Day 19 - Heathrow to Home, Aug 13th 2006
Posted by Max Dunn Mon, 14 Aug 2006 15:00:00 GMT
We had the fun of flying out of Heathrow only 3 days after the airport was closed down due to a possible terrorist attack employing liquids carried on the plane. Everywhere, there were long queues (“lines” for you Americans), and lots of security, but we made it home eventually and uneventfully.
(Max) Maxie and I joked that with all the extra security measures, Heathrow was probably the safest airport in the world!
The hardest part of the trip (besides lots of waiting) was that you could only take on the plane the absolute essentials in a clear plastic bag: money, passports, prescription drugs. Essentials did not include things like electronic games for the kids, snacks or even books! I was more scared of spending 11 hours on a plane with a 10-year boy old without his Game Boy than anything else! But there was a movie screen in each headrest and a choice of 6 movies, so we all survived the long flight.
(Suzanne) It took about 2 hours to check in at Heathrow. There were lines everywhere and security was extremely tight. You couldn’t even get into the terminal unless you had a ticket showing a flight departing within 2 hours. All others had to wait in makeshift tents that were set up outside the terminal.
We went through security twice. The first time to get to the gate and the second time at the gate. Our passports were checked and we (including the kids) were thoroughly hand searched (front and inside pants beltline too). We were given a clear plastic “designer” bag to hold any bare minimum belongings that we could take on the plane (passport, money, prescription medication, baby formula). Everything else had to be checked in or else it was confiscated. Workers with big trash bags were constantly checking our “designer” bags to see if we had any forbidden items. Max tried to hide his last Balance Bar so he could eat it before boarding the plane but a lady took it away. You couldn’t even bring books on board.
(Max) We arrived in Los Angeles over an hour late, and I didn’t think we would make our connecting flight. But luckily, our bags were some of the first ones out, and the lines at immigration and customs were quick, so we were able to make our San Francisco flight.
(Suzanne) We arrived at LAX about 1 hour late. We were greeted off the jetway by 4 customs officials, 2 who checked each and every passenger’s passport before letting us enter the terminal. LAX seemed quiet compared to Heathrow. We now had about 1 hour to get our bags, go through customs, recheck our bags go through security and find our gate for our final destination – SFO.
(Max) That flight to SFO was very quick: the in-air time was only about 40-minutes. Ironically though, it took longer than that at SFO (about 45-minutes) to get our bags! Sam picked us up (thanks again Sam!) and we finally made it home.
(Suzanne) We finally made it home—about 18 hours later. It’s good to be home!