Planes, Trains, and Automobiles
Today’s the day! The goodbye BBQ is history, my extended family have all returned to their homes, and all last-minute errands are checked off. Let the adventure begin!
Last night, we had one final family dinner before my parents helped me tackle the remainder of my packing. Everything fit in my suitcase easily… but weighed 19 pounds over the limit. Cue a few hours of suitcase Tetris and some tough decisions. Turns out, I’m not cut out for the capsule wardrobe life. Who knew?
A few hours and one pair of sacrificed shoes later, we got everything down to the required weight. Mom and I celebrated our victory with an episode of Friends before heading to bed.
Bright and early this morning, I rose to double-check my packing. Mom and I went to Dunn Bros in New Richmond for one last iced latte and she imparted some final life advice: “dance through the tears, dance through the cheers, and dance through the years!” Leave it to her to make up life advice that rhymes! After that, we went back home and my dad helped me load everything into the car.
After some tearful goodbyes at the airport, Mom swooped in for one last save. She sweet-talked the Air Canada agent into letting me transfer some items from my overstuffed backpack to my checked bag. My shoulders thanked her profusely.
TSA, thank goodness, didn’t bat an eye at my carry-on suitcase. Good thing too, because if I had to unzip that bad boy, it was never closing again. However, they did take issue with Irwin, my stuffed koala from Carlos. Apparently, the TSA thought Irwin might be moonlighting as a drug mule. After a brief interrogation (a swab test), Irwin was cleared of all charges. Phew!
Soon, I was boarding my flight to Montreal. My first official time in Canada! (We won’t mention those Rainy Lake boat trips that may or may not have strayed close to the border. wink wink)
The first leg of my journey was surprisingly luxe. Bumped up to business class, I lounged in comfort, savoring a delicious meal with white wine. I even managed to finish my summer read, “The Strain.” Maybe not the best in-flight read as the book starts with airplane passengers all being bitten by an ancient vampire, but hey, what are the odds of that happening twice?
Landing in Montreal was smooth sailing… until it wasn’t. We ended up stuck on the “apron” ( airport lingo for “concrete paved section where planes and vehicles hang out”). Turns out, the airport was on Red Alert. Sounds dramatic, right? Nope, just means lightning struck within 5 miles. But it was enough to ground all flights and send my tight 55-minute layover into a tailspin.
Fifteen nail-biting minutes later, the flight attendant dropped the bomb: “The captain doesn’t think you’ll make your flight.” Yikes!
Just as we were exploring alternate routes (unexpected detour to London?), the red alert lifted. I channeled my inner track athlete, sprinting through the airport like I was going for Olympic gold. Up stairs (seriously, Montreal?), down endless hallways, through customs – I was unstoppable!
Arriving at my gate, flushed and panting, the gate agent took one look at me and said, “Take a breath, the plane is still here!” I could have kissed him. Or cried. Or both.
On the plane, I settled next to a couple from Düsseldorf who bluntly informed me they’d hoped I wouldn’t make it. Ah, Northern European charm at its finest!
Fast forward to Copenhagen the next morning. I had an hour to make my train, and the customs line was longggggg. Thankfully it moved quickly and the agent was thrilled to inspect all my meticulously prepared documents. “I normally wouldn’t even ask for it, but since you have your documents, I’m happy to look through them!” Hey, at least someone appreciates my over-preparedness.
The train ride to Aarhus was a blur of Copenhagen views and jet-lagged naps. I’d hoped to stay awake through Odense (birthplace of Hans Christian Andersen and home of my friend Henrietta), but my eyelids had other plans.
Arriving in Aarhus, I embarked on the final leg of my journey – a light rail ride followed by a herculean effort to lug my bags up the hill to the University. As I stood in line to pick up my key, I was a lovely combination of sweaty, tired, and hangry. But the universe decided to throw me a bone – just as I was considering calling a taxi, one magically appeared in front of me.
A short ride later, and voila! I had arrived at my new home. The journey was over, the adventure was just beginning. Denmark, here I come!
2 responses to “In This Post I… Travel to Canada (legally) and Denmark”
What a nightmare to get a login… sheesh… and I’m sure that it will have forgotten me by next time. Anyway… your travel day was ever so familiar to me. Glad you are settled in and I’ll keep checking in to see how you are doing.
Proud of my world traveler! Stay safe!