Parts Unknown.... FINALLY ! (CGN - FUE) .... Do they have Coal Mines on the Canary Islands ?

3:30
Good thing I went to sleep at 18:30, because I actually don't mind getting up at this hour ;-)

4:10  I pay my semi-outrageous rate for the room and I'm about to start my morning walk to the terminal (because at this hour there is not supposed to be any shuttle service......  

NOT

.....when I hear the receptionist tell two stewardesses that their ride is ready.   
Can I hitch a ride with THEM?   How much is it?     
It's FREE, says the receptionist......  Good Karma..... and to preserve that good karma I tip the shuttle driver.... and judging by his expression that is something that does not happen often.

Check-in takes 2 minutes and then it's time to face Cologne Airport security again.  
And their money making scheme is still in effect....... 
my TWO-Liter sandwich bag has passed EVERY security inspection on the FOUR circumnavigations of the world this year...... 
but they WILL NOT let it pass here.  

Just like the last time I flew out of Cologne (Istanbul?), I have to buy a ONE Liter baggie for ONE EURO.  
   
State-sanctioned HIGHWAY ROBBERY !

Ah well, In Canada they would call it an airport-improvement fee, LOL.

The odd thing:  If they would charge ONE EURO for access to the always present SMOKING LOUNGES in the secure zone, I wouldn't mind paying it at all ;-)

4:45
1.5 hours until lift-off....
time for a chocolate muffin and a glass of wine ;-)

5:15
1 hour until lift-off.....
....should I have another glass of wine ....?  OH NO, there is a line-up at the counter now ;-(

5:40
The counter line-up is GONE ;-)

I don't even get to finish my second glass when boarding starts ;-(

This is going to be an almost 5 hour flight..... I want to sleep through most of it!

Finally!  Another airport where you can just WALK from the plane to the terminal building !

There is a bus stop right in front of the terminal building.   But the schedule is CONFUSING.  I'm just about to give up and walk to the Taxi stand (50 Euros to Corralejo) but then a British woman intervenes and explains the schedule.... I'll have to wait 10 minutes for the #3 bus to take me to Puerto del Rosario...... 1.40 Euros for that trip.

The #6 bus is already waiting when we get to the depot in Puerto del Rosario..... 

....another 3.40 Euros to Corallejo....

Corralejo!  I just saved 45 Euros by going on a 45 minute bus ride instead of taking a taxi;  MUST send Gabriel and One Sky their cut ;-)

La Bolada.....I'm trying to sit at a table inside and the waitress sends me outside "I just cleaned".   But she gives me WiFi access, so I can actually figure out WHERE the house is and HOW to WALK there....

It's only 1.4 km.   I start walking but then I see the taxi stand....
5 Euros for that short distance?  I should have walked !

Now where is that building ?  I walk around the wall that goes almost to the beach.... there is another bungalow with swimming pool.... and walking around the pool are .......
VIETNAMESE PEOPLE !

I found it !

The view from the patio...

It's great to see TL again ....  

Alas.....there is no wine in the house.... so I'm off on a supply run to where I came from very soon.

 The supermarket is about 1.2 km away and 3 bottles should last me until at least tomorrow, LOL.

Vamos a la playa?   Bien sure, but I'm not sure the water will be warm enough for me after I got used to Vietnamese water temperatures.

But as soon as I put my foot into the Atlantic just off Africa, I strip to my underwear and go for a swim.  YES, that does feel GOOD ;-)

16:30
My clothes are in for a SHOCK..... they are being machine-washed for the FIRST time in 6 weeks ;-)

19:30 
Huh?  Just in time to catch dusk settling on the islands.

 Fuerteventura on the left ...... Lanzarote on the right

After TL's chicken dinner, I tell a lie (about Mother's condition) when I call Grandma...... No, I'm not proud of it, but there is NO point telling the truth in this instance.....it would do more harm than good: the woman would just lay awake all night worrying, without anything she could possibly do.

OH Mother, Here art thou.... but WHY am I here ????

2:30..... toss ... turn .... did I sleep more?..... 2:32..... WTF?    

Discovering the true nature of jet lag...  after all it is 7:30 am in Vietnam and I NEVER sleep that long, LOL.

3:30

4:30

OK, I give up!
Smoking is torture:  It's FIVE degree Celsius out there .....

8:00

The lovely view from my Industrial Area hotel window

9:30
I'm too late to request the shuttle bus to the airport...... Ah well, a fortunate coincidence.... I'll get more exercise walking to the bus stop and will save 6 Euros by taking the bus ;-)

The receptionist tells me the bus runs every 10 to 15 minutes.....Yeah right! I already suspected that it only runs through to the airport once an hour on the weekend. 

Unfortunately I assumed it was the one on the hour that went through.. NOPE.... The bus scheduled for 10:00 arrives at 10:10 and it's NOT the one that goes through....  Wait for 20 minutes in the freezing cold?

NO Way!..... there is a Bakery Cafe at the next bus stop...... their serving room is HEATED and I haven't had Kirschstreussel for a long time ;-)

I better not miss the next bus even if it means standing in the cold again ;-(

The bus drops me right at the Frankfurt Airport's Deutsche Bahn long distance Station, a very meant-to-impress and EXPENSIVE building.  I guess they didn't have any money left for the public washrooms, the Men's consists of only two stalls and two urinals.  As if that wasn't bad enough, the whole place is FILTHY and the STENCH is overwhelming.  One of the stalls is so SHITTY, that several men even refuse to pee in there.  
How I miss the SPOTLESS loos in Vietnam's airports ;-)

The display board shows that my train will be 35 minutes late, LOL, which also means that I will miss my connecting train in Hagen....   When I booked my ticket, I also requested delay notification by e-mail.  WHEN is DB going to send that delay e-mail?  1 minute before the scheduled departure?  Doesn't ANYTHING actually WORK in this country anymore?

