Poland: The journey begins

Well, I finally made it to Poland, in one piece. I wouldn't say that it was necessarily a smooth trip, but they got me there on-time in the end so a few things had to go right…

The Austin flight wound up taking off 30 minutes after it was supposed to have landed. However, by the time I reached Chicago, our other flight had been delayed as well, so after a sprint to the gate, I made it on the flight with about 30 seconds to spare.

Or so I thought.

The plane sat at the gate for about an hour more, due to an issue with the “flushing mechanism on the toilets” which I was very glad they were keen on fixing.

Or so I thought.

As it turns out, they decided not to fix it, and instead decided to rely on physics to do the flushing for us. Apparently above 15,000 feet, the air pressure differential is enough to provide a good, solid flush. Lesson learned.

We wound up getting to Heathrow about an hour late and had to take the bus to switch terminals. At this point, give the dodgy history of British Airways and their renowned baggage department, I wasn't exactly confident that my baggage was going to make the trip. And then I saw the security line, and I wasn't confident that I would be making the trip.

Or so I thought.

The first line I waited in was basically a batch processing queue for an escalator to nowhere. 20 minutes of waiting. The next line I waited in was a zigzag of about 10 turns that led to a mosh pit. Literally. About 8 random lines all fed into one holding pin, which seemed to lead exactly nowhere.

Or so I thought.

At the end of the second line, after several groups were let through to the next waiting area, I made a break for it and busted past a group of tourists into the next area. The “real” security area. And waited some more…Luckily I didn't have to get patted down, but bunches of other folks did. After the whole security check, about an hour and a half had past, and I wound up with about 20 minutes to spare before the next plane left.

Whew. I have to say that I was a bit impressed. All told, there were about 7 hours of delays, and yet I still made it to Poland on time. And with my luggage. Sweetness.
More on the rest of the trip later. Internet access/availability is a bit spotty, so I may be posting occasionally as I can.

Jet setting

Sorry for the delay in posting, my friends. I hate to deprive you of my eloquence...

Things are a bit crazy, but what's new. I'm heading off to Poland tomorrow, which should be interesting. Glamorous, I know. I'll even get to wear a hard hat and steel-toed shoes too!

To be honest, I'm a little nervous. I've never been to this part of the world before, and even though I'll be with co-workers, it'll still feel a bit lonely not having friends and family nearby. There's a 7 hour difference, which might also make staying in touch a bit of a challenge.

Oh, and did I mention the weather? Folks there are advising that we bring scarves, hats and jackets. It's already getting into the 40s at night, and coupled with the rain, it just sounds like an Eastern European paradise ;)

Seriously. I have a blanket in my cubicle and it's 90 degrees outside. Don't be surprised if I look like a block of ice when I return. Wish me luck!