Am writing this from the international Air France terminal at CDG airport in Paris. The flight has been delayed by two hours because of mechanical failure on the plane’s exhaust system, and they are getting us a nice new refurbished plane. I am not complaining mind you — I would much rather fly two hours later than try to set off across the atlantic on a jumbo jet with a busted tailpipe.
But it does provide occasion for a more in-depth exploration of this wonderful airport. Because yesterday was a holiday in France, everyone seems to have done their air travel in and out of Paris already, and the airport is refreshingly empty today.
An airport full of people can be a stressful experience, but an empty airport can be rather pleasant — especially here in Paris, where they have not caught the dread American disease that I fondly refer to as “let’s play loud non-stop music everywhere until people are ready to claw out their eyeballs in frustration”.
No, in France they are more civilized than that. And the espresso is better, IMHO. 🙂 If you need to be stuck in an airport for several hours, I highly recommend a french airport.
FWIW, I’ve heard that the new Terminal 2 at SFO (Virgin America, AA) is gorgeous, with a Napa Farmer’s Market (and a Pinkberry). As it happens I’m flying Virgin to NY in July, so I can give you a first-hand account.
Heathrow has (or had ) Chez Gerard, a French restaurant where I spent several hours dining with a friend with a full-course French dinner 🙂 I will be in Amsterdam Schiphol tomorrow for 5 hours so I will report 🙂
A lot of Heineken on tap… 🙂 At Schipol aiport, a friend got his Gammel Dansk (Danish liquor) in his tax-free sealed bag confiscated, as a mean blond security woman claimed Denmark isn’t Europe and he cannot carry it through. Following this disaster I chose another line without the mean woman, and smiled a lot to a young man who read carefully my same duty-free bag from Denmark. He said “Thank you, you can go now” and I got my Gammel Dansk safely delivered to husband at home. It is proven so-called airport security is all random, depending on the mood of the officer in charge.