Money, not Tears

Ugh. And so it goes. I missed my flight today. That's what I get for diligently checking the flight status beforehand. So my flight was delayed from 12:30pm to 2pm, and when I saw that online I decided to just stay here at the hostel a bit longer. I arrived at the airport at 11:30am and was promptly told that the gate for my flight was closed...despite the flight delay they had processed it at the original time. So there I was, and they refused to let me on even though the flight wasn't leaving for 2.5 more hours! They must have already given my seat away.

So for the first time in months I began crying, and I'm never the type of girl able to turn on the water show when she wants something. But even my beautiful tears of sorrow failed to sway the hunch-backed Delta man from getting me on the plane.

Because Delta only offers one flight to NYC a day, and no other flights in North America, the flight was booked until the 10th. So I could either wait another five days and sight see some more, or pay $233 for the emergency seat tomorrow.

Flight delays on your way home are one of those events that so gleefully mess with your emotions. Even yesterday, if I knew I had the option to extend another five days I would have jumped at it. But today, having psyched myself up for "finally going home" it was such a blow - "not just a later flight today but in five more days ?!!" So I took the option of paying to fly home tomorrow. Either way I'd have spent the same amount of money.

When I finally arrived back at my hostel (via an hour and a half taxi ride through the ghettos of Cairo when it should normally takes 30 minutes) I told one of the hostel workers what had happened. I told him I had cried and still I wasn't able to get on and now was going to pay for a flight tomorrow. He asked me increduously, "You mean youi didn't try and pay the man to get you in?!"

Another lesson learned in Cairo: money not tears my friend, money not tears. I should have known bribery was the best option....silly American.

In any case, I now have one more day/night to eat my favorite Ta'mayya (falafel) and rice pudding while inhaling the black Cairo air. Life is still good.