Day 56: or The First Day In Belfast

Today was the last day of vacation for the kids and the beginning of mine. I spent the day stressed making sure I knew where I was going and that I was bringing everything I needed. The day went as planned and 6:00 came before I knew it. I was getting picked up by the Dad and being taken to the train. I felt weird leaving them without dinner. The parents both got off work early so they were going to be taken care of obviously, just felt like I was leaving them in a lurch.


I made the 6:47 train, 2 hours before my plane was supposed to take off. I made all my connections and was there in plenty of time. I wasn’t sure that I had plenty of time though so I went without dinner. At Charles de Gaulle, the security check is at the gate. 2 gates share a checkpoint and once you go through it there is only a vending machine. I liked the small security, but was not a fan of being sequestered. I managed to get through it.


I’m on my way to Belfast now. I’m flying on a discount airline and am trying to avoid all the extra charges. I know the reason it is cheaper is because they get you on baggage and what not, so I refuse to get anything on principal. They charge 2 euro for a soda, so no thanks. I think I could probably have gotten tap water for free, but I wasn’t going to risk it. They also have a strict “1 carry on” rule, which includes purses. I had to stop and put my purse in my bag before they let me on the plane. I packed light of course and am now sitting comfortably in my aisle seat. I’m an aisle girl, always have been.  Somehow I managed to get an aisle seat in the 9th row, with an empty middle seat. Pretty spiffy.  I’m beginning to stress again. We are supposed to land in less than an hour, but we were delayed 30 minutes. I’m checking into a hostel without a curfew but all I can think of is what if they do have one and then I stranded on the street because I can’t get there in time. I’m treating this weekend as a test run for my travels. There won’t be a language barrier, but it is a foreign country and I’ll be traveling by train, plane, and buses. Plenty of ways to get lost or go the wrong way. 


I just realized what is wrong with my row. I am right in front of the exit, so I can’t lean back. For awhile I thought this was another luxury the discount airline did away with. I thought it was an odd thing to cut. I’m a genius.


Since starting to write, I have found my way passed immigration and into the center of Belfast. I made my way to the hostel on walked around the area a bit. I went to a bar next door, just to see a little bit and ran into a guy who was on my plane from Paris. We talked to a bit, we hadn't on the plane, but I was pretty proud of myself for starting the conversation. People have the idea that I'm not shy. At this very moment I'm sure half of you are rolling your eyes. But there are 2 kinds of shy. There is Nathan shy, where even talking to family can be painful. I know he is growing out of this and I am not picking on him, it is just the best illustration I can think of. Then there is me, who once comfortable, doesn't seem to shut up. But when surrounded by total strangers, it's difficult to just go up and talk to someone. But I persevered and it went fine. I came home fairly early so I could get up for my train in the morning. A successful first day of travel.