6/9/24 Day 1
After a hectic workday, I managed to escape the site at 3 pm, eager to kick off the long-awaited getaway.
Before Debbie arrived at Liverpool Street station, I grabbed a few cans of lager for our train ride to Stansted Airport—a little travel tradition to ease into vacation mode. But the smooth start hit a snag at airport security, where my bag was flagged for inspection. I ended up stuck in a 20-minute wait, watching fellow passengers struggle with the usual suspects: forgotten liquids and oversized toiletries. One woman had her bags loaded with prohibited items, holding up the entire line.
Inside Stansted, I stumbled upon the largest Wetherspoon I’ve ever seen in an airport. It was buzzing with the usual crowd of English travellers, already a few drinks in and ready to start their holidays early.
Landing in Prague, we were met with a long wait at passport control—yet another post-Brexit inconvenience. After finally clearing customs, we hopped into a taxi for the last leg of the journey. Our driver, an enthusiastic Egyptian gentleman, was keen on chatting away. I’m more of a quiet-ride kind of person, so I was relieved when Debbie took the reins and kept the conversation flowing.