Day - 23: Thursday, June 18, 2015 & Into the Early Morning of Friday, June 19, 2015
Starting Location: Stockholm, Sweden
Interim Location: Stockholm Arlanda International Airport (ARN)
Interim Location: Frankfurt International Airport (FRA)
Interim Location: Dulles, International Airport (IAD) - Well, not so fast!
Interim Location: O'Hare International Airport (ORD)
Interim Location: Norfolk International Airport (ORF)
Ending Location: Kitty Hawk, NC
With an early afternoon flight from Stockholm we awoke for a non-stressful day of flight. Around 9:30 AM we had our bags in the hotel lobby and were met by our driver for the ride to Stockholm's Arlanda International Airport.
The airport is well removed from Stockholm, perhaps an hour's ride; that's a good thing, keeping the jet traffic noise away from the major population center but as is usually the case, the city and its suburbs are coming out to meet the airport.
One attraction we had read about was the converted B747 airliners, converted from flight to hotel use. I thought it was a gimmicky hotel but later learned it is a hostel, one of several around the world; so who knows how many can now sleep "onboard". The ladder leading up to the "engine cabin" was interesting.
Though the day started well for our driver, an easy fare and a good tip, things went south fast. I guess we had noticed the two police officers standing near our car as we unloaded and walked away but honestly gave them little mind. Being polite as people are in Sweden, the officers apparently didn't want to bother the driver while we were present but as soon as we had entered the terminal they personally welcomed our driver to the airport with a documents check and inspection.
As we had plenty of time, we watched and after a few minutes with everyone smiling the police departed and the driver returned to his business.
Our transit through security was simple and soon we were on our way to the gate for our flight to Frankfurt., of course not before having to pass through the usual duty free store. This gave us an opportunity to divest of a few more Swedish Kronas, well actually with charge cards many more $$$$$$.
As we approached our gate we both received text messages from United Airlines with the dreaded "please see agent" notice. In this case we had checked in with SAS and had our baggage checked through to Norfolk with a customs inspection at Washington Dulles, flying on Lufthansa to Frankfurt and on United to the U.S., all Star Alliance carriers.
Seems our Frankfurt to Dulles flight was cancelled. In checking with the SAS agents we were told that they couldn't offer any help, that we'd need to speak to the United agent, problem was, United was not represented at Stockholm. With a quick call to United, we were booked on a flight to Norfolk via a Frankfurt to Chicago Lufthansa flight but that didn't account for the baggage, a necessity for the wedding we were to attend just 36 hours later.
So we checked with SAS on the baggage, wanting to reroute it off of the cancelled flight; the SAS agent simply recommended we fly on to Frankfurt and let Lufthansa deal with the issue, after all she commented, "the Germans are noted for efficiency and effectively dealing with problems".
In any case, we boarded our flight from Stockholm, had lunch and in couple of hours were in Frankfurt.
So with baggage claim tickets in hand we headed to the Lufthansa agents and as the SAS folks had suggested, within a few minutes we had full confidence that not only would we be on the Chicago flight but our bags would be as well.
As we were late additions to the Chicago flight there was some concern when we were given our seat assignments in Row-87, for sure somewhere beyond the end of the aircraft; but with a quick inquiry we learned that the "80" seats were upstairs in a new B747-8. The jet had been placed in service in February and was equipped with all the latest bells & whistles, mood lighting and great flight tracker graphics as well as forward and downward looking live cameras.
The flight departed Frankfurt crossing the English Channel just south of Amsterdam. Just north of Liverpool we crossed the Irish Sea and began the Atlantic crossing over Kinclasslagh, Ireland.
With just under 2 hours to go we passed over the Moose River where it enters Hudson Bay in northern Canada. Our timing was such that our connection was going to be too close. The Lufthansa folks evened mentioned that anyone with less than 75 minutes connection times had already been cross-booked for later flights; for us that would likely mean tomorrow as the Chicago to Norfolk options are limited.
After a long circuitous route south and west of O'Hare we finally landed around 8:15 leaving us about 40 minutes to make our connection, hopefully it would be delayed. We were quickly off the plane and headed for immigration and customs, with our "Trusted Traveler" documents ready, we still encountered a delay maybe only 10-15 minutes but when time is short every second counts, the good news was that we had our four checked bags and were pleased with that.
Interim Location: Stockholm Arlanda International Airport (ARN)
Interim Location: Frankfurt International Airport (FRA)
Interim Location: Dulles, International Airport (IAD) - Well, not so fast!
Interim Location: O'Hare International Airport (ORD)
Interim Location: Norfolk International Airport (ORF)
Ending Location: Kitty Hawk, NC
With an early afternoon flight from Stockholm we awoke for a non-stressful day of flight. Around 9:30 AM we had our bags in the hotel lobby and were met by our driver for the ride to Stockholm's Arlanda International Airport.
The airport is well removed from Stockholm, perhaps an hour's ride; that's a good thing, keeping the jet traffic noise away from the major population center but as is usually the case, the city and its suburbs are coming out to meet the airport.
One attraction we had read about was the converted B747 airliners, converted from flight to hotel use. I thought it was a gimmicky hotel but later learned it is a hostel, one of several around the world; so who knows how many can now sleep "onboard". The ladder leading up to the "engine cabin" was interesting.
Though the day started well for our driver, an easy fare and a good tip, things went south fast. I guess we had noticed the two police officers standing near our car as we unloaded and walked away but honestly gave them little mind. Being polite as people are in Sweden, the officers apparently didn't want to bother the driver while we were present but as soon as we had entered the terminal they personally welcomed our driver to the airport with a documents check and inspection.
