I spent the following hours freaking out a little, texting home to say 'I don't think I'm coming home'. Trying to ignore the ignorant french dude telling his newly acquired finnish friend that by the time we all board all of the British people will be pissed drunk. The intercom bing bong was ringing in my ears and for the first time in my life I was cursing the snow, praying for it to stop and wishing I'd got travel insurance.
'bing bong. Due to adverse weather conditions at stockholm Skavsta the runway is closed until twenty one hundred hours'- I am supposed to land in Gatwick at this time!
One by one flights are being cancelled and I agonizingly wait out the swedish announcement trying to decipher anything I can, before the english one chimes in and I breathe a half sigh of relief that it is not my flight being cancelled. Perhaps they'll make me sit for hours and then finally when its so late that the airport hotel is full they'll tell me I'm not flying either.
Skavsta is 1.5 hours from Stockholm city, and its a further 5 hours by train (for which I have no ticket) to Gothenburg where I at least have a bed. I know there's a overnight coach but no idea where from. No credit on my Swedish phone, dying battery on my English phone- everything seems to be adding up to disaster and all I want to do is get home so I can celebrate my Grandmothers 80th Birthday with her! I curse myself now for going to Stockholm in the first place, greedy! then for booking such a cheap flight- perhaps the other airports are coping fine?
The passengers of cancelled flights are given the promise of free rooms in the hotel, 'if there is room' I am totally convinced by the time my flight is cancelled the the hotel will be bursting at the seams with people desperate for a bed.
I ask the Finnish girl next to me to watch my bags/seat while I go to the toilet- the french guy and her both look a little embarrassed to discover I am British. Which makes me chuckle to myself - a little light relief in the circumstances.
I have all but given up hope of taking off and am transfixed on the snow still falling in sheets outside when out of nowhere there is suddenly an announcement which receives much applause and cheering and the French guy and Finnish girl get up and gather their things. I don't need to wait for the English announcement as they are both on my flight so I just run towards the gate along with everyone else. I switch my phone on to text and say I am boarding the plane and I receive a text immediately 'It says go to your boarding gate' and so it seems England knew I was coming before I did.
We sit on the plane for what feels like an eternity with the door open, freezing but sooo happy to just be on board. I hear the Air stewardess tell someone it doesn't mean we're definitely flying yet and some passengers joke that they put us here for the last bit of the wait to avoid giving the free drinks that they are obliged to after a certain number of hours waiting.
I really don't care about the drinks, or how hungry I am, or much of anything because now I finally feel confident that I'm going home! A plane from Paris lands which further convinces me that everything is fine and I close my eyes and dose a little, I stir when I hear the captains announcement to 'prepare for take off' and finally we make our way down the runway. So so happy and grateful.
Ohh Stockholm you were wonderful and I certainly wont forget this visit easily - perhaps I'm dramatic but I hope the next one is less tense!
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