For once it was our return legs that were plagued by travel woes. The flight to Dubai was delayed nearly 45 minutes when the airport technicians could not remove the rear access stairs to the aircraft. When we finally prepared to land in Dubai, we were requested to delay another 10-15 minutes due to runway congestion. I didn't quite understand this one since we were landing at Terminal 3 which has six (6) runways, reportedly more than any other terminal in the world! How can it be backed up? Add on the passport control, baggage retrieval, transport to a different terminal, security, and re-check-in and making our connection was hopeless. We only had two hours to start with - before the delays. Plus, the connecting flight was over booked by nearly 30 people. The flights to/from Baghdad seem to work on a first come - first serve basis. We could have a seat reserved on an afternoon flight but arrive at the airport in time to make a morning flight and be granted seat on the morning flight with no questions asked. The unfortunate person at the end of the line just gets bumped to the next flight... good for the early bird - bad for the bumped. We were bumped to the regularly scheduled flight the next morning so we arrived at the airport nearly three (3) hours in advance to ensure we weren't one of the many who would inevitably be bumped from that flight. I have to say, being delayed on the way in is WAY better than delayed on the way out. We only had to suffer through one more day of relaxation at the hotel of our choice in Dubai.
I departed Baghdad in the middle of a significant conference for my program and returned to the very same conference - one month later. I walked into the office and was immediately informed I needed to adjust my clothing so I would be appropriately dressed for the first day of meetings. Fortunately, I didn't play a significant role in the meeting. This morning was the first opportunity I've had to open my email and it appears I still still have two (2) hours to wait until all is made available for my attention....can't wait.
My sunburn from Zanzibar has finally started to peel. It was so extensive that it appears I have a skin disease. I've been trying to cover it up by wearing sleeves and high necklines but this severely limits my options (low necklines appear to be my preference) especially when trying to dress more formally. Oh well....Anyone want some cheese to go along with my wine?
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