Yes, Eastern Europe sure does sound mysterious. Especially to a middle aged lady like Rosie from a small rural, town in Taranaki, New Zealand.
Its the whole cold war, iron curtain, ex communist, hidden from the world intrigue of it….and geez, it was hard to get to from Montenegro (considering Rosie is already on the doorstep). This is the map at Podgorica airport in Montenegro….squint….and you can see the tiny blue dot that is Montenegro….Rosie sure is a long way from home.
This trip Rosie and The Operator are travelling around the Czech Republic and Poland, its December, and winter, which equals Christmas Markets and hopefully snow. Rosie and The Operator are looking forward to experiencing something completely new in places they have never visited before.
Rosie has booked an apartment in the Old Town of Prague, our journeys starting point. She is meeting The Operator there who was flying in from New Zealand. Our rendezvous’ in distant countries coming from different directions of the world have not exactly been smooth sailing to date. This trip was no exception. Right now, Rosie is stuck in Istanbul. In the middle of a packed departures hall having missed her flight to Prague.
It was a total jack up! My flight to Prague seemed so straight forward when Rosie clicked ‘Buy Now’ from her computer in Kotor, Montenegro. There are no direct flights from this tiny country so Rosie was travelling via Istanbul and felt good about the one with an hour transfer in Turkey. Even directionally challenged Rosie felt she could make her connecting flight with time to spare and no panic, being on her own and all.
Rosie however was doomed to fail, by the internet. Rosie didn’t know about the two hour time difference in Istanbul. Turkey is in Europe right? Nor, it seemed did the internet know this and I was sold a linked ticket I was never going to be able to use, from Turkish Airlines themselves!
Rosie’s flight to Prague had left before she even touched down in Istanbul!
Mandatory Credit: Photo by David Pearson/Rex / Rex USA
Rosie trekked kilometer after kilometer of airport terminal. Rosie had ‘That Look’ on her face which worked well in automatically parting the sea of people. Peeling off layer after layer of clothing as she trudged in the stifling terminal heat….Rosie was all prepared for the sub zero temperatures of Prague after all.
Sweating, frizzy and totally pissed off, Rosie got her ticket exchanged by jumping the mile long hap hazard queue of other passengers in the same boat (it seemed to be a common theme of Turkish Airways, issuing dodgy tickets) not my finest hour Rosie admits, but no one called me out, thanks to ‘The Look’.
Rosie then trekked back kilometer after kilometer through the terminal to a bar where I could access the Free Airport WIFI and get a cold brew before my flight to Prague in the next two hours.
OK, Rosie is a little technologically retarded. Wait a minute, The Operator disagrees on this soft analogy….so Rosie will revise this statement. Rosie IS technologically brain dead, but come on, how hard is it to connect to Free WIFI! It says Free Airport WIFI for gods sake….why cant I connect! No chance apparently without a Turkish telephone number added to the log in! ARE YOU SERIOUS!!!!! 50% of the people in this airport are not Turks! Rosie’s dodgy Montenegro SIM was not roaming either to place a call. The veil of secrecy in that country was still working perfectly and the chip seemed to have self destructed as Rosie crossed the borders out of the country.
Rosie is feeling the panic rise, she cannot contact anyone to let them know of her delay. She already has a driver holding a sign with her name on it at Prague airport waiting to whisk her to The Operator. The Operator himself will have spent hours grooming his hair to look perfect for his reunion with his beloved Rosie and he will be left waiting….and waiting, worried out of his mind.
Rosie was sitting alone, in Istanbul, at the boarding gate to Prague, even more sweaty, frizzy and disheveled than before. Rosie’s lips were visibly trembling and tears were welling in her eyes when a Turkish Airline man asked if I was alright. I must have looked a mess. I could have hugged him as he input his Turkish cell number into my phone to give me access to the Free Airport WIFI so I could contact The Operator.
Immense relief washed over Rosie, in this world where it is so easy to contact everyone at the drop of a hat no matter how far away they are it was paralyzing not being able to do so.
As Rosie boarded her plane and munched the complimentary nuts as she winged her way to Prague, she mused that indeed the world is an amazing place, full of trials set to test us with hurdles to overcome. Today, Rosie was saved by the kindness of a stranger in her time of need. So, the next time you see a stranger looking upset, don’t pass by, please stop and ask if they are OK. This simple act can make a stranger in a strange land, or even one of our own feel a little better with this simple act of kindness. Go on, do it for Rosie….its guaranteed to make you feel awesome for the rest of the day too knowing you have helped a little.
Onward Rosie journeyed, albeit four hours behind schedule and nothing a set of hair straighteners a coat of lippy and the biggest, most long awaited cuddle from The Operator couldn’t fix…..before we hit the streets of Prague!
Come on holiday with us and check out Rosie’s Eastern Block Diaries.
