Inauspicious beginning

 The trip began with a significant delay. We called our pseudo-Uber driver, Ted (thank you, Ted!), to ask for an hour and a half delay in pick up. They say get to the airport for an international flight 3 hours before departure; we got there 2 hours early, walked through security in no time at all, and settled in to wait. As you can see, there was no crowd. 

The flight to Charlotte had about 17.5 people. I was happily prepared with Pringles, Jelly Bellies, and banana Laffy Taffy. Vicki had a supply of peanut M&Ms and Muddy Buddies. 

Charlotte was a different matter. The airport was busy, and the flight to London was full. We settled in to the cattle hold for the flight to London Heathrow with a toddler crying a full volume several rows back. That continued on and off for much of the flight. Vicki felt sorry for the child; I felt sorry for everyone around that child. 

The flight was ok. It included dinner and breakfast - they were not ok. Yuck. Neither of us sleeps particularly well (almost not at all) on planes. So we were glad to get to Heathrow. 

That is not to say I am unimpressed with flying. Even though I understand a little about lift and such, flying is still magic. We were flying at 37,000 feet, going 530 mph, and the temp outside was -83 degrees F. I can’t begin to estimate the weight of a fully loaded plane or the kind or power it takes to leave the ground. As I said, it’s magic to me. 

Planning ahead, we had booked a day room at a hotel attached to the airport. So we settled in for a long winter’s nap. Vicki got one, but I couldn’t sleep and so showered and went down to the pub for a proper pint. 

All cleaned up, we went back into the airport for dinner and to get ready for the flight to Prague. That flight was also full. The interesting part was that I was in a middle seat. The young woman who sat with us was from Prague/Moscow/Latvia and was scared of flying, although her job requires her to fly about 14 times a year. The first thing she did was apologize and ask if she could hold on to me for takeoff. So I was in the middle, holding hands with Vicki and this woman. During the flight, whenever there was turbulence, she grabbed my arm again. And when the crew announced that Prague was fogged in and the pilots would be making a purely instrumental landing, she was not happy. But we made it.

Off to bed, looking forward to a great day tomorrow!

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Hey - It's Vicki. I just want to say that Heathrow is a color wheel of humans, and it was lovely to see. Western North Carolina is so white that it's easy to forget what it's like to walk among other DNA samples. I really enjoyed it.