Was man so alles mitmacht bei einem Iberiaflug…

Normalerweise läuft ein Flug immer nach dem “gleichen” Schema ab.

Man hat eine Abflugzeit mitgeteilt bekommen und man weiß an welchem Terminal man abfliegt.

Dies muss nicht immer der Fall sein, meine Erfahrung war, dass im online Buchungsystem, auf der Iberia Website und am Flughafen verschiedene Abflugzeiten bekannt gegeben wurden. Ich war natürlich zum frühesten Zeitpunkt am Flughafen nur um festzustellen, dass der Schalter noch nicht geöffnet hatte.

Es ist auch so, dass der Fraport und Iberia verschiedene Regelungen zum Handgepäck haben. Beim Fraport darf man 8kg mitnehmen und Iberia erlaubt 10kg. Erstaunlich ist, der Arrecifer Flughafen erlaubt nur 6kg.

Aber eines ist überall gleich, Flüssigkeiten sind nur bis 100ml erlaubt. So konnte man sich nichts zu trinken ins Flugzeug mitnehmen, also war man auf die Angebote von Iberia angewiesen. Eine Dose von einem Softdrink kostete 2,50 € und wenn man Hunger hattte konnte man sich ein belegtes Baguette/Brötchen für 6-8 € genehmigen.

Man hat auch die Crew von Frankfurt nach Madrid nur schlecht verstanden, da sie überhaupt kein Deutsch sondern nur spanisch und ein wenig Englisch sprach. Wenn man das Spanische nicht verstand hatte man Pech.

In Madrid angekommen, musste man eine halbe Weltreise zum nächsten Terminal unternehmen, nämlich erstmal lange laufen bis man zu einer Art Untergrundbahn kam, die einen dann zum anderen Terminal fuhr. Auch dort musste man eine gute Strecke bis zum Gate laufen. Und zu guter letzt auch hier wieder verschiedene Abflugzeiten am Gate und Anzeigetafel.

Beim Rückflug war es dann so, dass andere Personen das Personal fragten, ob der Flug nach Frankfurt an diesem Gate abfliegen würde und bekamen die Anwort Nein. Am Ende flogen wir tatsächlich von diesem Gate ab.

Das war alles eine unnötige Belastung….

Fairy tales in Spanish

There is one shop in Arrecife that stands out for me: Librería España (Léon y Castillo 16).  With so many shops aimed at tourists, it can be quite hard to find a “normal” Spanish shop – in this case a book shop.

On my first visit to the island I stocked up on Spanish Harry Potter books and last year’s visit was no exception – I just had to go and browse the books in that shop.  Somehow, if you are looking for authentic Spanish literature (not just a translation), it’s much nicer to go to a proper book shop than search online.

Anyway, last year I found a book of children’s stories – and didn’t buy it, which I later regretted.

So it was nice to hear about a website offering just that: children’s stories in Spanish.  They may not be of Spanish origin, which would make them culturally interesting, but they are traditional stories and fairy tales from authors such as the Brothers Grimm and Hans-Christian Andersen which most people will be able to identify with.

In fact, from a language learning point of view I think that it is very interesting to listen to a story that you already know in your native language as it makes guessing any unknown vocabulary easier.

The stories are available as a podcast.  To listen, visit Cody’s Cuentos.

Flying with Iberia

I first flew to Lanzarote with Iberia six years ago – returning this year I found out that the level of service had gone downhill.

It’s worth remembering what has happened in those six years – airport security has been stepped up considerably. It is no longer possible to take liquids onto planes (with few exceptions).

Firstly, it was almost impossible to find out when we had to check-in by. The airport, online travel agent and the Iberia website all gave different answers, so we got there as early as possible, only to find that the check-in desk hadn’t opened yet. The “check-in by” time from the airport seemed to be the time that the desk actually opened!

Then there were conflicting details about hand luggage – Frankfurt airport allows 8kg, Iberia stated 10kg. As if this wasn’t enough, returning through Arrecife the signs at the gate showed a maximum of 6kg.

Changing planes in Madrid (T4/T4S) was also a long process, which involved not only a long walk but also a ride on an underground monorail. Admittedly, nothing to do with Iberia itself, but it all added to the experience.

At the gate in Madrid, the time on the gate did no match the departure time on the board. Someone asked the employee sitting at the gate desk if the flight to Frankfurt (this was on the return journey) went from this gate and was told “no”. Actually, in the end, it did!

But my real gripe has to be the on-board service. Firstly, the crew from Frankfurt to Madrid spoke almost no German and only a smattering of English. This may not affect me so much, but it did affect those passengers who spoke no Spanish. Even the safety announcement in German was from a tape that did not entirely match up with the information being given on the PA in Spanish.

But worse – there is no longer a meal or drinks on board! Six years ago, drinks were included in the price of the flight and there was even a snack on the way to Madrid and a warm meal on the way to Arrecife.

This time you had to buy any drinks (remember, you can’t take your own on board!) at 2,50EUR for a can of soft drink (per person). The only food was a selection of baguettes and rolls at horrendous prices (6-8EUR!)

In future, I think I’ll pay more attention when booking flights as to what is in included, or at the very last have a packed lunch ready. How times have changed…

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