I'm finally warming up again at ALEX restaurant in The Squaire (WHO came up with that name?). 

Here they ONLY serve breakfast at 11:30 and both their bathroom door and the hand drier are defect, LOL.  
I think Europe could benefit a lot from a small taste of the Chinese demerit point system ;-)

12:00
I can't wait to have a nap in the train ;-)

12:25
Deutsche Bahn personnel put the little slide card with the train number in upside down.   Instead of boarding car 6, as the slide card indicated, I find myself in car 9 and have to squeeze myself through 3 carriages to get to my seat.  That's OK, the washroom in car 9 bears a sign "out of order".  
 I finally get to my reserved seat... 

Oh, are those soccer fans gulping down beer and shouting in Bavarian at the top of their lungs?

So much for having a nap.

I'm SO glad that I'll be leaving again in 2 days ;-)

12:45
Lucky Day: the soccer fans leave the train at Mainz Station....it's QUIET in the train ;-)

Did I say Lucky?  At the very next station at group of 6 with beer keg enters the train and sits in the row right in front of me..... and starts drinking and shouting.

OF course, I miss the connecting train...... but NO WORRY!, there is another train in 30 minutes......   I might just make it that time without fatal frostbite !

16:22
I'm FINALLY in the hotel. My neck is killing me and I just want to go to sleep.  I am in no mood or shape to see my mother....  just a quick nap....

at 17:15, I quickly KILL the alarm clock and pass out again...

20:30  It's FREEZING outside when I go for a smoke...... my room is still COLD even though I've maxed out the thermostat ......

god, I HATE GERMANY !

4:00
OH FUCK
it's only 3:00 (again) because tonight Germany switched to winter time....
I do support Daylight Savings Time (because I am one of the apparently few people who actually understands the method and reason behind it and doesn't just rant Get Rid Of It because my neighbour does !) but today it prolongs the time I have to wait for breakfast by a whole hour ;-(.

5:15

It's THREE degrees and WINDY outside when I go for a smoke.......

WHY did I come here?

6:30
I'm filling the sink with HOT water in a desperate attempt to raise the room temperature.

the beautiful view out of my window in the early morning....

7:45
FINALLY, the bakery should be open, and maybe even the door of Mother's Home....
There is a line-up at the bakery.... I'm glad that I got here early because people arriving after me have to wait OUTSIDE in the COLD!

8:00
Mother is still getting ready when I knock at her door.....  so I wait in the breakfast room.....
Blessed are those with poor hearing:   The staff is SHOUTING at all the hard-of-hearing people ....  Think Hell on Earth....

Mother's room mate shows up.  Mother is NOT in her room and NOT downstairs....she's gone OUT....  then one of the staff finds her in one of the bathrooms, where she seems to be waiting for SOMETHING ....

OMG, WHAT happened to Mother since I saw her last 3 months ago?   Her caretaker suggested Mother has a unrequited crush on another inmate, but it really looks as if Dementia took a big leap forward......  time will tell!

10:00
check out !

I pick up Mother and we head to the Ice-Cream place.

It's a nightmare on Mom-Street

No conversation, not even an audible reply when I ask a question.....I don't even dare to take a picture of her because I'm afraid it might send her to an even worse state..... Is it possible that my mother turned from the semi-but-lively vegetable she was all her life into a complete one within 3 months?  Or is it just a prolonged pouting/depressive session?  Every moment I ask myself 'Why are you here? You're not even doing any good here. She's not even happy you're here!'
But I've known my mother long enough to know that she is SIMULATING !  When I show her a picture of Grandma's (Mother's mother) 100th birthday party on the laptop, she glances at it with pointed disinterest.  When I ask her "HOW are you?", she lifts an arm, uses her hand to block her mother's face on the laptop screen, and says "Better already".    This woman doesn't suffer from dementia but a nasty character and poor manners !

I bring her back to her room in the Home..... but I can't deal with staying there for longer......back to the ice cream parlour for another glass of wine..... I feel like I need another one!

11:25
The 5 minutes on the train platform are COLD AGONY. 

At least the train is on time and I'm getting closer and closer to a hopefully WARM hotel room at Cologne Airport.

The trains are on time and I make my connection at Cologne Messe Station easily.... 

That looks familiar..... Cologne Cathedral from the other side of the Rhine

Once I get my bearings using Google Maps on my cell phone and the Airport WiFi, the 900 meters walk to my hotel are easy ;-)

13:30
I'm in my nice Leonardo room.

It ain't cheap but it saves me a HUGE taxi bill by letting me WALK to the airport tomorrow morning at 5:00........ Oh Boy that will be COLD !

15:00
I'm going out for a smoke and I'm playing with the idea to walk over to the airport to buy some more wine and groceries for breakfast (they want 15 Euros for breakfast here ;-(.



















That foolish idea gets dropped as soon as I feel the temperature outside....

17:00
Time to brave the elements after all to get some food & wine in the airport shop