Coming home

This trip is truly one of planes, trains, and automobiles. I started out Wednesday afternoon (the 12th) in a flurry. I came home from a relaxing day of work and had about 3 hours before I had to leave for Paris. I tried to take it easy and finish everything before leaving (cleaning the kitchen, checking in for my flight, double (and triple) checking the weight of my suitcases, etc).

Checking in didn't go so smoothly -- at first the computer refused to recognize that I had, indeed, filled in all the mandatory fields and kept saying there was an error. D'accord... try all over again and hop! it worked. Save PDF for printing. Oh no... it says I'm checked in for one leg of my trip, but not the other. Call support. « Oh no, madame » (there's that word again...) « it will be fine. You will get both your boarding passes at Charles de Gaulle when you drop off your checked luggage ». Okay, cool. I have already verified with the hostel that I can print there sans problème (with no problem). One less thing to do at home.

Make a quick dinner, clean out the fridge. Trash ready to be taken out. Make two sandwiches for the train ride. Add them to my  « miam-miam, glu-glu » (Literally: "Yum-yum, glug-glug"; a bag for snacks). Clean dishes -- check. Email one last thing. Close computer. Add to carry on. Doesn't fit. Zut! Punaise!

Check time. 5:05. Bus leaves in 11 minutes. Double zut. Hurriedly unpack & repack bag. Throw on coat and scarf. Backpack on shoulders. Purse overtop. Grab keys, trash, suitcase. Turn of lights. Pray stove is off. (I hope I turned my stove off...) Out the door. Check time. 5:12. Punaise.

No time to check the mail. All but sprint to the bus. Just in time.

(Zut. Tiny bus. Lots of passengers. Giant suitcase. Feel horrible.)

Make it to the train station. Train is late. Eat apples from Miam-miam, glu-glu. Train arrives. Plenty of space for my suitcase & backpack. Ouais!

Try and fail to sleep. Settle for staring alternately between blackness outside and other passengers. 4.5 hours pass.

 Get taxi. Get to hostel. Check in. No elevator. Zut. They let me leave my giant suitcase downstairs. Awesome. Rearrange backpack in the dark while roommate sleeps. Feel bad. Try to sleep. Stare at ceiling for 2 hours.

Somehow wake up to alarm at 5am. (When did I fall asleep?) Put pants on, gather belongings, head downstairs.

« You must print this document before your arrival at the airport. »

Hostel: « We're out of paper. Can't print. » Punaise. Load PDF on phone. Attempt to not freak out.

Leave for Notre Dame. Early morning coffee and catch up with friend.

 Whoops. Talked too long. Head to RER. Panic and get on wrong train. Headed to CDG but on the « Takes LongeRER ». Problem with the train. Get off. Stand in rain. Get on next train. (Check time. Check time. Check time.)

Train crawls. (Problem with tracks?) Arrive at CDG. 9:20. Check in deadline at 9:45. Putain.

Attempt to escape RER platform. Ticket not working? « Non lisible » Putain putain putain. No one to help.

Trick machine. Check terminal. 2E. On the other side of the world. Sprint down hallway. Check in machine. ( « No problem. Now go wait in line ») Nice people let me go ahead. (Thank you nice people!!!) Foot tapping. Finger drumming.

Can't print Montréal boarding pass. Have to repeat process in Canada. (Customs. Check in. Security.)

Run to customs. Don't even check my visa. « Bonjour! » « Au revoir! » Have to take train to boarding gate. Train about to leave. Run like ugly duckling. (Trying not to fall on slippery floor.) Quack quack. Hop on train. Toe tapping. Finger drumming.

Explode from door at L stop. Security. Stuck behind unprepared people. (Foot tapping. Check time. 9:50. Boarding in 10 minutes.) Forget to take off shoes. Go through again. Grab coat. Bag falls. (Thud. Poor computer...) Bag accidentally presses button. Belt stops. ( « Did I do that?? » Apologize profusely.) Grab stuff. Triple check gate. Fast walk.

There's the gate. Need water. Just enough time to go to Relay. (American man: « Is this free? » Uses credit card for 3€ purchase.) Hurry hurry stand in line. Board plane. Take off.

Watch movies for 7.5 hours. Food is good. Plane lands.

Collect luggage. Canadian customs. ( « What are you doing in Canada? » «Um... connecting flight...? » ) Need to check in. Air France counter. Go to machine. Enter passport. Flights found: Detroit - Paris; Montreal - Calgary. Neither right. Enter flight number. No go. Enter ticket number. Nothing. Cannot find. Go to the ticket counter.

Standing in line. No one working ticket counter. World's longest team meeting. Finally make it to counter. Canada - US is not an international flight. (News to me.) Special counter. Lead to the right station. Ticket machine. Stick in passport. No flights found. Not possible. Enter ticket number. Flight found. Good.

Check luggage. Go through US customs. ( « Why are you coming to the US? » « I'm visiting family. » « Do you work in Canada or something?? » « No... France. » « Oh, okay... »)

Security again. (Don't hit the big red button this time.) Head to gate. Need food. Pay for overpriced chicken wrap. Eat.

Flight delayed. Waiting. Waiting. Waiting. Plane pulls in. Finally boarding. 2.5 hours pass. Land in Detroit.

Gate on other side of the world from baggage claim. Hurry hurry hurry. Practically run. Door slides open into lobby. There's my mom.

Relief. Happiness. Ugly duckling run. Big hugs. Wait for luggage. Finally home.

Now I know why I prefer the train.