Wed, 20 Aug 2008 19:21:03 +0000
Drakensburg to Jo'burg Index Frankfurt Day 1
So this is it, today the adventure ends. I'm really surprised at how much I regret that. Most sections of this journey have been enjoyable, but exhausting, and I've been as glad that they ended as I was that I did them in the first place. This time, I feel that I could continue exploring Africa for another month.
Not that I particularly want to spend any more time in Johannesburg. With my shuttle leaving for the airport at 1:30, there was no time to do anything sensible with the morning. I went to the mall to use the Internet and book somewhere to stay in Frankfurt. But mainly I just hung around the hostel.
Fortunately, over the course of the night whatever cold symptoms I'd been suffering from cleared up almost entirely. When I went to bed I was dangerously dizzy, and freezing far beyond what the weather could justify. And the headache was even worse by the early morning. But by the time I got up even the headache was fading. I'm now in fine form to fly.
I was about the second person to check in, so I got my window seat no problems. Johannesburg airport is comfortable enough, and there was a cafe with a spare powerpoint, so I settled in to read my news. I had quite a few rand to get rid of, which went mostly on coffee and beer. Not really a sensible way to prepare for a 10 hour flight, but it passed the time.
Practically everyone on the plane is German, which I guess reflects the strength of the Euro. But since these are all the people with good enough English to get by in South Africa, I'm being lazy and just speaking English.
My seat is fantastic: right at the back, so I'm in a row with no middle seat. I usually hate 747s, but this one will be better than most.
And I waved farewell to Johhanesburg airport and we punched through the cloud, my last view of Africa. This being a night flight, I can't even watch the landscape from the plane, which is a great pity. The next thing I see out my window will be Germany. Sigh.