Outbound journey + arrival in New York

At 2:30 a.m., the alarm clock rings. Sabrina had ordered the taxi that was supposed to take us from the hotel to the airport for 3:30 a.m.

The taxi driver was extremely punctual and was already helping himself to the provided croissants when we arrived in the lobby.

We were chauffeured to the airport for a reasonable 18 EUR and dropped off in front of the terminal. Marcel (Sabrina's brother) was brought by a colleague. He was surprisingly punctual as well at the agreed meeting point. At 3:45 a.m., we stood at the 'Baggage Drop' counter of Scandinavian Airlines - it was just unfortunate that there was no counter staffed at that time. I preferred to sit on the bench for a while and just wait. Sabrina and Marcel guarded the first place in line to be able to check in their luggage on time.

The security check went as usual. There was hardly anyone there. We passed the time in the Duty Free shop and were able to board the small plane (about 90 seats) to Copenhagen more than on time at 5:50 a.m. I had checked in online and was able to reserve wonderful seats at the emergency exits - for free. Thank goodness, because otherwise the 60-minute flight for Marcel and me would have been torture.

The Copenhagen Airport is not small. We still had time to have breakfast and stroll through the numerous well-kept shops. I had the feeling that the Danes are much better organized than in many places in Germany.

Punctually to the minute, the boarding for the flight to New York began. I had reserved seats and booked XL legroom in advance. And that's what we got. In the plane, I noticed that so far surprisingly little had gone wrong - just to be safe, I double-checked if Marcel was also in his seat. Check. It couldn't be, I thought to myself, that everything is easy going here. Of course, I should be proven right.

The plane took off well ahead of schedule. The onboard service was decent, despite the super low price - national airline after all. The pilots did their part to prolong their lives and landed at the airport in Newark almost 50 minutes ahead of the scheduled time.

Then comes what annoys every visitor to the USA. Customs control. People wait to be checked, questioned, and treated rather unfriendly by border officers.

So we stood in line until it was our turn. 'Guides' made sure that even more chaos ensued while they opened and closed the belts through which my luggage was being processed and gave some meaningless instructions in between. Finally, we reached the counter. Marcel was the first in line. The woman asked him how long he intended to stay in the USA. He said 3 weeks. Then the usual questions, if he was carrying more than $10,000 worth of half animals, etc. Somehow I had a bad feeling already when the young man stood alone in front of the grumpy-looking lady. While he had his hands and fingers scanned, it must have happened. The woman asked him again how long he intended to stay in the USA. He answered 3 DAYS. The reason is not known. It seems that he didn't understand what the woman wanted from him. And it went as expected. Nato alert. The woman asked him again how long he wanted to stay. He said '3 weeks'. 'Why did you say 3 days then?' 'I made a mistake.' 'How long are you staying in the USA?' '3 weeks' 'Why did you say 3 days then?' 'I made a mistake.' 'Do you have more than $10,000 in cash?' 'No' 'How many credit cards and debit cards do you have with you?' And repeat again. At some point, the lady seemed to have formed her impression and the young man was finally allowed through the control. - It was clear to me that he would be stopped somewhere else. Tears in my eyes, it was my turn then! :D It went smoothly for me. It should be noted that the officers don't have much sense of humor - but maybe that's a good thing.

Then pick up luggage and queue again for 'customs control'. Another line. Another wait. For what? For a customs officer to look at the forms we had filled out earlier, shake them, and either let you through or say 'Baggage Check'. This is based on what the border officer wrote on the customs declaration beforehand. I bet you can guess who was asked to do a Baggage Check.

Sabrina and I were allowed to go straight through. The young man was waved aside and thoroughly checked. Another wait, his composure (which was already gone after the immigration control) was put to the test again.

Finally, he came out into the terminal as well. His face was bright red and he was cursing like a trooper. Sabrina couldn't stop laughing. Well, at least everything else went well.

Now we had to contact the transfer service. You could either call yourself or have someone call you - at least that's what was stated in the voucher. The friendly lady at the welcome center then pointed me to a telephone booth. I was supposed to dial only 66 and would then be connected to the car rental center. Done and done.

Level 1 Pickup Station 2 was our pickup location. Sabrina was still skeptical and grumbled about the expensive fees. Finally, fresh air. Suddenly, Sabrina wasn't so keen on taking the train anymore. 30 degrees heat and wearing nice long clothes. The girl is always cold on the plane.

Now we would have had to go to the train station to then take the train to Manhattan. Of course, the train wouldn't have stopped right in front of the hotel. We would have had to walk a short distance of 500 meters. But with 6 suitcases and various bags and camera bags, that would have been quite a feat.

Well. Thank goodness Dad booked the shuttle and, promptly, no more than 7 minutes after the call, the Chevrolet Suburban was waiting at the agreed spot. The driver loaded everything up and we could take a seat in the air-conditioned car. Off we went to Manhattan. There had been an accident in the tunnel. Therefore, the drive took just under 35 minutes. But that's also top for New York. The toll and a tip had to be paid separately. Everything was as described and agreed upon. TOP! When we arrived in front of the hotel, the driver unloaded everything obediently and bid us farewell with a handshake.

The check-in at the Hilton was lightning fast, and so we could check into our room less than an hour after leaving the airport.