LIGHT.LT travel'AIR - Houston, I have a Problem! | LIGHT.LT

travel’AIR – Houston, I have a Problem!

Posted on Apr 20, 2014 in Shot & Word, Books, Portfolio, Travel'AIR
travel'AIR. Approaching Houston (IAH). 2006

travel'AIR. Approaching Houston (IAH). 2006

My first trip to review portfolios in Houston Fotofest was among the longest, strangest and funniest itineraries I’ve experienced. In 2006, paper tickets started to give way to the electronic tickets.

The start of the trip was more than usual. At 4:30 AM I jumped into the car in Kaunas, and at 7 AM I waved the A4 sheet with the printed itinerary at the check-in desk of Vilnius airport. Lithuanian airlines took me to Amsterdam, where I had some time to hang around before the boarding started. With 17th century paintings in restrooms, Schiphol looked more like an art gallery than an airport. I did not know I was about to have a chance to thoroughly study that art-in-airport. After doing a long boarding line, I was told “With this sheet of paper we cannot let you aboard. Go to the transfer desk”. I asked if they saw my name on the passengers’ list. They said “YES”, but the only possible direction for me was the transfer desk. Sure, before going there I could watch my flight depart, feeling like trapped on the Moon… At the desk they told me I had to have a paper ticket. The team in Fotofest was busy trying to resolve the problem by finding an alternative itinerary, but it seemed like by the time the working day came to Houston, all of the US-bound flights had left Europe. Me, I had more than enough of time to buy a duplicate ticket for the next day’s flight, learn the geography of Schiphol, admire the Rijksmuseum’s airport department, find areas with wall sockets, WiFi, a shop, which already had the fresh Nikon D200 on display, etc. Before my sleep, I “organised” the Lithuanian sea photography exhibition, which was opened as the central show of the “Photo de Mer” festival in Vannes, France, a month later.

travel'AIR. Clouds over the USA. 2006

travel'AIR. Clouds over the USA. 2006

The next day’s flight was victorious. The Jumbo, named City of Johannesburg, was finally taking me to Houston. Problems solved. On approach to Houston, Fotofest seemed to be visible: event a view of residential areas through the aircraft window seemed like signed by the most fashionable tilt-shift artist of the day, Olivo Barbieri.

The story of the paper ticket was still intriguing. At Fotofest they said: “We had send it”… That meant, I had to have it in my mailbox. On the day I returned from the US, I got a phone call from express mail: “You have an envelope from the USA. We’ve cleared it thru customs today”.

I love electronic tickets!

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