So guess what? The day didn't turn to be bad after all. We stayed at the port terminal and enjoyed the Wi-Fi with free French pastry. We got to know each other, and I like the group so far. We are 17 international students from Egypt, Vietnam, China, Nepal, India, Bosnia, Thailand and Kenya. A diverse group indeed. Side Note: Two of them actually know some of my fellow ALAins (ALA - my high school in South Africa) ;)
At the terminal, AIDA ship was docked. Its German captain could be simply called an angel. He is one of the sweetest people I have ever met in my life. He invited us to have a tour on the ship and lunch for free. He told us that if he were a student like us, he would not like to be in that situation. That's why he wanted our few hours in the port to be memorable, and they definitely will be. Thank you Captain, you are the best! We all signed a card thanking him and that's really the least we could have done.
So where are we now? we are taking a bus to Paris. Lol, I wanted to go back but never knew it would be very soon. We are then taking a flight to Rome, and we will either stay there or head to Civitavecchia. We still don't know, but I think it will be a good week. I also just got an email from Rachel, my roommate, saying that we are lucky not to be on the ship since it is rocky and stormy. Everyone on the ship is throwing up and seasick. I hope they will all get well soon and the weather will get better. But seriously in bad luck comes good luck, and you never know what lies ahead of you. So be positive and good things will happen J
We are taking the 8:35 pm flight from Orly Airport, and we are all here now. We happily had dinner and then got the news that our flight is delayed for three hours! Gosh, help us survive this long journey :D The good thing though is that we got a voucher for 4.5 euros as compensation. So generous of them, don't you think?
And here we are so eager to board the flight in few hours but nope, seems like Paris doesn't want us to leave. The flight got cancelled and Lindsay and Layne, the SAS representatives, had to wait in a very long line to get our baggage back and get refunded. Other passengers were so frustrated and some of them even yelled at the travel agents.
We waited at the airport for a long while, some of us slept, some walked around and others played cards. We are stuck, so the least we can do is have fun. At this point of time, I lost track of where we are, what time it is, what day it is, …. I was probably in denial because until now I still can't absorb all this.
Luckily though, we found enough rooms for us in Ibis Orly Airport hotel and finally had a place to shower, eat and sleep. The plan for today is still unclear, but we are having a mini orientation about our classes and we might fly to Rome at 5 pm. Is this guaranteed? Welcome to the nomadic life :D
P.S. Most suitable song for this situation is "Sawah – سواح " for Abdel Halim (an Egyptian Singer) which means an aimless wanderer.
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