Evacuation was pretty uneventful. We said goodbye to our stalwart friends and boarded the bus. The ride to the airport proved educational for me. I hadn’t been off the island during the riots, so to see some of the results was pretty incredible. We passed several tanks, burned out military vehicles, road blocks, and a lot of graffiti. I couldn’t believe how wrecked it was.
Scrawled on buildings and bridges were the words “No Mubarak.” Just the space affected by the crowds was incredible. The protest space went on for what seemed like several miles of our trip. Another incredible thing about the drive…the sheer number of heavily armed military men and tanks. There must have been 20 tanks and easily three or four times that number of military.
Quite frankly, it was scary. I was grateful for our sheltered little island.
Getting to the airport and getting on the plane was fun. We had to get our passports check about 8 times by eight different people. We also had to sign a promissory note that said we agree to pay XXXX amount of money to the government when billed so that we could board the plane and get out of the “dangerous” country. Does every country charge to save their people? Anyway, the amount is supposed to reflect what a one way economy class ticket from Cairo to Frankfurt would cost. I am hoping that its fairly cheap. My ticket to Cairo and back home was only $1400.
After signing the blank check to the government, we had to go through security where, you guessed it, I got randomly selected to have my bags searched… lol. Luckily the thing that showed up on the screen was my laptop and they only ended up searching my back pack. I would have hated to have to repack my suitcase. Is it sad that I thought that while they were searching?
After security, was immigration. YAY! another stamp in my passport. After immigration was a wait. We didn’t mind the slow down though, it gave us a minute to set our very heavy bags down and relax for about an hour. After everyone had signed their blank checks (the government made a killing on this evac,) we were loaded on three standing buses and driven to our own plane. I couldn’t believe we all fit. It was hands down the most uncomfortable flight I have ever taken. Still though, I am grateful for it.
The ride was very uneventful. As I watched Cairo vanishing through the clouds, I will admit I shed a few tears. It really does feel like a life long dream has been destroyed. I woke up every morning in Cairo so happy to be there. It isn’t real to me yet that it’s over. I digress. Keep in mind I saw nothing in Cairo, one of the oldest cities in the world; we also flew into Istanbul…another one of the older cities in the world. We weren’t allowed to deplane. We stopped for fuel and for the crew to switch out.
All said, we were in the air about 7 hours. The plane was crowded, but people were not irritable at all. I guess tragedy makes people more tolerant. We all funneled off the plane with our luggage and headed into the terminal.
I want to take a minute to talk about the people who were there when we landed. We entered a small area in the airport with chairs and what not, but there were also people circulating drinks for adults and children, snacks, and any information we might need. As I stood in line waiting to check into the country (something they do to keep track of who they have evacuated,) I was given cookies and offered sparkling water. When I was finished in line I was guided to a buffet of sorts that had capri suns, cookies, water, soda, bananas and apples, string cheese, lots of stuff. I grabbed a bunch and threw them in my food bag.
After grabbing food, we were guided through the terminal to the immigration line (another stamp,) and to the baggage claim. Along with leading us all there, the helpers stayed and then assisted people in getting to various exits, guiding them to the hotel shuttle (embassy employees got rooms at the Sheraton,) and leading people like me (who needed phone or internet to know what to do) to the USO.
The USO rocks hard. It is a tiny office with six computers and three phones all for US citizens needing something even if all they need is a cupcake. There was hot coffee and homemade baked goods waiting for us along with an awesome selection of chocolate bars that easily cost $3-$5 each in the states. All of the help we received made the transition into Frankfurt very simple. I was extremely grateful.
Jennifer (Moses #1) got me a room at the Holiday Inn Frankfurt Airport North. It’s an awesome hotel. I have this perfect teeny tiny room with a desk, nice sized bathroom, three closets (that I have yet to use,) a small table and nightstand and an upholstered chair. My only complaint…like any of the nicer hotels, they charge for internet. Other than that, this is the most perfect place I have ever stayed.
Even so, I slept poorly, I think mostly because of stress. Tonight a lot of that will get figured out. I want to stay in Germany and finish a semester abroad. It’s a dream I am not fond of giving up on.
Ryan (Moses #2) is doing so much work for me. ( I really can’t say enough about how much he, Jennifer, Gilman, and Texas Tech have done for me and how awesome it is that they care so much about me and this nightmare situation.) I get email updates about what is happening and calls to coordinate. It has been working as well as anything with a 7 hour time difference can. I am just very grateful that I have this team working for me. I don’t think anyone else could have accomplished so much in so little time and helped take a load of stress off my shoulders. It really is a relief.
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