Barca, cha cha cha
Sat on the plane headed for Barca. The good ole French air traffic controllers are on strike again so the flight was delayed by around half an hour and is now being rerouted around 3 sides of a square – Belgium, Germany and Switzerland. A revised flight time of 2 hours 45 mins instead of 2 hours. One wonders whether French air traffic controllers have particularly stringent entrance requirements for bolshiness?
I have a lot of video editing to be getting on with pursuant to the coast to coast but a) the space on the table in front of me isn’t enough and b) I still need to download some of the vids and pics. I did a bit but am now contenting myself with listening to ma fave tunes, reading a bit of my Shami Chakrabarti book “On Liberty” and tapping in some thoughts. You will want to know that I am being a good boy and laying off the alcohol on this flight. Figured I’d enjoy myself more tonight then.
Had breakfast in the Crowne Plaza this morning. Place was full of grey suits. Sheep. People on the treadmill. They need to re-evaluate their life balance. I am wearing a particularly loud Hawaiian shirt, a non matching pair of shorts and some deck shoes, no socks. I think this is appropriate for the searing 19 or 20 degrees we will encounter in Espana.
This is my second trip to Barcelona this year. I like Barcelona. V civilized. I’m away for almost two weeks. Got back from Brussels yesterday and then off to the RIPE meeting in Copenhagen on Sunday. Got to be done.
Papa was a rollin’ stone. That’s what’s in me earphones at the moment 🙂 I like the idea of the occasional bit of rollin’. I like home as well though. I’ll have been away for most of May. Daft really considering May is probably the nicest month of the year.
I also have another tooth giving me gyp. Same as the one that was eventually extracted but on the other side. Hmm. I am in the aisle seat. 13D. Woman in the window seat has brought some healthy food options from Pret a Manger instead of relying on the crap they dish out on the plane. It’s an idea for the future. Don’t know quite how I got to 54 with all the international travel I have under my belt, without realising this. Classically I eat at the airport before boarding but not today. at 11.10 it was too soon after breakfast.
Airline travel is v boring. Not at all glamorous. It’s the one time when it is definitely not “better to travel hopefully than to arrive”. Much better to have got there and start doing what you are going there for in this case.
Moved on to “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door”. Bob Dylan. The dropping of the g’s in these song titles is my own decision. I don’t know if they do that really.
The curtains have been drawn between pleb class and business class. I’m in pleb class on this occasion. I sometimes pay for the upgrade. Depends on the flight and cost. Some people opt to sit in the row immediately behind business class. This is not my thing. I don’t want to be sat there staring at some curtains and perhaps occasionally catching a glimpse of the champagne being doled out up front. Innit?
Only 20 mins to land apaz. Note the wiv it lingo. At least it’s what the kids might say. Probs. Innit.
This flight is totally full and there are two additional flight attendants sat in the jump seats at the rear. An earlier flight was cancelled. Ah well. They have run out of supplies. It’s a by product of this not really being a demanding flight on supplies normally combined with being full and taking an additional 45 minutes. I’m ok. I had glass of sparking water and an orange juice. Copied the two sat next to me. Seemed like a good plan.
Just passing Marseille. Hannah and I were there in February last year. It was her first introduction to life int the internet fast lane. She has now got herself a graduate trainee job at Colt Telecom which I think is great. Initially doing internal communications and corporate social responsibility. A fun job to start her career. Hannah will do well. I am proud of her:) Note I am proud of all my kids. Anne and I are lucky parents.
Tapping my foot and nodding my head to the music. This is one of those brain dump posts. Whatever comes to mind without really giving it any real thought. I’m pretty relaxed. I think it’s a function of having finished the coast to coast. That was such a tough fortnight that gave you little time to think of much else other than putting one sore foot in front of another I have come out of it totally relaxed. First time I’ve ever experienced that feeling I think.
Feeling sorry for the woman sat diagonally opposite me. There is a small kid behind her banging a toy car on the back of her seat. Parent is trying to control the sitch but it is still going to be pretty annoying.
It’s minus 41 degrees outside. I wouldn’t last long in my gear. We are of course very high up. Right cabin crew prepare for landing…