The time finally came to leave Israel. We were sad to go, but happy to get back to non-kosher food. Our first obstacle - Ben Gurian Airport.
There was a time that anyone arriving in Israel would go through passport control, pick up luggage and then go to a big room with lots of long tables. There luggage would be searched for illegal items. They don't do that anymore. Getting into Israel is easy, getting out . . . .
1) Our Israeli guide brought us to the airport and told us what to do and where to go. A few of us headed in the right direction. We were asked where we were flying to. My friends were put in one line, and I was put in another. (Now, because of some really bad hair days, I had taken to wearing a scarf, much like the Orthodox Jewish women do. So, it was assumed I was not with the Utah group.) I was finally reunited with them, but several times I was asked if I was with the group. I would have taken the scarf off, but the hair was a major puffball.
2) The x-ray machines. These are quite powerful, enough that they can detect print. I and a few others were sent to have our bags manually checked because we failed x-ray! I had a tripod for my cameras, and truthfully, it looked like a weapon on the x-ray. A friend had bought a Koran, and she had to answer all kinds of questions about that.
3) Finally, get in line to check in with Delta. I waited 30 minutes behind a family, finally gave up and went to another line. The lovely agent helped me repack my bags so that the one was not so heavy, and saved my $150 in costs.
4) Then off through some gate that checked if you had a boarding pass.
5) Passport control
6) x-ray for carry on items
7) finally get to the gate with a few minutes so spare. It took almost three hours to go through these 7 steps!
I am finally home. I have more to add to the blog as soon as I can. So stay tuned.
No comments:
Post a Comment