Our family has lived in Europe for almost thirty years now.
We do our share of coming and going. We have experienced traveling in wartime
and travel before and after the September 11th attacks. We’ve also
had our share of funny questions to answer at checkpoints here and there. This
isn’t exactly a spiritual blog entry, but I think you might enjoy a chuckle:
We arrived in New York. There were police everywhere, armed
to the teeth. I don’t remember which Gulf war it was, but no one was taking any
chances. My daughter and I turned into a restroom, and a policewoman followed
us in. Welcome home!
Another time, landing in New York, we were almost shocked by
the size of the cars. We had a rental car waiting for us, and we got eight big
suitcases in it (back when you could put 70 lbs. in each and have two apiece),
plus the four of us. Those were the days!
Back before the wars, we were leaving the States to come
this side of the pond. I was carrying one of those square Samsonite carry-ons,
full of all kinds of cosmetics, liquids, and gels. (We wouldn’t get too far
with that today, would we?) It went through the scanner, and the man asked me
what the sharp thing was. I had to think for a little bit. Then, I realized he
meant my haircutting scissors. So I told him. He asked me, “Do you cut anything
besides hair with them?” I told him an emphatic “No,” and he let me pass.
When we are here, we usually buy some souvenirs to give to
people who host us as well as to our friends. I got the “bright” idea of buying
olive wood eggs and egg stands for people. (What’s more Spanish than olives? It
was the thought that counted.) I put the eggs—probably at least twenty of
them—into any little crevasse in the suitcases as I packed. When we arrived in
the U.S., the suitcases went through the scanners. The people in Agriculture
asked if we had any food, and I said, “No.” Then, they asked me what these
egg-shaped things were. I told them they were olive wood eggs, I had bought
them as souvenirs, etc., etc. They wanted to see them. Would you believe, I
couldn’t find my suitcase keys?!!! They did finally let me go, but here I was,
a very silly-looking lady with probably dozens of eggs, and I couldn’t even
prove they were wooden! (I think I’m on Agriculture’s black list to this day.
But tell me, who in their right mind would take several dozen real hard-boiled eggs in their luggage,
for any reason?)
Another time, I was taking our son to college, and we landed
in the States. We were waiting at the baggage carousel for our luggage. A cute
beagle puppy walked right over to my hand luggage, sat down, and put one paw on
top of the bag. Soon, a lady in uniform was with us. She asked what food we had
in it. I had taken olive oil, olives, and chocolate. She asked where we were
coming from and then switched languages. We had a nice little chat with a
friendly inspector, and it all started with a well-mannered dog with a good
nose.
Probably the most traumatic experience ever was a stop here
in Europe on our way to the States. We were questioned next to what I would
describe as a holding pen for international travelers. The man asked some
standard questions: “Where did you come from?” “What is your final
destination?” “What is the purpose of your visit?” Then, he asked, “Did anyone
give you any package to take with you, and you don’t know the contents?” Oh
brother! We had to answer yes. (Our co-workers had given us an envelope to mail
to their son. And, I forgot to ask what was in it!) We were taken aside and
handed over to another interrogator. After who knows how many questions, my
husband finally said something like, “Sir, if I had any doubt about the safety of the contents
of that package, do you think I’d be willing to get on the plane?” He let us
go.
We had landed in the U.S. and, after very long lines at
passport control, we were finally in front of a serious-faced man who asked us
a series of questions. He asked us why we live in Europe. My husband told him
we are missionaries. He asked, without changing his facial expression, “Who
wrote the book of Hebrews?” Afterwards, we all had a chuckle, and he sent us on
our way with a “God bless you.”
Lessons learned:
- Pack carefully, and don’t lose your keys.
- Always find out the contents of anything you take with you. Snoop, if you have to, but know what you have.
- Don’t ever give eggs of any description as souvenirs again!
- Enjoy the few friendly faces you meet in any airport. Be especially grateful for Christian brothers and sisters.