What a day…
I was asked to help a friend of mine out and well with not much else to do I said yes…
So this was the plan:
-Pick up a 90kg jib in Antwerpen
-Check in at Brussels Airport for a flight to Nice
-Retrieve the sail and meet your pick-up in Nice.
-Deliver the jib personally to the boat and help getting them set-up.
-Wait
-Get back to Nice Airport
-Fly to Brussels
-Go home
This was my day:
-4 am the alarm clock goes
-4.30 leaving Delft
-6 am picking up the sail near Bergen op Zoom (note, not Antwerp)
-7 am having parked the car checking in for 8.55 departure with sail at Brussels Airport
-7.05 Sail gets rejected…
-7.06 I explain everything to the manager and notice North Sails. I recieve my instructions and everybody starts working about a solution…
-Around 8 there has been arranged to get the sail on a cargo plain for Nice late in the evening
-A bit later there is arranged to get the sail on the next plane (12.40 departure)
-8.25 someone from Brussels Airlines makes some arrangements with some friends in the luggage handling department
-8.30 I receive my ticket after handing off the sail and start running towards the gate
-8.50 Boarding the plane
-8.55 Push back on time
-8.56 A big sigh of relieve
-10.40 Touch down in sunny Nice
-10.50 leaving plane and notice the sail being loaded from the plane (another big sigh)
-11.15 sail shows up on the normal luggage belt, some strange looks, very funny
-11.25 Picked up by Jamie and Jodie of Aqua Equinox
-11.30 Sail is in the car and we’re off to Villefrance-sur-Mer
-12.15 Sail is on the boat and time for a bit of rest
During the afternoon the sail gets hoisted and set-up, the work on the boat to prepare her for charter continues and the sun is out (32 degrees on the water and not a single cloud to see). After the hectic (and slightly stressful) morning everything became more relaxed after the sail was hoisted in the early afternoon.
-17.45 departure from Villefrance and heading through traffic to Antibes.
-19.00 Time for a short stroll through the HUGE Antibes marina whilst Jamie picked up some new sheets for the boat
-19.55 Arrival at the airport and check-in
-22.50 after almost an hours’ delay the plane is pushed back and the return journey really starts
-0.40 Arrival in Brussels
-3 am Home…
Here’s a cameraphone shot from the boat (with just delivered jib):
Great day!
Ciao,
