Self-inflicted wounds made our flight terrible

To nobody’s surprise, our flight experience was terrible, but it was (mostly) our own fault.

We flew out of Dulles on an evening red-eye on KLM. Before flying, we had a day to burn. The morning was getting the house in a finished state while Annalise swam in a hotel pool, and then we drove to Dulles, making a stop I’ve been wanting to make for a while – the Air and Space Museum! I’d only been to the one in downtown DC, but never the one in a giant hangar with all the planes. It turns out the Smithsonian is hiding all the cool stuff in northern Virginia.

Annalise’s current plan for the rest of her life is to be “an astronaut and a mom,” because “I like to go high and fast.” She loves videos of space launches and has made a Lego space shuttle, so the Discovery was a highlight.

The last time we took a red eye with Annalise, the flight took off at like 8. By the time they had finished with dinner, it was way too late for a then-three-year-old. This one took off at 6, which was much more reasonable.

Annalise tried hard to be good and sleep, but it was just all too exciting. No sleep was had.

Amsterdam was where we screwed up. We had booked a long layover and an in-airport day hotel to allow us to take a nap before the second leg to Trondheim. We got off the plane and were directed to the long, hot, terrible passport line to enter Europe. We then discovered our hotel was on the non-Europe side, which we had just come from. So, we went through a long, hot, terrible passport line to leave Europe. We had now technically entered and left Europe without ever leaving Schiphol.

At this point, Annalise was pretty cooked and insisted, fervently, that she didn’t need to sleep. Fortunately, as soon as I convinced her to at least try, that didn’t last.

The pink glow is due to the fact that hotels you can rent for a few hours during the day have, um, some other purposes. Annalise decided the best night-light-like setting was the one for those other purposes. Nothing says wholesome family nap like lighting designed for a very different kind of layover.

Then, we trudged through the long, hot, terrible passport line for the third time that day to enter Europe again, with a five-year-old who was furious and confused that she had been awoken from her nap.

The flight to Trondheim was uneventful, as was our drive to our apartment, thanks to some very generous friends who came and got us, which allowed us to take our six giant bags directly to the apartment door.

So, we’re here! Annalise remembers a lot! We have unpacked and visited two of her favorite playgrounds already! Most of her friends are away on summer vacation, but we look forward to reconnecting with them next week.

Jet-lag-wise, we’re doing much better than last time. The major jet-lag-related development is that Annalise has decided she likes midnight snacks. Two nights ago, I intercepted her at around 1:00 am as she took a pear from the kitchen to eat in her room. We agreed that eating fruit in bed was messy and had a late night meal of pears and bread at the kitchen table. Last night, she was apparently stealthier, as Allison only found the pear core after the fact on her bedside table. Jet lag has apparently turned her into a tiny, health-conscious burglar.

So, we are adjusting. The pears, however, remain on Trondheim time.