The longest day

The longest day, day 55 (travelers only). We wake up on Monday, 8th of August, at 6:30am local time. Three quick showers, close the one opened suitcase, and we are waiting for the hotel bus at 7:15. At 7:30, we are in the bus. We arrive at the airport terminal at 7:45, have our 3 suitcases checked-in at 8, we swiftly pass security (8:05), then have to wait a tidy bit to get our visas cancelled at immigration, which is behind us at 8:15. We then have time for shopping and breakfast until 9:40, boarding time. We board, manage somehow to put our handheld luggage in overhead bins, and of we go. We all share a first movie, then Samuel sleeps a bit, Gadea checks out a second movie, Eyquem the map and the window: we are avoiding Russia so moving east over arctic territories, in the end all of us lean over to the window quite often to admire the white views (thankfully, the first part was cloudy, allowing Samuel to sleep a good 2 hours). Putin allows us to complete a tour of the globe, but the cost is a flight back that is a bit longer than 15 hours…

We are supposed to land at 6pm Paris time and be at the gate at 6:20pm. The last train from CDG to Rennes is at 6:35, so we’ve given hope on that one when Air France cancelled our night flight from Haneda to Paris, but we have seats on the last TGV from Montparnasse to Rennes, which leaves Montparnasse at 9:15pm. If we are on time, and if we pass immigration swiftly, and if there are no problems when recovering our suitcases and if there are no RER problems, we should make it. That is many if, but for once all goes well. We land exactly on time, are at the gate at 6:20pm, all goes swiftly, and we are in the RER B at 7:19, connect easily to M4, and make it in Montparnasse in time to buy some food. At 9:15 the train leaves, but we have to wait 20 minutes in Le Man: it is the last train to Rennes, and we are waiting for a delayed connection. In any case, the three of us are mostly sleeping. We manage to wake up at 11:45pm in Rennes, get to the metro, walk 10 minutes and make it home 15 minutes after midnight. A long day of exactly 24 hours!