{"id":52,"date":"2021-01-03T11:11:52","date_gmt":"2021-01-03T11:11:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/engage.augsburg.edu\/zobitz\/?p=52"},"modified":"2021-01-03T11:11:52","modified_gmt":"2021-01-03T11:11:52","slug":"we-made-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/engage.augsburg.edu\/zobitz\/2021\/01\/03\/we-made-it\/","title":{"rendered":"We made it!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

We have arrived.  So\nthankful that everything worked out.  I\nguess the important news to report is that it was \u2026 relatively uneventful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

We had a lot of tailwinds in our favor.\u00a0 Our mandatory pre-trip COVID<\/a> tests came back the next day \u2013 clearing us for travel.\u00a0 The traffic level at airports was relatively light, making security lines a breeze.\u00a0 I know how busy some European airports were, so an hour and a half transfer made me nervous (I had thought we would need to go through passport, pick up luggage, get in inspected, drop it off, etc, etc).\u00a0 However our luggage was checked all the way through from Minneapolis to Helsinki.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And everyone we have interacted with (the staff at airports, hotel, trains) has been so helpful and gracious as we bumbled our way through because we were exhausted (and maybe a little exhausting).\u00a0 As an example my son (really bad) had to use the bathroom in line for passports in Helsinki (which to me passport control is an area where you have to stay in line and follow directions).\u00a0 For him, waiting was not an option, but we did not see one anywhere.\u00a0 We started to duck the line to ask. The staff was able to direct us to the bathroom (which was in an area that was not in use at the time), and then allowed us to get back in line with my spouse.\u00a0 Jukka (my host) met us at the hotel today to pick up some of our luggage to make it less cumbersome on the train. These small and large kindnesses has reduced my anxiety that comes in traveling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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