' - perhaps a t-shirt would be in order.

I took him to the airport this afternoon. We got there five minutes before the check-in was due to open, and joined a queue of maybe twenty people. Of course, we had chosen the wrong queue. The other seven lines were moving fairly smartly, while ours was stalled by a tall guy in a very silly hat. We speculated that he was reshaping the metal hand baggage size-testing basket so that it would accommodate his skis and/or double bass. Whatever it was, he was at the counter for about fifteen minutes.

Finally, he was gone, and the queue moved. The lady in front of us had been puffing and panting and moaning about the slowness of the process. When it came to her turn, she argued for ten minutes with the checker-inner, presumably because her two very heavy-looking items of hold baggage were going to cost about a gazillion Euros in excess baggage charges.

And, can somebody explain to me why people have their cases wrapped in cling-film? We think it may have something to do with preventing the escape of live chickens. Ideas, anyone?

4 comments:

Troy said...

It could have been worse, he could have had to fly on the day that a mere 5cms of the white stuff shut Barajas down.

I imagine the complaining lady would have upped the tone a notch had it been that day?

Keef said...

I was absolutely astonished that they closed the airport because of the snow. Twunts.

Grumpy Goat said...

I thought it was 'Calvin and Hobbes'.

Seabee said...

And, can somebody explain to me why people have their cases wrapped in cling-film?
It's to do with the recession and being careful with expenditure. They unwrap it carefully when they get home and so have enough free cling-film to last them all year.