Retirement Cruise: A Bit of Barcelona and Customs
sTuesday night we packed everything we could, and Wednesday morning the ship arrived in Barcelona. We finished packing, had breakfast one last time while looking out over the ocean, and disembarked with our bags in tow. A summoned taxi took us to the flat we'd rented, but it was too early to check in. Fortunately, there was a luggage storage place less than a block away. We stuffed our bags into a couple lockers, dusted off our hands, and headed out.
As is our usual thing, we didn't make plans to visit any site in particular. Instead, we wandered around looking at different buildings and other bits of interest. We poked our heads into a couple of cathedrals (sooooo many in Barcelona), admired some memorial arches in parks, and discovered that wild parrots in Barcelona compete with pigeons for ecological supremacy. We had a nice lunch and finally moseyed back to pick up our luggage and check into our flat.
The neighborhood we stayed in was clearly a happenin' party hotspot. As afternoon turned into evening, the streets filled up with cars and bikes and scooters and people. Darwin and I people-watched and bought food from the local bakeries and enjoyed a laid-back evening.
In the morning, we summoned another cab, which took us to the airport with no trouble. After that, it was 14 hours of winding our way through airports, waiting in airports, eating in airports, and going through customs in airports. And of sitting on planes. We had a layover at Charles de Gaul, our least favorite airport in the whole wide world, but we managed it without incident this time. At long, long, LONG last, we landed in Detroit. It was 8 AM local time, but 2 AM for us.
I have to say I was uneasy about going through customs. I was on a watch list for years because adult men who travel with exchange students, I learned, are automatically added to watch lists, and I was always pulled for extra searches when I traveled overseas. Finally, I got TSA Pre-Check, and the problem stopped. Now, however, the current administration has it in for a whole bunch of people, including people like me, and I was wondering if I'd get hassled or worse.
We snagged our luggage and got through passport control without incident, but as we were heading for the exit, a guard pulled Darwin and me aside and told us we needed "extra screening." Ohhhhhkay. Here we go.
The guard took us to a giant x-ray conveyor belt thing staffed by two other guards and had us feed our luggage through it. I treated it as an annoyance and refused to show nervousness, since that would only give the guards an excuse. On the other side of the machine, one of the guards grabbed my backpack. "I have to look in here," she said sweetly.
I shrugged. "Yeah, whatever."
"Where are you coming from?" asked another guard, though I kept my eyes on the backpack.
"Spain." My voice was neutral but short.
"What was the purpose of your visit?"
"Vacation."
"Did you buy anything worth more than $800?"
"No."
"Do you have any 'ha-mon'?"
I blinked. "What?"
" 'Ha-mon.' Ham?"
"Ham?" I was genuinely puzzled. "No. Why would I have ham?"
(Later I looked it up and discovered Spanish ham is illegal in the US but people still try to bring it in.)
The guard didn't respond. Meanwhile, the other guard pawed through my backpack and held up two objects. One was a half-empty can of chips, the other my trackball mouse, both of which had apparently set off someone's suspicions.
"Are those a problem?" I asked archly. I wanted to say something like, "Is it fun putting your filthy hands on my mouse ball?" but I didn't.
Then the guard pulled out the zipper pouch I kept my cash in and started to open it.
"Wait, please," I said, and stepped closer. "You don't want to open that without me watching."
"Why?" she asked.
"That's my money, and I'm sure you'll agree that it's a bad idea for you to go through it without a witness. It's for your protection."
She declined to open the pouch. I took my backpack back and we left. Sheesh. Another cab picked us up, and an hour later we were HOME!
Both of us were wiped out. Funny how sitting on an airplane for seven hours can tire you out. But we didn't want to go to bed "early," so we unpacked.
Yes, we unpacked the moment we got home. We are THOSE people.
By 11, we were both unpacked and drop-dead exhausted, so we fell into bed.
Now for the irony. When I was working, I had to be up by 5 or 5:30, and one of the bigger revelations to me is that during retirement, I'd never have to see 5 AM again. Naturally, that meant I woke up at 5 AM, which my body said was noon. I managed to make myself doze off again, but only for half an hour, so I was up at ... 5:30 AM. Sigh.
