Day 16 (July 21, 2019): Heading home!
Over dinner last night, we both agreed that we thoroughly enjoyed the five countries we experienced on this trip, but that we were also ready to sleep in our own bed. So as much as that early alarm was annoying, it also carried with it some anticipation and excitement. International travel - especially with summertime packed flights - is never a real joy: you just grit your teeth and head into it, determined to get it over with.
Three things happened, however, on our trek home that added frustration to an already long-haul. First: we had pre-booked a group of two seats on our nine-hour flight from Istanbul to Montreal. The seat configuration is 2-4-2, and a cluster of two seats makes it so much more comfortable for an overseas flight. But when we got to the Pristina Airport, Turkish Airlines gave us boarding cards showing middle seats. We protested at the customer service desk, and did so again in Istanbul, but to no avail.
Second: we were the literal last two economy class passengers served the meal. But the glitch is, they were short two entrees, so guess who didn't get the pasta or the beef! US. They concocted something for us, but it was 1 ½ hours after they started the meal service that they brought us two tin-foil trays, each containing chicken, three stems of asparagus, and a thimble of gravy. We were not impressed.
Third: when we touched down in Montreal, I got a text message from Air Canada saying our flight to Halifax was cancelled due to mechanical reasons, and they had rebooked us on the next available flight, getting us home late tomorrow! I did my own Sherlock Holmes investigation and cobbled a routing to Toronto and home to Halifax at 7am tomorrow. So that's means a 10-hour delay to our arrival at home.
All small issues, I know, and all First World problems. But still, when you're exhausted, none of those things help.
It has been a very full and very rewarding 15 days since we left our house to do this exploration of eastern Europe. Some closing summary comments:
- Belarus is still sleeping with Russia.
- Ukraine is still very much at war with Russia, but its resort areas, like Odessa, ironically depend on Russian rubbles to stay afloat.
- Transnistria wasn't as scary as we anticipated, but again, it's still a bedfellow of Russia.
- Moldova has truly turned the page on its Soviet past and has no problem calling it for what it was: hell.
- Kosovo is, as Pristina's city centre "NEWBORN" monument says, in its early days of nationhood -- but it has come a long way in its 20 years as a country.
Eastern Europe is a gem of a region and is without a doubt among our top favourite regions on the planet.
Thanks for sharing in our blog!
Three things happened, however, on our trek home that added frustration to an already long-haul. First: we had pre-booked a group of two seats on our nine-hour flight from Istanbul to Montreal. The seat configuration is 2-4-2, and a cluster of two seats makes it so much more comfortable for an overseas flight. But when we got to the Pristina Airport, Turkish Airlines gave us boarding cards showing middle seats. We protested at the customer service desk, and did so again in Istanbul, but to no avail.
Second: we were the literal last two economy class passengers served the meal. But the glitch is, they were short two entrees, so guess who didn't get the pasta or the beef! US. They concocted something for us, but it was 1 ½ hours after they started the meal service that they brought us two tin-foil trays, each containing chicken, three stems of asparagus, and a thimble of gravy. We were not impressed.
Third: when we touched down in Montreal, I got a text message from Air Canada saying our flight to Halifax was cancelled due to mechanical reasons, and they had rebooked us on the next available flight, getting us home late tomorrow! I did my own Sherlock Holmes investigation and cobbled a routing to Toronto and home to Halifax at 7am tomorrow. So that's means a 10-hour delay to our arrival at home.
All small issues, I know, and all First World problems. But still, when you're exhausted, none of those things help.
It has been a very full and very rewarding 15 days since we left our house to do this exploration of eastern Europe. Some closing summary comments:
- Belarus is still sleeping with Russia.
- Ukraine is still very much at war with Russia, but its resort areas, like Odessa, ironically depend on Russian rubbles to stay afloat.
- Transnistria wasn't as scary as we anticipated, but again, it's still a bedfellow of Russia.
- Moldova has truly turned the page on its Soviet past and has no problem calling it for what it was: hell.
- Kosovo is, as Pristina's city centre "NEWBORN" monument says, in its early days of nationhood -- but it has come a long way in its 20 years as a country.
Eastern Europe is a gem of a region and is without a doubt among our top favourite regions on the planet.
Thanks for sharing in our blog!
Our hotel in Pristina. Ax example of the country's growth and development.
Pristina's modern airport.
Turkish Airlines Boeing 737-900 from Pristina to Istanbul.
Turkish Airlines Airbus A330-300 from Istanbul to Montreal.
At just over nine hours, it's a long, long flight from Turkey to Canada.
Meal number 1. Notice the entrée they cobbled together for us in the aluminum tray after running out!
Meal number 2 made up for meal number 1!
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