London’s Lucky Stars

A British layover can either be AMAZING, or an ABSOLUTE BORE depending on how you see things. Annette, Kady, and myself flew with Virgin Atlantic (not so recommended) and originally planned for a 3-hour layover. Now, any experienced traveler will tell you that a layover is NEVER what it seems. On February 19, 2008, for example, a 3-hour layover means 6 hours in London’s Heathrow Airport trying every thing except glue to hold our eyes open. We very well could have tried scotch tape…as it was a loving addition to someone’s suitcase! For those familiar with LHA we dined at Café Italia almost the whole time, and only reserved our seats by keeping a piece (mind your that is singular) of Café Italia’s menu on the table in plain sight of the Nazi Waitress who chased away anyone who ordered from elsewhere. And we played the airport version of Prairie Dogging. Allow me to explain, so you can get the whole picture: In an office of cubicles Prairie Dogging means standing up every few minutes or hours to see who else is left in the office, or scan the room for a boss-man/lady (a great example is the movie The Office). In contrast, in an airport, Prairie Dogging means to stand up every few minutes/hours and check the Departure/Arrival board to see if your gate is listed. Some times this activity is done to make sure your eyes don’t crash, and other times it’s done to be certain you don’t miss your flight…either way it makes you look paranoid.
In case anyone was wondering where stereotypes come from…I have the answer..! Sometime during our extended dinner at Café Italia Annette suggested we play a game to try and keep some juices flowing until our next flight. We tried 2 Truths and a Lie, which only lasted one round because we were so delirious. But then we happened upon the “Guess What Everyone’s Occupation Is” game!!! Now, it began as a harmless game for laughs and a good time…but we quickly discovered that when you are tired from not sleeping on a 10-hour flight, desperate from refusing coffee in hopes of sleeping on your next flight, and exhausted after finding out that you planned wrong and your layover doubled in time it is VERY EASY to come up with stereotypes! So, in case anyone was wondering, that is how stereotypes were created…by fatigued travelers brokenhearted from a ridiculous layover!
One more tip for those planning to fly soon…TAMPONS! You must pack tampons!!! You must be wondering how such an obnoxious hint is coming up last…well that’s because I want to leave you laughing! When our team packed our tubes of supplies for Kenya and Uganda, and there were some items inside that were questioned by the Kenyan Airport Security. And when they opened our tubes to look through them, they noticed the tampon box. The man actually asked us if there was a camera inside there!!! When we clarified that the box was full of “feminine products” he put the box down and closed it. So…for those of you who are traveling abroad into tight spaces…pack tampons…and you better leave them on top!