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We were supposed to fly out of Tampa at 11:22 yesterday morning, but our plane needed repairs. After hours of waiting and standing in lines, we finally ended up on a flight that left at about 6:50 in the evening. Spending all that time in the airport can be great for developing endurance and honing your observation skills.
During my time there I learned that when someone announces a code 3 no one is allowed to leave the security area, but if there is a code 10 everyone just ignores it.
The airport floors are extremely shiny. The airport also appears to be sloped. No wait, that’s just my sloppy photography skills.
People at the airport do a lot of waiting and reading while waiting. (I guess I always knew that.)
Once you realize it will be hours before your plane leaves it’s much nicer to hang out by the airport hotel’s swimming pool.
I travel quite a bit so I’ve been in a lot of airport, but somehow I’ve managed to avoid JFK until now. I expected so much more from this airport that I hear mentioned on television and in movies on a regular basis. I expected expansive open terminals lined with fancy stores where weary travelers can spend their money on useless overpriced items in a jet-lag induced haze. Boy, was I wrong.
Instead, I experienced an airport that smelled faintly of poop. Even though there was no actual construction going on the airport felt like it was under construction. I kept thinking that maybe it would be a nice airport once they finished working on it.
Our layover was only 2 hours and most of that time was spent going through immigration and customs. Once we got through immigration and customs we had to stand in line to go through security screening again before going into the terminal for our transfer. What do they think I’m going to have on me? I just got off the airplane. Then we walked around the narrow halls of our terminal. I’ve never seen an airport with hallways this narrow. The foot traffic was constantly getting blocked up by confused travelers lugging around oversized bags.
No Gucci store, no seafood bar, no shiny tile floors. This airport was a shabby disappointment. I give it one star.
The American returned to his native country yesterday. It was a cloudy day that he began by loudly singing the Star Spangled Banner in the bath. Then he put on his suit complete with American flag pin, and we headed to the airport. In the car he talked about the beauty of his homeland and sang a few patriot songs.
He’s staying there with his mother to complete the final years of teenagehood. Here are some pictures I took at the airport.
