Last update: 18th. of January 2004
Flying back to Vienna
or
The Last Chance For ASC To Cheat The Customers
At 4 o'clock early in the morning the "waking service" knocks. Sweatend, the noisy fan was switched off also this night, I open and sign the waking list.
Fast showered and the last things into the suit-cases packed and then with the suit-cases out and to the breakfast. No comments on this.
Around five the bus comes nearly already full, because we are the last hotel, with which it collects travellers. The suit-cases come into a minibus. Well, hopefully that can be done this time well. Only 5 minutes after our arrivel at the airport also our luggage arrived.
It seems to be today is the general flight-back day, not only with the ASC. Interesting, the way how some travelers, mostly women, have dressed their hair. Coloured with henna and with small pigtails the hair splendour ruins. Some have even Masaidecoration, also in several layers, putted on. Well, it is close to carnival.
After the long queue at the transillumination plant is passed, here obviously for forbidden Souveniers such as shells, furs etc. is looked for, we have to queue at the ASC check in. Here all luggage, also the hand baggage is weighed. If we thought that on the flight to Mombasa "generously" accepted the overweight of the luggage. here no sign og this. Each begun Kilo over luggage costs 7 Euro. With 84 Euro we participate, here Mamamasai and the Elephant are honored. The photo bag, together-fastened with the video bag, is not weighed. Good luck, because a few Kilos would have been due there. The on-board luggage receives a trailer, so that everyone can see that it was weighed.
After paying we walk into the departure building. But first again by the transillumination with following passport check. This time only one counter is occupied. The queue is accordingly long.
After this it goes into the departure building with the many Duty free Shops. The prices are the pure insanity. Our elephant for example is offered here for 300 US dollar. The cigarettes are inexpensive only, 13 dollar for the carton. We praise the weak dollar rate.
Our plane is occupied up to the last place. Tanja and I have still luck. We sit in principle next to each other, only by the corridor separated. Other travelers have less luck, they sit several seat rows from each other far away.
I have naturally again uncannyly "luck". My neighbour is a woman from Vienna with a little overweight, or she was only too short. My estimation is with at least 150 Kilos. Since I am also not very thin, I made myself broad on my seat, what naturally led to a small discussion, but that is how I like like that, my seat is my seat, which is like homeland defense. At Lufthansa that would not be a problem, they would accept her only with 2 tickets and she would have the necessary 2 seats. That cannot be done naturally with the ASC, there the two seats would have been in different seat rows.
I naturally enjoyed the meal. Not really the meal but the way how to eat. To watch her efforts with the tightness somehow to dig the meal in her belly. That is the advantage of a corridor place, one can completely comfortably eat with the left hand and make oneself broad to the right.
Otherwise the flight was quite comfortable. Punctually at 14:45 o'clock we landed in Schwechat. Coldly and very windy.
One hour later we were at home in Bratislava. Vacation finished. Despite all incommodities, somehow we learned to enjoy such a thing as fun, it was a beautiful vacation.
Kenya, we will be back one day but for sure: Never again African Safari Club, perhaps with exception of the Crocodile Camp, but who knows already, for how long it will be under European management.
© Ulrich Hoffmann 2004
