When you arrive to the airport and straight out of the gate are told, “Nice bag. No, really, nice bag. We see a lot of bags coming through and, this one, this one is a good one,” you know it is going to be a good trip, maybe.
Just prior to going through security, I decided to alert my credit card companies of my adventure. “Thank you for letting us know. Our card is not accepted in France, Belguim or Holland. It is accepted in Cuba and Brazil.” “Not only am I not going to Cuba, Americans cannot go there. Wow. Guess I’ll exchange my money in France,” I told That’s Not Chinese.
The second gate we approached also provided us good news. That’s Not Chinese advised the gate agent of her name and the agent handed her an envelope containing drink coupons. As we were taking our seats on the plane we were sharing our joy with the couple in the row behind us. The man quipped, “I didn’t know they gave them (drink coupons) to unaccompanied minors.” “Yep, 16 of them,” That’s Not Chinese replied.
16 unused drink coupons later (drinks are free on the direct flight, “Oh, no worries, we’ll use them on the way home,” That’s Not Chinese assured everyone), we were in France. We found our luggage right away. Nice bag is not only nice, it is easy to find, which makes it even nicer. “Oh, honey,” That’s Not Chinese said to me while looking, sadly, at my bag, “What happened?” Turns out nice bag had a nice dent in it. “Good thing it has a ten year warranty,” I responded. “Yes,” she replied and added, “but it just doesn’t make any sense. It was a direct flight with no turbulence.”
Not one to get upset by such things, I decided to focus on withdrawing some Euros. That’s Not Chinese went first and her transaction was simple. Not so much for me. My debit card and PIN were rejected at several machines. “I am in Europe and my money is no good here. No Discover. No American Express. No money,” I told That’s Not Chinese. She replied, “At least you’ve got a nice bag – with a ten year warranty.”