O'Hare International Airport aka: ORD

changed planes once – walked and walked and walked, through several security checkpoints, for at least 15 minutes, within the same airline!

When I was younger, my mum worked in Terminal 5. It was always a treat to come with her to work and visit; we’d go through all sorts of passageways, her friends would turn on all the moving walkways for me, and I got to go inside a cockpit before. Buttons everywhere… it was cool when I was 8 and bet it would still be now.

I stood on the runway. No one does that, unless it’s community day for the first new runway to open since 1971. Then they invite everyone to show up. It’s surreal. A runway at a major international airport is nowhere you get to go to on foot, except today. Next time I’m here, I’ll be in an aluminum bird aiming for the sky.

Oh, and I didn’t pay for parking either. Surreal.

See the picture at: http://images.43things.com/i_did_it_entry/668xl.jpg

It’s just an airport really. All i remember is that some of the guards were useless in helping me find my way (one told me to go back to my electric ticket station when i asked fr directions to the terminal. like i was on time out. not a threat or anything, just an annoying kid who who got sent to the corner for annoying mom) the most helpful person was this young dude who was helping everyone out. What’s nice is that the red line is attached to the airport, so you don’t have to wander the cold frozen streets of chicago to find the public transportation.

I was 16 when I visited O’Hare. I was supposed to change planes to head back to Atlanta here (coming back from Boston) and it was really a nightmare. My flight from Logan had been delayed and then at O’Hare I was told my flight might not even make it. The man at the desk didn’t seem to understand why I had to make it home that night (16, extremely exhausted and alone in Chi-Town) and told me a cab wouldn’t be able to take me to the Four Seasons hotel if my flight was cancelled. If it hadn’t of been for 4 wonderful fellow Georgians I befriended at the airport I wouldn’t of made it home that night safely. They took care of me, watched my stuff while I slept, put me and my bags on the plane (without waking me up) and make sure I got off safely. Thank God for people like that because the staff at O’Hare wasn’t very helpful. The Cinnabon store also would not sell/give me a cinnamon roll even though there was one left because it was past closing time (nothing else was open and I was starving). Haha. So my first experience was not a great one, but I’m willing to give it another chance!!!