the first leg...
Posted by ka. Mon, 25 Sep 2006 22:05:00 GMT
Everything fell into place. Or, more truthfully, everything just seemed to work in our favour.
To begin: RobertQs, as always, was the perfect solution. While our driver refused to drive in a manner befitting our situation (didn’t he know we were going to Paris?!) he was extremely polite and courteous, directing his preamble and our itinerary directly to Jill and I - might seem a conceit to say, yet isn’t that the vice of all first-person narratives? that the plot revolve around the protagonist?
We arrived at the Toronto airport the planned 4hrs early. Only to discover that our flight desk wouldn’t be manned until “3hrs prior to departure”. No worries: we were in an airport, mecca for the people-watchers.
Grabbed a bite to eat: the usual questions: Where are you going? Paris. Have you been before? no. Are you going with a tour group? no. Good. I think that is the better way to go. That way, you aren’t only seeing the things they want you to see. thud
Done, we made our way back to the check-in counter. This time, there is a queue of about 3 different parties waiting to be processed. Pretty, urban attendant comes up and asks if we were going to Paris. When we told her we were indeed, she has us follow her, and opens a new counter to check us in. No lines for Jill and ka, plus we had wonderful company because she decides we would be a perfect time to take her break. the image of her dragging on her borrowed cigarette will probably be the first of many I wish I had caught on film. And, yes, I made sure to pick her line when we went to board our plane.
The flight? our friend’s magic kept working. Jill had the window, I the accompanying seat in the aisle to stretch out my legs. While the movies shouldn’t be considered entertainment (read as: ka. got to page 93 in her book) the flight itself was an amusement ride: 20 min of turbulence in the air is better than any rollercoaster!
Took us awhile to locate my rucksack: just long enough to worry, long enough to feel lucky for finding it…
