Bonjour!
My brother is taking a nap on the couch on this cloudy day in Paris. Pina, his miniature pinscher nine year-old dog, is sleeping by his side. The washing machine is whirling on the background. I’m taking this momentary quiet time to write a post. It’ll likely be a short one.
The flight from San Francisco to Paris hit a snag but with a good twist! For those of you just joining my newsletter, I wrote about a harrowing travel tale about our last winter trip to London in 2006.
Last month, we purchased the cheapest direct flight to Paris with the mentality to prepare for the worse case scenario. We chose the basic economy fare on Delta— no check-in baggage and our seat assignments will be given at the gate. Winter weather is unpredictable so we chose this avenue in lieu of cheaper fares with connecting flights to other European cities. We also had a budget to stick to and this was our best option at the time of booking.
On our day of departure, Delta sent an email notifying us that our flight was cancelled. Another one followed— an email confirmation from Air France. As I read through the message, my heart leapt. Arrival time in Paris was one hour later from our original schedule. Not bad. The clincher: our seats have already been assigned! I immediately closed my eyes and thanked God for His divine intervention and to the anonymous reservation agent who plucked our names out and changed our fate.
Our Lyft ride appeared within 10 minutes after Tina confirmed the reservation on her iPhone. Mohammed set his heavy foot on the pedal. He breezed through the Bay bridge toll plaza. He shot passed slow cars and barreled through Highway 101 using the fastest lane. We were at the International Terminal under 30 minutes. (Normally, it takes from 45 minutes to over an hour with traffic).
Tina felt dizzy and nauseated after the car ride. We sat on the concrete bench in front of the baggage carts for several minutes until she recovered.
Once we reached the Air France desk, I politely inquired about baggage check-in. Before we left, I found out on their website that their international fares allowed 1 checked baggage. Somehow, my gut told me we had a good chance of availing this option without paying an additional fee.
“Would it be possible for us to do this without an extra charge?” I asked.
The agent’s forehead creased then typed a few strokes on her keyboard.
“Please put one bag on the scale,” she instructed.
Tina placed one of our carry-on’s on the conveyor belt. The red-colored digital display read 13.8 kilos.
She paused then frowned.
“Well…the weight limit for a carry on is 12 kilos. We will waive the fees but this one-time only,” she emphasized. She didn’t smile or anything but proceeded finishing her task.
“Can you put the other bag on the scale?”
I abided.
13.8 kilos.
She nodded and then printed the tags.
“Thank you very much!” we replied in chorus. She managed a wry smile then called the next person in line.
Thank you, God! I was thrilled.
The flight was relatively smooth until we crossed the Atlantic Ocean. We encountered turbulence four times before reaching UK—nothing out of the ordinary but still nerve wracking. Landing was smooth and we taxied to the gate on time. The walk to baggage claim at CDG’s Terminal 2E seemed longer since my last visit last year. Perhaps the lack of sleep clouded my perception. Immigration lines were non-existent. We didn’t have to wait long at baggage claim either. Our bags appeared on the first batch dispersed on the conveyor belt. Next, we headed to the taxi stand. Tina fished out the paper with my brother’s address from her backpack and I handed it to the driver. I found this method to be an effective way to reduce miscommunication. He simply plugged it in to his mobile phone and handed the paper back to me. We were at GT’s apartment in 30 minutes.
So far, so good. We’re off to a nice start!
I’ll stop here. I’m still jet lagged and we’re still settling in. I promise to write a longer post and share more photographs next Sunday.
Stay tuned!
I can’t wait for photos from your trip! Hooray for the unexpected!