Home, May 15, Reflections on the Trip

We had a wakeup call at 5 a.m. for our 10:25 flight. But, after Mark showered, we found that our flight had been delayed until 12:45. Then, Barbara was able to get the boarding passes easily, not even needing the password. Clearly there had been a glitch the night before.

So we all puttered around clearing and cleaning up the apartment. We hailed an Uber and got to Charles De Gaulle without difficulty. But, the airport was a mess. The security took a LONG time and my bag was pulled - again.  The process included putting your stuff into boxes on a conveyor belt, but people kept grabbing the boxes and getting in front of us. Mark got quite annoyed. Anyhow, then people kept insisting on their bags being inspected before mine as they had multiple bags, so it was quite a wait. It was amazing how many people had large bottles of liquids in their bags despite all the directions over the past years about what cannot be carried in the cabin. They found nothing in my bag, but I waited for 20 extra minutes.

There were many layers of security - even 3 in the boarding area. Mark went and got a baguette sandwich and our last croissants as we sat there. And, despite us having uploaded our covid tests to the site, they insisted on seeing the actual tests. By some miracle, Barbara found them easily on her phone. Then, the plane was delayed some more.

We were required us to get on busses to get to the plane, although there was zero communication to that effect. Everyone pushed and shoved to get on. There was no attempt to board by zones. But, we eventually got on the plane and had excellent seats at the front of a cabin in the 330 Air Bus, a very nice plane. And, we had extra leg room which was terrific. The flight was smooth and the service very good. 

JuliAnn graciously picked us up at the airport and brought us back to Roslindale where we had pizza on their newly-rebuilt back deck. The weather is terrific with lilacs in bloom.

REFLECTIONS

Next time - pack for warmth and chill. Both of us lacked summery shirts. 

Two weeks is too short, but better than not going at all.

COVID test was a bit stressful.

It was wise to go to a familiar and to a new place.

Being centrally located in a city is also wise - it saves on public transport etc.

Getting extra leg room on the flights was well worth it.