Image copyright : Wikipedia images
There is only one word to describe your first flight to a different continent. TIRING !! My ticket was pre booked by a travel agency which chosen by my scholarship provider. I chose to travel by Lufthansa, the airlines preferred by most on such trips to Europe. Sadly they allowed only 31 kg of luggage with me, but interestingly, I managed in that.
The trip was pretty uninteresting because i didnt get the window seat, and it was a night flight so I spend much time sleeping. But here are the highlights.
1. WINE. yes they serve wine on your flight. Imagine that !!
2. the Frankfurt terminal. That was a big one. You could get lost if you didnt know how to read the signs.
Image : The actual plane which brought me from Bombay to Frankfurt. I took this picture just after stepping off the aerobridge which led to the terminal ( read mayhem !)
After getting down, well I had to read the signs, present my passport to an officer who spoke English ( thankfully !) and enter the European Union. I proceeded unharmed, to the correct terminal where I boarded a SAS flight to Copenhagen and onwards I took a train to Lund. On the way I understood that the Oresund bridge is party owned by Denmark and by Sweden, so if you have a ticket from a Swedish company ( check it beforehand , unlike me) do not try punching in the numbers at a Danish machine and wonder why your ticket isnt being printed out!
At Copenhagen station, which is in the vicinity of the airport, thankfully i met a mentor from Lund University who helped me with my luggage, which incidentally had torn hinges and had to be lifted up. A short note, Jet Airways did that to my luggage, and according to the baggage counter at Mumbai , they dont cover any damage claims like torn hinges due to mishandling of luggage by themselves, so double check your hinge, especially if you intend to use the cheaper "40 percent sale" items at American Tourister.
On the train I met another mentor, and scholarship holders like me, from Bahrain. The point worth mentioning is that the train stops only for five minutes at every station so LOOK OUT !!
The high point of the train journey is the Oresund Bridge. For interested people here is a link http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%98resund_Bridge
Since I arrived on the official arrival day we had mentors from the University who helped us reach the AF building, where I signed in as a student and also received the keys from the international housing office. Its pretty self explanatory there. If you are unsure, look out for students carrying heavy luggage, looking tired and forming a queue.
After the formalities, the mentors took us away on a car and brought me to my new home, Sparta International Corridor A. They have a very efficient system. You just have to find a sign which says the location you are headed to, mine was Sparta, and stand there. When the queue is full, they just tell you to get in, and in no time will you be there where you might be staying for the next year. On the way the mentor who was driving showed us a few spots which I didnt register in my mind due to the fact that I was tired as hell. But i guess he spoke of bicycles, so in all urgency, get once, if you are coming to Lund.
After reaching my moderately clean room, I plugged in my pc and emailed home. Next stop ? The Bed !
See you after my long jet-lagged nap !
