South Africa > It's raining in Johannesburg

It is exactly half past seven when we depart for Schiphol Airport. We need to arrive on time to check in the old-fashioned way, as online check-in had not worked earlier. Most likely, someone else from the travel group had accidentally entered our reservation number, which meant we were already checked in but didn’t have our boarding passes—a problem! Through the telephone helpdesk, we were checked out again, but then online check-in still wouldn’t work. There was no other option than to check in at Schiphol itself. At the KLM counter, the check-in process goes smoothly, and soon we are sitting with a cappuccino, waiting for our flight.

South Africa - A giraffe

The plane departs on time for Johannesburg. At precisely ten o’clock, the aircraft takes off for a flight of 10 hours and 35 minutes. Along the way, the usual newspapers, snacks, drinks, and a meal are served. Next to me sits a South African from the Johannesburg area. He shares some information about South Africa and says we’ve chosen a very beautiful route. At quarter to nine in the evening (it’s one hour later here), we land at Johannesburg Airport. It’s raining! The line for customs is long, and it takes a while before it’s our turn. Once we get through customs, the luggage is not yet on the designated carousel. It soon becomes clear that the baggage is being loaded onto a different carousel. I quickly spot my suitcase on the belt. In the arrivals hall, we meet Gerhardt, who will be our guide for the coming weeks. We also meet the rest of the travel group here. At the airport, we have the opportunity to exchange money or withdraw cash. I join the line to exchange money, which turns out to be quite a process, requiring copies of the passport, stamps, home address, etc. Because of this, the money exchange does not go very quickly. After forty-five minutes, I finally have South African Rand in my pocket. We walk to the bus and head to our first overnight stop. Gerhardt mentions that it has rained heavily in Johannesburg that very day. He hands out the keys to our rooms while we are on the bus and says he will explain more about the program tomorrow. By the time we arrive at the Johannesburg Airport Lodge, it is already half past eleven in the evening. We crawl under the covers.