It was a lovely, lovely trip, and my retirement has been well celebrated!
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As is our usual thing, we didn't make plans to visit any site in particular. Instead, we wandered around looking at different buildings and other bits of interest. We poked our heads into a couple of cathedrals (sooooo many in Barcelona), admired some memorial arches in parks, and discovered that wild parrots in Barcelona compete with pigeons for ecological supremacy. We had a nice lunch and finally moseyed back to pick up our luggage and check into our flat.
The neighborhood we stayed in was clearly a happenin' party hotspot. As afternoon turned into evening, the streets filled up with cars and bikes and scooters and people. Darwin and I people-watched and bought food from the local bakeries and enjoyed a laid-back evening.
In the morning, we summoned another cab, which took us to the airport with no trouble. After that, it was 14 hours of winding our way through airports, waiting in airports, eating in airports, and going through customs in airports. And of sitting on planes. We had a layover at Charles de Gaul, our least favorite airport in the whole wide world, but we managed it without incident this time. At long, long, LONG last, we landed in Detroit. It was 8 AM local time, but 2 AM for us.
I have to say I was uneasy about going through customs. I was on a watch list for years because adult men who travel with exchange students, I learned, are automatically added to watch lists, and I was always pulled for extra searches when I traveled overseas. Finally, I got TSA Pre-Check, and the problem stopped. Now, however, the current administration has it in for a whole bunch of people, including people like me, and I was wondering if I'd get hassled or worse.
We snagged our luggage and got through passport control without incident, but as we were heading for the exit, a guard pulled Darwin and me aside and told us we needed "extra screening." Ohhhhhkay. Here we go.
The guard took us to a giant x-ray conveyor belt thing staffed by two other guards and had us feed our luggage through it. I treated it as an annoyance and refused to show nervousness, since that would only give the guards an excuse. On the other side of the machine, one of the guards grabbed my backpack. "I have to look in here," she said sweetly.
I shrugged. "Yeah, whatever."
"Where are you coming from?" asked another guard, though I kept my eyes on the backpack.
"Spain." My voice was neutral but short.
"What was the purpose of your visit?"
"Vacation."
"Did you buy anything worth more than $800?"
"No."
"Do you have any 'ha-mon'?"
I blinked. "What?"
" 'Ha-mon.' Ham?"
"Ham?" I was genuinely puzzled. "No. Why would I have ham?"
(Later I looked it up and discovered Spanish ham is illegal in the US but people still try to bring it in.)
The guard didn't respond. Meanwhile, the other guard pawed through my backpack and held up two objects. One was a half-empty can of chips, the other my trackball mouse, both of which had apparently set off someone's suspicions.
"Are those a problem?" I asked archly. I wanted to say something like, "Is it fun putting your filthy hands on my mouse ball?" but I didn't.
Then the guard pulled out the zipper pouch I kept my cash in and started to open it.
"Wait, please," I said, and stepped closer. "You don't want to open that without me watching."
"Why?" she asked.
"That's my money, and I'm sure you'll agree that it's a bad idea for you to go through it without a witness. It's for your protection."
She declined to open the pouch. I took my backpack back and we left. Sheesh. Another cab picked us up, and an hour later we were HOME!
Both of us were wiped out. Funny how sitting on an airplane for seven hours can tire you out. But we didn't want to go to bed "early," so we unpacked.
Yes, we unpacked the moment we got home. We are THOSE people.
By 11, we were both unpacked and drop-dead exhausted, so we fell into bed.
Now for the irony. When I was working, I had to be up by 5 or 5:30, and one of the bigger revelations to me is that during retirement, I'd never have to see 5 AM again. Naturally, that meant I woke up at 5 AM, which my body said was noon. I managed to make myself doze off again, but only for half an hour, so I was up at ... 5:30 AM. Sigh.
It was a lovely, lovely trip, and my retirement has been well celebrated!
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