Swaziland Chronicles - Day 1 - Travel
Smooth sailing from Paris to Johannesburg on the double-decker Air France Air Bus 380 - packed to capacity with 550 passengers - short, painless layover before hopping a commuter-type jet to the smallest international airport I've ever been to in my life (sorry, King Mswati III).
Originally Posted by Keri Chryst on October 4, 2011 at 4:55 PM
Safe arrival
We are greeted by Ms. Marjorie Balorin from the American Embassy's smiling face who kindly warns us that a camera crew from the local TV station has shown up unannounced. Though we're pretty dead tired from the 12 + hour flights, I slap on some lipstick and a passable impression of fresh-out-of-bed enthusiasm to do a quick interview about the upcoming events.
The sun has poked its head out, but on the way to the hotel we drive through mostly semi-urban districts under development and don't yet get the sense of the beautiful vistas that are to come.
Opposite a surprisingly mid-western looking strip mall is the luxury hotel and casino where we'll be staying. It more than lives up to the descriptions we'd been given - comfortable beds, big bathtubs, ultra-hot water, excellent service and truly outstanding cuisine.
And now, to rest
After a casual meeting with our hosts, over a "designer pizza" in the hotel restaurant, we're given leave to rest up for the long week ahead. Nevertheless, some last minute changes to the program have me staying up till the relatively wee hours as I throw together a couple of power point presentations on "The French Connection" as well as "Tips for Managing Your Web Presence" for the following morning. So far, any thoughts of attempting to catch up on lost sleep have been thrown out the window...