Today we began our first ever European adventure with the family. This was by far the furthest we’ve ever travelled with the kids but they did great!
We began our trip by car as we drove almost 3 hours down to Seattle to catch our first flight. When we arrived at the airport we decided to eat as our 4:00pm flight did not include a meal. After our tummies were full we filled our brand new Costco water bottles at the neat water bottle station. I was extremely disappointed to find out that Ayva’s bottle was defective as the seal was broken so it did not close at all. It didn’t help that half of the water in the bottle ended up all over me and my bag. Oh well, atleast it is just water. We made our way to our departing gate where our plane was waiting to take us to San Jose. This would just be a short hop on what I thought looked like a regular plane but apparently it was a 737.
As we boarded the plane we all sat together in a row with the kids on one side of the aisle and Tavis and I on the other side. I offered my window seat to the nice woman sitting between Tavis and I. Tavis likes to book us a window and an aisle as the middle seas fill up last, but this was a full flight. After we got in the air I was handed a chocolate and thanked for being a Gold member! It took a few seconds to realize what had happened but Linda (the Gold member who was not me) saw my face light up at the sight of the chocolate and she said I could have it. My wet clothes and the water bottle were now forgotten! The rest of the flight was uneventful and quick. As we were preparing to land we met a couple from Alberta who were also on our next flight as they travelled through to Paris. It was nice talking to fellow Canadians who were about to embark on their own journey.
After arriving in San Jose we had about an hour layover which gave us time to visit the washrooms and find our next gate. The boys were all drooling when we arrived and they got their first glimpse of another plane. This is a huge difference between girls and boys. Ayva and I are at the Airport with lots of planes because that is the purpose of the airport. Some big, some small, some colourful, others not. Most of them look the same to me. But the boys walk down the halls gawking at different aircrafts as we pass pointing and going on about different numbers as though it is the most exciting thing in the world. I guess I will never understand. Anyways, we arrived at the gate, got photos of the plane and then we boarded our 787-9 Dreamliner just before 8:00pm.
I don’t know much about planes but this was big. It had 2 aisles! The kids were super excited to have the first middle row (premium economy) all to themselves. They were greeted with their own TVs and a nice little care package (a thick blanket, pillow, headphones, pen, fleece socks, toothbrush, toothpaste, and a sleep mask). They were also each given a kids travel bag with an activity book, crayons, and a few other things. Then they were offered a beverage in a fancy cup and a menu for dinner and breakfast which would be served later. The kids were beyond excited. Tavis and I took our seat behind them and watched their expressions as they explored all of their items and were greeted by the attendants. Shortly we were all settled in for our 9.5 hour flight.
After we took off Ayva surprised Tavis and I will a special treat she bought us with her own money the day before. I received a package of 10 small mars bars and Tavis received a package of sour patch kids. I spend most of the flight finishing my novel but I did manage to get a few hours of rest. The kids watched lots of TV but also fell asleep through breakfast.
When we arrived at Heathrow we were pleasantly surprised by the cleanliness and overall appearance of the airport. It was easy to navigate. We made our way through customs and found some seats to sit at while we waited to find our next gate. The one difference I noticed is that gates don’t get assigned until 40 minutes before departure. Before that it just posts the time that the gate will be displayed. Once our gate was assigned we walked over and boarded almost immediately. It was now just before 5:00pm and we were all tired.
When we boarded our plane we again had all the seats in 1 row. This time it wasn’t a full flight and Tavis and I had an empty seat between us which made it much easier to sleep. It was only a 90 minute flight but I think we all slept through most of it.
By 8:00pm we landed in Munich. We went straight to the metro guest services and purchased a 3 day family pass. Then we walked straight onto the metro and caught the S8 which took us toward the hotel. We got off at Hackerbrucke station and walked across a bridge that went over the train tracks. There were people all along the bridge sitting on a platform just above us who were watching the sunset. It was such a neat setting and it reminded me of a play we watched at the Chemainus Theatre. I wanted to take a photo but it was getting dark and we were on a mission. It took us about 10 minutes to reach the hotel.
We were happy to get settled into our rooms around 9:30pm. The kids all shared a room and Tavis and I took another at the end of the hall. It didn’t take long to say our goodnights and finally sleep in a real bed!
Tomorrow we will get to learn more about Germany!