"You are going to Germany ..... tonight."
This morning, I went to work happily, thinking it was going to be an uneventful day. Little would I have known that I would be packing my bags right now, planning to go to some place across the world!
At about 12:30pm today, my manager told me that I might have to go to Germany. Germany? I thought to myself. Last week, I had been told that I had to go to India, so I went to the Indian High Commission to apply for a visa. That did not happen eventually. Later, I was told I might be going to Australia, but that did not happen too. So I thought, maybe Germany will not happen too. Besides, my manager did not yet know where in Germany I was supposed to go, so it seemed even less likely to me that I would be heading there at all.
In any case, I went ahead to make arrangements to retrieve my passport (which was in the process of obtaining a visa from the Indian embassy). I also confirmed that it was ok for Malaysians to travel to Germany without a visa. Having done all that, I spent the rest of the day awaiting the final decision (which I still thought was highly unlikely). Then at 5:00pm, my manager came back to me.
"Looks like you're going to Germany after all."
"Ok, when?"
"Tonight. I want you to go ahead and get back your passport, and then make arrangements to fly to Germany."
"Tonight??? Ok, so which part of Germany am I going to?"
"Stuttgart. Now, let us see what flight you can get ... ahhhh 11:20pm on Air France! You can leave tonight." (at least I know where I'm going to now :P)
"Who am I meeting over there?"
"We are still trying to arrange that."
"Errr ... ok. Looks like I will have a lot of things to do in the next few hours -- get back my passport, book my flight, book my hotel, and pack my bags."
"Just go home and pack your bags now. I will help you with the flight booking and we'll try to see if you can pick up the ticket at the airport."
I must confess I was a little panicked, seeing that there was not much time left between then and the flight departure time. Still, I think I am becoming quite an expert in packing. Just give me one hour, and I am ready to leave the country for several months.
That was what I did. By 7:30PM, I had finished packing. Now I have some time left until I have to go to the airport. I am still waiting for my manager to let me know what the flight arrangements are.
Now, I do look forward to the prospect of going to Germany. However, I wish I had a little more time than 3 hours to prepare for it. I guess that is why I love this job.
At about 12:30pm today, my manager told me that I might have to go to Germany. Germany? I thought to myself. Last week, I had been told that I had to go to India, so I went to the Indian High Commission to apply for a visa. That did not happen eventually. Later, I was told I might be going to Australia, but that did not happen too. So I thought, maybe Germany will not happen too. Besides, my manager did not yet know where in Germany I was supposed to go, so it seemed even less likely to me that I would be heading there at all.
In any case, I went ahead to make arrangements to retrieve my passport (which was in the process of obtaining a visa from the Indian embassy). I also confirmed that it was ok for Malaysians to travel to Germany without a visa. Having done all that, I spent the rest of the day awaiting the final decision (which I still thought was highly unlikely). Then at 5:00pm, my manager came back to me.
"Looks like you're going to Germany after all."
"Ok, when?"
"Tonight. I want you to go ahead and get back your passport, and then make arrangements to fly to Germany."
"Tonight??? Ok, so which part of Germany am I going to?"
"Stuttgart. Now, let us see what flight you can get ... ahhhh 11:20pm on Air France! You can leave tonight." (at least I know where I'm going to now :P)
"Who am I meeting over there?"
"We are still trying to arrange that."
"Errr ... ok. Looks like I will have a lot of things to do in the next few hours -- get back my passport, book my flight, book my hotel, and pack my bags."
"Just go home and pack your bags now. I will help you with the flight booking and we'll try to see if you can pick up the ticket at the airport."
I must confess I was a little panicked, seeing that there was not much time left between then and the flight departure time. Still, I think I am becoming quite an expert in packing. Just give me one hour, and I am ready to leave the country for several months.
That was what I did. By 7:30PM, I had finished packing. Now I have some time left until I have to go to the airport. I am still waiting for my manager to let me know what the flight arrangements are.
Now, I do look forward to the prospect of going to Germany. However, I wish I had a little more time than 3 hours to prepare for it. I guess that is why I love this job.
