Frankfurt International

Frankfurt from the plane
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The first leg of my trip, really wasn't much of a stop, but 10 hours in my first country merits somewhat of a description.  I flew directly from Fairbanks, Alaska to Frankfurt, Germany.  I was thinking I was rather lucky to not have to hop around the lower 48 much, only having to stop in Frankfurt before heading to Denmark.  I was rather lucky, however, I was mistaken when I thought I would escape the smelly cabin dweller that Fairbanks is so well known for.  I must have been sitting next to one of the only other Americans on the plane, and he was rather large as well as incredibly smelly.  For nine hours.  I suppose it could have been worse.

Ice field in the Arctic
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The most exciting part about this leg of the trip was that we flew over the North Pole.  I got to see the Northern coast of Alaska, the North Pole (respectively) and the Northern tip of Greenland. When I got to Frankfurt airport, my step Brother wasn't kidding, that place was huge!  My first shock was that people were allowed to smoke anywhere they wanted within the airport.  There was no where you could go to get away from the smoke.

I was a little surprised that I was not greeted by your local friendly customs agent when I got off the plane.  My only other experience with customs, other than on the boat in British Colombia, was when I was 14 in Australia and I remember them shepparding people through a contained area where you had to let them know if you had anything you weren't supposed to have and try to keep your knees from shaking as you were stared down.  I walked off the plane and into the airport without seeing anyone.  It was kind of nice, but I felt this strange feeling of guilt, like I evaded the law or something and was supposed to proceed to the nearest customs agent before being arrested.  Rather unfounded, but it shows you the extent of my traveling abroad experiences.

Northern Greenland
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I wandered around the airport for a little while.  Had intended to check out some of the stores, but I always like to find my gate first and then wander.  Turns out, I had to go out through the security and back in again and so, wasn't able to check out the stores after all.  So, I walked through an area where someone checked my passport and stamped it, then I was back through security and at my gate.  It was a very long 10 hours and I did not have a place to sleep, so I attempted to stay awake.  Luckily, I had Harry Potter, so it wasn't too difficult.

People were surprisingly rude in at the airport.  I don't know if it was a culture thing, or a get-out-of-my-way-I'm-traveling sort of thing, but I was frequently cut in front of in lines, pushed aside and ignored for most of the 10 hours.  I had already been wondering what the hell I got myself into and if I was doing the right thing (as is normal for me when trying new things) so it came as a bit of a shock.  I was relieved to get on the plane and head for my next destination; Denmark, to meet my friend Jeanette.