My first layover was in Newark, where I found myself doing laps in the Newark airport to get to 10,000 steps (my fellow Fitbitters will sympathize). I also realized, much to my horror, that I'd forgotten the power cord for my laptop. I had been feeling smugly confident about remembering to pack pretty much everything essential this time around, because I started packing the night before I left instead of the day of my flight as usual. I have never forgotten a critical power cord on a long trip. This was my initial reaction:
I thought I'd be able to get one at one of the tech stores at the airport, but they carry every power cable but Apple laptop ones. I bypassed a panic attack by rationalizing that Jari is coming in a week and can bring mine with him from home. Oh wait, I have an academic conference to present at between now and next Saturday. I googled Apple stores in Wroclaw, no such luck. I immediately texted my Airbnb host Diane and she said she'd get working on it. I figured worst case scenario I'd find an internet cafe somewhere in town and make the best of it.
For a cheap seat, the Lufthansa flight from Newark to Munich was quite nice. The seats didn't feel as cramped as our domestic carriers and they plied you with a steady stream of food and wine to keep the rubble quiet. I watched the first episode of How to get Away With Murder (go Shonda & Viola!), Taken 3 (Liam Neeson runs like arthritic nun, all of the movie editing in the world couldn't help his awkward shuffle during the chase scenes), Still Alice (sad, but Julianne Moore absolutely killed it) and with 100 minutes left in the flight, I regret watching a really dumb Vince Vaughn movie called Unfinished Business that not only made stereotypical fun of people with disabilities but made that the lesser of other movie & acting crimes committed.
I arrived in Munich at 10 am and the next flight to Wroclaw wasn't until 3 pm, so I wandered the airport-you guessed it, logging steps. Turns out the tech stores in Munich do carry MacBook chargers, so getting that was a huge weight off my shoulders. Got into Wroclaw around 5:30 and realized half of my luggage was missing as a grabbed my backpack off the carousel (more on that tomorrow). My expertly rolled & packed 22 pair of clean underwear, gone just like that. Went to the baggage office to file a claim, and met with my driver. My lovely Airbnb hostess had arranged for a taxi to drive me to the apartment. This is my first time using Airbnb (came close many times) so if this is tyical, I am all for it. The apartment was lovely and was right in the center of town. Next up, 4 days in Wroclaw...
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