The trip started on two positive notes. American Airlines checked my bags all the way through to Kathmandu. I didn't think it possible because I'm flying two different airlines, but I just checked tracking and they're at the terminal for my flight to Sri Lanka. The other positive note was that I had access to the Flagship Lounge at DFW. A fully-stocked bar, buffet, and cooked-to-order meals are a nice start to a very long itinerary. The lounge had the most complex toilet I've ever seen. Interesting.
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My flight was pretty uneventful; just the way I like them.There was no internet, but my GPS tracker worked well. I had it set for 30 minute intervals since it was just a straight flight. I'll do the same for the next two legs and then switch it to 2-minute granularity when I'm in Kathmandu. Don't expect anything exciting for the next couple of days. I popped a Xanax when they killed the cabin lights and settled in to watch "My Octopus Teacher"; a documentary I downloaded from Netflix. It's a great story with amazing footage. I highly recommend it. Viewing it on Xanax is even better.
My flight landed about an hour early, which is unheard of in my world. I now had six hours to kill. Before I left, had I considered looking into finding a way to take a quick jaunt around Paris before my flight to Sri Lanka, but I didn't arrange a French visa. Much to my surprise, the Customs desk agent stamped my passport and said "Welcome to Paris". I walked past cabs and strolled outside for a few minutes of sunshine and decided to make my way to terminal 1 to see where my gate was. I'm sure glad I didn't take a joy ride because clearing French security makes the TSA seem like a well-oiled machine. I spent almost two hours in line to have my passport exit-stamped so I could once again go through security. I was reminded of how happy I was to get my bags checked all the way through.
On the way to my gate I passed a familiar site. I couldn't put my finger on it at first and then it hit me. This was the futuristic world depicted on the cover of the Alan Parsons Project album "I Robot". Pretty sure been to an album cover before.
Just a couple more hours in the airport before I head to Sri Lanka. I'm trying to stay awake to get on the proper time zone and to avoid missing my flight!
