99:mini-adventures

Flying often leads to mini-adventures! And this time was no exception. I had “fun and games” in both directions. Flying into Heathrow on Friday 17^th I stupidly left my mum’s duty free cigarettes on the aeroplane. (Too many G&Ts perhaps.) I remembered them as I was heading towards passport control. I couldn’t go back to look for them myself because, most emphatically, the route from aeroplane to “the street” is very definitely a one-way system. So, report to BMI baggage desk airside. They promised to send somebody out to the plane to look in the overhead locker above seat 2D. In the meantime, I went groundside to have another breakfast! There followed a little pillar-to-post run-around but, joy of joys, I was eventually reunited with mum’s cigarettes. Many thanks BMI.

Flying back was no less fraught!

I had checked-in yesterday and printed off a boarding pass. Unfortunately, there was no barcode shown on the boarding pass. That doesn’t matter I said to myself, as soon as I get  to check-in at the airport I will ask for an exit seat and will get a new boarding card. The best laid plans…..  

There was an enormous queue to check-in this morning and, as I had only hand baggage I thought I would go through passports & security and ask for an exit seat once I get airside. But, in this security-conscious day and age it is not possible to clear even the first hurdle without a bar code. The very polite officials suggested I join the back of the queue. Lady luck was looking after me though and I found a very nice lady who took me to the desk where they were selling tickets and they were able to print a boarding card for me –and they gave me an exit seat. Again, many thanks BMI. I went on to clear all the security checks with no further hitches. All’s well that ends well. хороший конец, дела винец.

P.S. It is almost Spring in UK. Snowdrops (подснежники) are popping up everywhere…

But it  is still Winter in Moscow…. Nothing much is popping up at all!