The flight from Munich to Atlanta was now oversold and looking ugly. This was a friday night and I had to be to work at 230pm on Sunday. So I started to scramble.. Looking at my back up cities. Stuttgart was over sold, Vienna-oversold, Venice-oversold, Frankfurt (with its 4 flights)-oversold. So I looked futher. Berlin..! Available...but the flight was at noon the next day!!
I pulled up the S-Bahn sight and found that i could get to Berlin by 8am if i caught the train from Landshut at 1115! What time did i tell you it was when I got home? Ya no time like the immediate present to pack your bag, give your kisses and RUN out the door. I totally forgot my toothbrush. It didnt matter.. I had 15mins to get to the trainstation, buy a ticket and get on the train.
Andrew and Dad took me in the car. We got to the station with 8 minutes to spare.
Andrew and I ran to the ticket machine (in german) and worked to find out how the crap to buy a ticket! 112 Euros later I had a ticket in my hand to take me all the way to Berlin and a bus transfer to the airport. We ran to the platform as the train pulled into the station.
Looking at my ticket I had to change trains in Regensburg. Where the crap was that!! Andrew tried to give me as many instructions as he could think of and even talked to the train guy who boarded with us. He really is a great brother!!
And i was off.. at 1115pm on my 9 hour train ride to Berlin! (vomits just at the memory)
Regensburg it turns out wasnt too far down the tracks I was there by 1245pm. My next train to Berlin was to be leaving at 105am. This was the overnighter to Berlin. I had an assigned seat and everything. I was thinkin.. Nah this isnt too bad.. I can do this.
The train to Berlin was 5 mins late but I caught on to that on the sign. I boarded and went to look for my seat. Car 256 both whatever seat blah blah.. Turns out booth whatever was the smoking car and I was banished there for the next 8 hours!! I did check the rest of the train and all the other booths were full. I was punished. To sit in the smoke with those who just passed by to light up.. (only 5 cigarettes were smoked and I endured every one..)
Did I fail to mention the train wasnt non stop? Oh no.. we stopped about every 45 mins.. I did set my phone alarm so i wouldnt miss gettin up and getting off the train but then when people come in and smoke.. ya.. Not so much sleep was had.. I think I did get in about 2.5 hrs. maybe 3 if I was lucky.
So as the sun came up over now Northern Germany at 5am!! I tried to enjoy the sights. All the towns seemed to blend together and look the same. I wanted to see a castle or something.. But I wasnt to be so lucky.
I found on the floor a train schedule. It showed our slow progression to Berlin. I tried to doze at this point but it was fruitless..
About 715 I saw an airport tower.. I thought could I be passing right by the airport? So I scrambled to get ready to get off. The train station was named berlin Schoenfield Flugenhauf (flugenhauf meaning airport). I watched my train leave then went to look at how to get to this airport.
At this point you should know that the Name of the Airport I needed was in fact the Berlin Tegel Airport (the international one) This was something that hit me like a ton of bricks as i looked at the map at the station and saw 3 airports in the vicinity of Berlin and I was at the WRONG ONE!!
Have you ever had that sinking feeling of being in the wrong place and not knowing how to fix it? Here I was in a Foreign country trying to converse in a language that I didnt speak. BUT I persevered. I found the guy who worked the station and spoke a few random words in German. He understood what I tried (poorly) to say, 'How the crap do you get to the REAL Berlin Airport?'
He pointed to a train that he said would be leaving in five minutes and would take me to the Haupbahnhoft (main train station) I raced to the quai and waited the departure.
At this point I was fairly comfortable with the way things on the trains worked and saw that it was only 11 stops to get to where I needed to be. Good thing it was 730 in the morning and my flight wasnt until 12 noon. (phew)
I arrived at the HBF (im so german I know) and found my way to the bus stops. It was threatning rain but fortunately the bus arrived just as the rain started.
Another 9 stops on the bus and I was at the Berlin Tegel Airport. FINALLY!!!
I checked in and got a Business Class seat. Praise St Christopher (isnt he the patron saint of travelers?) JFK was a mess and I listed on 5 flights before I got on one to LAS. I missed the Delta flight by 15 mins and had to buy a standby ticket on USAirways to get home at 3am.
Now with all this hubbub im thinking of going back for the day.. Am I crazy?
1 comment:
Oh... so it's your toothbrush!
Also, you can not end your blog at this point. I know you are home safe, but I am dying to hear the remainder of the tale. Do not keep me in suspense!
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