Our transit through security was simple and soon we were on our way to the gate for our flight to Frankfurt., of course not before having to pass through the usual duty free store. This gave us an opportunity to divest of a few more Swedish Kronas, well actually with charge cards many more $$$$$$.
As we approached our gate we both received text messages from United Airlines with the dreaded "please see agent" notice. In this case we had checked in with SAS and had our baggage checked through to Norfolk with a customs inspection at Washington Dulles, flying on Lufthansa to Frankfurt and on United to the U.S., all Star Alliance carriers.
Seems our Frankfurt to Dulles flight was cancelled. In checking with the SAS agents we were told that they couldn't offer any help, that we'd need to speak to the United agent, problem was, United was not represented at Stockholm. With a quick call to United, we were booked on a flight to Norfolk via a Frankfurt to Chicago Lufthansa flight but that didn't account for the baggage, a necessity for the wedding we were to attend just 36 hours later.
So we checked with SAS on the baggage, wanting to reroute it off of the cancelled flight; the SAS agent simply recommended we fly on to Frankfurt and let Lufthansa deal with the issue, after all she commented, "the Germans are noted for efficiency and effectively dealing with problems".
In any case, we boarded our flight from Stockholm, had lunch and in couple of hours were in Frankfurt.
So with baggage claim tickets in hand we headed to the Lufthansa agents and as the SAS folks had suggested, within a few minutes we had full confidence that not only would we be on the Chicago flight but our bags would be as well.
As we were late additions to the Chicago flight there was some concern when we were given our seat assignments in Row-87, for sure somewhere beyond the end of the aircraft; but with a quick inquiry we learned that the "80" seats were upstairs in a new B747-8. The jet had been placed in service in February and was equipped with all the latest bells & whistles, mood lighting and great flight tracker graphics as well as forward and downward looking live cameras. |
Lufthansa B747-8 Side Number: D-ABYR (Internet Photo) |
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| Seats 87A (Window) & 87C (Aisle) Right Side Looking Aft (Internet Photo) |
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| Our Aircraft Side Number: D-ABYR |
The flight from Frankfurt departed about 40 minutes late, usually not an issue but with a close connection for the Chicago-Norfolk flight any further delays could disrupt the trip. That said we were going to Chicago; who would ever think that stormy weather and high traffic volume could impact a timely flight departure on a summer evening from ORD.
Soon the wine was poured and the thought of missed connections was forgotten, after all there wasn't anything we could do but wait and see what happened.
The flight departed Frankfurt crossing the English Channel just south of Amsterdam. Just north of Liverpool we crossed the Irish Sea and began the Atlantic crossing over Kinclasslagh, Ireland.
Within the first two hours of flight we had been fed, steak for me and pasta for Sheila. After dessert, the lights were dimmed and we tried to pretend it was night (actually only about 7 PM body time). Sheila watched movies, I read, listened to music but in due time, both of us did get some sleep.
With just under 2 hours to go we passed over the Moose River where it enters Hudson Bay in northern Canada. Our timing was such that our connection was going to be too close. The Lufthansa folks evened mentioned that anyone with less than 75 minutes connection times had already been cross-booked for later flights; for us that would likely mean tomorrow as the Chicago to Norfolk options are limited.
Next came the inter-terminal train; we boarded along with too many other passengers, several "butts" wouldn't fit through the closing doors. Once the doors closed, came the announcement that there would be a tram delay due to system maintenance, possibly 25 minutes! Turns out the real delay was only three minutes but time enough when packed like sardines with passengers anxiously chasing down connections and locals wanting to get home.
Next came the TSA security station at our boarding concourse. As it was nearing 9 PM the TSA rules must have stated that 2 of 4 lines would be shut down, this regardless of how long the passenger lines might be. So as the long lines moved through the two operating scanners we again incurred a delay. Once through TSA we had 10 minutes until our delayed departure time to Norfolk, not likely enough. Some might say I ditched Sheila at this point for I did grab our carry-ons and pretty much sprinted to the gate; it was closed but the observant agent had noticed my haste and suspected that I was at least one of the two missing passengers. In the end the agent reopened the door and even queried me as to if I would travel without Sheila; but soon she noticed Sheila coming down the hall. All's well that ends well I suppose, we had seen our bags, made the connection and had taxied to the take-off queue to begin our flight to Norfolk.
On arrival at Norfolk, Shannon and the kids met us for the ride to Kitty Hawk. As it was now about 1:20 AM everyone was tired and ready to get moving. So one by one our checked luggage dropped onto the carousel, one bag, two bags, three bags, ………… but where is the fourth bag? We had transferred them all in Chicago so we knew the missing bag wasn't totally lost in space. Turns out the last bag had been mis-routed and didn't make the flight with its companions. So be it, we headed to Kitty Hawk and at 3:30 AM, almost exactly 24-hours after departing our hotel in Stockholm, we were home and soon thereafter asleep.
The trip was over, in 23+ days we had traveled thousands of miles in cars, on trains, buses, planes and ships, not to mention a few miles by foot, we'd been in eleven or so countries and visited many cities and towns but most importantly at that moment was the fact that we had arrived home in time for the wedding and other weekend activities.
Here are a few repeat photos to closeout the trip yes, but to keep the memories alive and kickin' as well!
Until next time, as a famous cartoon character once said,
"That's All Folks!"
