Wednesday, April 11, 2007

Stuck In the Middle

21st/22nd March: Our 5:55pm flight from Ushuaia to Buenos Aires (our only flight in South America so far..) seemed simple enough. We would be in BA at 10:30 and made plans with the Belgian couple (Pieter & Karen), 2 pairs of Dutch couples (Pat & Esther and Tim & Alice), a Frenchman (David) and an Argentinean (Javier) to meet at midnight for parilla (grilled meats) and drinks. But whilst we are stuck in the middle of nowhere 700km from BA at 1am due to technical difficulties in the plane which resulted in having to land at the nearest airport (coincidentally on the same flight as Javier who got on at El Calafate), the rest of the group are probably wondering where we are.

The plane had a few celebrities on board… an actress and model decked out in their LV and Prada with fancy cellphones and full of DRAMA! People on the plane were speculating about what was wrong with the plane, some thought we were gonna die, others thought that the excuse of “bad weather conditions” was a conspiracy and actually one of the engines was shot (they were half right!) and the old lady next to Javier was on the very first flight of her life and was pale and speechless. It was fun to hear all the gossip (kindly translated by Javier) and all the drama and worry.

We got off the plane and into one of the most basic airports ever. No duty free shops, bars or 24-hr McDonalds. Thankfully, they opened the little cafeteria (capacity: 30 people) which is where we are now. Last we heard (again from our trusty CNN correspondent) they’ll be sending a plane from BA, which will arrive around 4am… or so they say!

So the long awaited Buenos Aires will have to wait. Which should make it all the more sweet.

1 Comments:

At 4:38 PM, Anonymous Barbara said...

What a journey! I've been reading about your adventures most of the day! I couldn't stop.
Shaan, you asked me to tell you my favorite post.
Your descriptions along with photos were so vivid that I could almost feel the weight of that backpack, the uphill climbing, the heat from the volcano, the cold blasts of air on the Glacier and the fun you had with the locals.
Then of course, your island hoping drama at sea..my heart paced faster.
But most of all, I enjoyed seeing your friendship(s), and feeling the joy you have for adventure in life and for one another.
I look forward to your next post.
B

 

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