Those were the among the first words we heard from a passenger on arrival in Liberia.
I'm not sure whether or not the man was serious. Perhaps because he saw how windy it was, he automatically thought cool...or cold.
After all when it's windy in January...it is usually cold too. That's typically the case in Toronto...but in Liberia, no way Jose!
In actual fact there was a temperature difference of 42 degrees Celsius between Toronto, which was -10 when we left in the dark...and Liberia, which was 32 degrees when we arrived at 10:45 AM local time (11:45 AM Toronto time).
Three Hours Before Departure
And speaking of arrivals, as prepared as I was, I was not quite ready for the scene that greeted me at the airport in Toronto.
As advised by my travel agent and the airline, I planned to be at the airport 3 hours before departure. I left by cab at 2:50 AM, arriving at the airport at 3:10 AM. So far so good.
But the check-in counters for my airline...Skyservice...seemed to be under attack by a slow moving line of would-be passengers.
But then I learned that these were the people who had not checked in online.
When I spotted the luggage check-in area for passengers who had checked in online, I headed in that direction.
A very eager agent waved me to the counter where my bag was tagged and I was told to proceed to security....which I did totally bypassing the stalled wanna-be passengers.
The moral of this story: web check in is a very good thing when traveling!
After joining the very small security line, an agent popped her head out of door and motioned for us to an area with 4-5 agents who had no passengers to check though.
Very easily and quickly, I cleared security. The time was then 3:35...what to do before my flight started to board almost 2 ½ hours later? The answer was obvious and so very Canadian...go to Tim Horton's.
It turned out that Skyservice had at least 3 flights leaving Toronto between 6:10 and 6:50. That would have been almost 700 people, most of who were checking in at the airport. Yikes!
Boring Flights Are Also The Best
Continuing the 'ahead-of-time' schedule, we left the gate 10 minutes early, but detoured for a de-icing stop (never seen that before) before joining the line for take-ff.
After I first noticed the line up 7 aircraft took off. As we were taking off, there were 8 other plans waiting in line behind us.
Our fight was the absolute best kind...totally uneventful.
When the cabin attendants were not trying to sell us one thing or another, they served a breakfast which was substantial and really quite good.
Not quite the porcelain and cutlery of days of old...more like foil wrapped breakfast sandwiches served from cardboard boxes and coffee in Styrofoam cups...but overall the 'meal' served its purpose.
When we arrived in Liberia, our aircraft...a Boeing 757...was the biggest thing around, including the terminal building itself.
It seemed that all ground personnel...regardless of what they doing...were dealing with the aircraft and or the passengers.
No sign of any de-icing equipment...or other aircraft big or small...for that matter.
Heading To Liberia To Veg
On the flight, I also had the pleasure of sleeping with a very attractive young woman.
Actually, truth be told, Debbie slept in the middle seat and I tried to doze leaning against the chilly window wall of the cabin.
Turned out that Debbie is an epidemiologist, in recovery from her role in managing the H1N1 virus issue.
Along with her husband...who scored a bulkhead seat with lots of leg room...with a great view of the 'forward lavatory'...was headed to Liberia to veg.
Debbie, if you read this and want to add your side of the story, I will include your comments...subject of course to my editorial discretion. You know what writers are like.
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