Destination: Cairo
6:50 – Wake up after 6hrs of sleep, get changed and shove last few things into bag
7:15 – Say goodbye to Jen and Nata, go grab a cab
7:25 – Arrive at Rabat Ville train station (cab fare: 7Dh). One problem – am 3Dh short for the train ticket. Bugger.
7:35 – No ATMs will accept Chase debit card; run to cab, plot revenge on Chase
7:50 – Arrive at local landmark just down the street from Naoufel’s place (cab fare: 20Dh). Problem – cab dropped me off on wrong side of monument as I was a bit hazy on the local geography.
8:15 – Me and my 45lbs of luggage arrive at Naoufel’s apartment. Bum money off of Jen and Nata, activate HSBC card over the phone
8:30 – Arrive back at Rabat Ville (cab fare: 30Dh). Due to repeated wallet violation by the cabbies I only just have enough for the ticket.
9:00 – Get on train (hour later than planned) to Casablanca, ready to change trains to get to the airport. Estimated duration of journey – 1hr, leaving me plenty of time before my 11:55am flight.
9:55 – Change trains for airport. Little worried about time.
10:10 – Shit.
10:20 – Shit shit.
10:30 – Shit shit shit.
10:45 – Arrive at airport, haul ass.
10:48 – Haul ass through wrong door, very polite policeman directs me to adjacent door where 40,000 train passengers and begun queuing/barging their way through.
10:50 – Fumble aforementioned 45lbs of luggage, drop iPod. Push back together, hope for the best.
11:00 – No line at check-in (THANK YOU BABY JESUS).
11:20 – Clear passport control, make it to gate.
11:55 – Plane is late. iPod ok though, so I claim a moral victory and listen to 80s Michael Jackson.
12:30 – Take off, fall asleep immediately.
4:15 – Madrid airport is violently against giving you any information about anything ever. Get lost looking for gate, nearly go to whole other part of airport. Saved by very nice, English-speaking attendant.
4:30 – Found €1 coin in plane; try to get drink as am about to die of thirst. All drinks start at €1.20. Accept fate and board plane.
5:00 – plane slightly delayed; pilot blames air traffic control, warns us about the strong winds and finishes by literally saying “well, I’ll talk to you guys later”.
10:20 – Arrive in Cairo
Starting from after getting back from WSC, I have yet to have a completely smooth trip anywhere I have gone. Gaze upon my cursed itineraries, and despair!
New York – Toronto: Go to wrong airport, saved only by the fact that I was so early I had enough time to get from Newark to La Guardia and still make my flight. Yes, that’s right – I went to Newark. Should have been a 20 min cab ride; instead I left the state.
Toronto – Louisville: Rampantly lied to by US Airways customer service, nearly charged $550 for changing itinerary. Saved by saintly customer service rep in Philadelphia who lets me grab my bag and get my alternate flight.
Louisville – New York: Get to airport night before, screwed over by wireless internet sign up so can’t even entertain self in the wee small hours with YouTube and Penny Arcade.
New York – London: Loose UK passport, saved by dual nationality.
Suffolk – Manchester: Miss train, saved by Mum.
Manchester – London: Bus delayed, roast slowly in unseasonable warmth.
London – Morocco: Signs that say “check in here for Iberia” really mean “check in here for Iberia EXCEPT FOR YOU”. Stand in a series of long-ass lines, run to catch boarding.
Morocco – Egypt: See above.
But ultimately I made it to wherever I had to get to and had an awesome time all around, so that’s the main thing. My two months of constant travelling has also come to an end, so at least I’m not hauling my shit around constantly for a little while.
