YCGL - April 2, 2025 - I'm on my Way! Kinda.....

The Trepid Traveler!

It’s 9:15 AM on April 2nd and it’s already been a fateful day.  Well, it really started last night.  

I have been searching and researching this trip for months, really since October.  I’ve looked up places to go and cities/towns that I want to visit for various reasons.  When I’d find an interesting site or sight, I’d print it out and throw it in my file (which is just a stack of paper sitting on top of one of the cardboard boxes full of other stuff in my office and close enough to my desk that most of what I toss to the pile doesn’t end up on the floor).  That included walking tours, tickets to events and trains, guides, tours that I wouldn’t take but listed good things to know, numerous important emails from Viking (90% of which was repetitious), etc.  

I did my first sorting in February, culling what I could and ended up with about a stack of paper about 3/8” thick in a 3-ring binder.  I started my final sorting and putting in the binder last Friday.  I really got serious about it last night about 10:00.  When I got to the train tickets that I had reserved in November, I decided I would check to make sure they were all right. 

Good thing I checked.  Four of my eight tickets had changed.  Finally, at 1:30 this morning, I either got them straightened out, or had notes of alternatives that I’ll have to check when I get to Berlin.  I finally got the notebook done and final bag packing at 4:30, not an unusual time for me, but later than I planned.  My suitcase weighed right at 40 lbs.  

I woke up at 6:40 this morning, did my morning routine, and got the final, Final things packed. The bag weighed 45, still well under the 51 lb limit that British Air allowed.  I got the bag down my first flight of stairs to the living room, stood it up and one of the front roller wheels folded and the bag fell over.  

This was at 8:15 and Joe was picking me up at 8:40 to take me to Laramie Intergalactic Airport (with two flights in and out a day).  (I’ll talk about my feelings about 4-wheeled bags later.).  This is a large 29” bag that just fits the maximum 62” airline requirement.  

I had thought about using a smaller bag but I didn’t think I’d make it.  However, I had Sally’s 26 incher sitting out.  I decided to run upstairs and grab it. I looked at the two bags for a second and decided to try it.  Starting at 8:20, I repacked all but two shirts into the smaller bag and was done when Joe rang the doorbell at 8:40.  (He’s good at timing things like that.  He may have sat in his car if he got there early.  

The 15 minute drive went well and Joe took a picture of me at the start of the trip.  I wheeled the bag up to the check-in line, got my boarding pass up on my phone and reached for my wallet….and reached again!  I didn’t feel it.  With the excitement with the suitcase 20 minutes earlier, I panicked very quickly and called Joe.  Just as he answered, I felt it deep in my pocket.  I’m wearing a pair of new slacks which has really deep pockets.  Good for traveling and I’ll get used to it.  

Both of those took place within an hour.  What a great way to start a five week trip!   

Instant update.  As of noon, I'm sitting in front ot the British Airways counter waiting to check in to my 6:30 flight.  Nothing like a 7 hour layover.  

More to come....I hope!

It’s now 12:59 AM, we’ve been in the plane for almost seven hours and we’ve got 1:59 hours to go till London.  The seven hour layover went as well as any “sitting in detention” punishment went.  The bright spot was - because I changed carriers in Denver (from United to British Airlines), I had to leave the controlled area and get my bag.  I then had to wait for BA’s counter to open.  The trouble was that the seats in the main terminal are not made to be especially comfortable.   So, staring at the empty counter from 11:40 waiting for nothing got old.  Finally about 1:30, a sign flashed on that said the counter would open at 15:30, two hours later.   At least I knew I could go get something to eat. 

But they expect you to wait out at the gate, not in the terminal.  There are only two eateries, a brew pub type place and Subway.  They also list a chocolatier as a restaurant, no thank you.  So I had a Subway.  Which wasn’t bad and they had Gatorade to drink.  That’s a big plus, not because I like Gatorade that much, but because they make the best water bottles. They are stiff and don’t crinkle loudly like most bottled water and there a good size I can keep in my front pocket.  In my rush repacking this morning,I didn’t get the two bottles I normally pack.   So, score.

I went back to the BA counter when they opened up at 2:30, not 3:30!  I checked my bag in and then immediately went through the regular interrogation line (BA didn’t recognize my TSA-Pre) and got to the A Concourse.  Which was great BECAUSE the seats are so much better, and I sat next the an electric outlet so I could recharge my phone.  Life is good, right?

Except, I realized while on the shuttle train that I didn’t have my water bottle.  It wasn’t in the bin after it came through the X-ray.  The bottle was empty, I poured the water out before I got in the line, so I guess someone saw the bottle and flipped it out of the bin.  Luckily, I found one kiosk in the A concourse that had Gatorade, so I have my bottle. 

Dinner was served at 8:00.  It was Chicken Something.  I never caught its name, but that was ok since there was so little of it.    However, it was Hot!, like burning my fingers taking the aluminum foil off.  Which as I finally did, the plane hit some turbulence, like the plane was juking and jiving!   Seriously.  There were some painful cries in the rows ahead of me.  The stewards worked at cleaning people up while they were bouncing up and down. And it lasted intermittently for over 30 minutes!

It was maybe the second worst turbulence I’ve been in since I was 14-15 years old.  We were flying from Dallas to Colorado Springs one Christmas to go skiing and we were in an old DC-3, probably the last time I rode in one.  We hit turbulence about Colorado state line and it lasted until we hit Peterson field in the Springs.  Even dad was impressed with that one.  By that time, he had flown a quarter of a million miles.

My only complaint is that I couldn’t sleep. After two hours the night before, I maybe got two more hours on this flight.  I think I remember the  flight to Prague is five hours.  Maybe then.  But that’s tomorrow.   

Signing off at 2:10 AM Mountain time, and 8:10 AM Greenwich time, as the Brit’s say, the Real time.    Good night or good morning, take your pick.