1/15-16 Leg One of the Journey Home

Leg one is complete. Everything made it to Buenos Aires (of course, I knew that because I saw Billy and the blue bag get loaded on the plane).

Billy waiting to board. 

And here comes the plane! Had a moment where I was reminded of the movie “Airport” where the plane keeps coming. Thankfully, that didn’t happen. 

 I managed to be in the last row of the plane. Turns out, I was the only one in the whole row.

Nobody else in my row. 

 Yes, I did lay down across three seats, and yes, it was somewhat comfortable (not as comfy as those seats that become a bed…I’m guessing). Of course, I was right next to the toilets, so lots of people got to be envious of my ability to lay down!

Last sunset in Ushuaia. 

Goodbye Fin del Mundo!

Sunset AND Ushuaia. 

Buenos Aires

The Capitol of Argentina is quite large!

At the baggage claim in Buenos Aires, Billy came out 3rd! Yep, no oversize baggage place here! He made some pretty wide turns going along the snaking belt until he got to me. Fortunately, he didn’t knock anyone over. 

Wide load making the corners. 

I wanted to figure out where Check-In was for United, my next flight. No luck finding it, so I decided it was something to deal with in the morning (later…I mean, it was already morning, but 2:30 is a little early).

Since I have to keep my bags with me until I can recheck them, I set out to find a quiet spot for a rest. There were people laying all over, in all the chairs (of which there aren’t many), against open walls…I found an area that was strangely quite quiet. 

Just me and a bunch of carts. People would walk by periodically, even official looking people, but not nearly as much as the other parts of the airport. 

I got out my sleeping pad, and even the pump. Made a pillow out of the bag my quilt is in, took my shoes off, laid down, and draped my buff over my eyes.

 I’m not sure I slept much, but I did rest. I think I was dreaming about trains of carts going by…oh wait…trains of carts were going by. Eventually, more of the space was filled with carts. Then row by row, the cart locomotive took them all away again. 

Eventually, I had to pee, so I packed it all up, and headed back into airport central. I finally found the information booth, and there was even someone there! I asked which check-in counter would be United. The woman told me H46, but that it wouldn’t open until 6:00…PM (my flight is at 10:05pm). That means I have to lug Billy and the bag with me for, now, another 12 hours! It’s gonna be a long day! If I was wealthier, I think getting a hotel room might have been a good idea. But then again, unless I paid for two nights, I’d still have to check out probably by noon. Of course, if I was wealthier, I’d just pay for two nights. Sadly, I am not. 

So, I think I will go find another place to park it, and maybe sleep/rest some more.