29 September, 1998

Tuesday, September 29th

Boarding the plane was not as simple as it sounds- everyone must wear ECW and also carry extra ECW on the plane in case of an emergency. We were restricted to 70 kg of baggage including our ECW so we had to be checked in and weighed, as well as go through the normal security procedures (xray baggage and metal detector). The crew demonstrated safety procedures for the plane and we viewed a safety video. We were then bused to the runway and told to remain on the bus for a short delay. As we all piled out of buses it was announced that we would be returning to the center as the flight had been postponed for 1 hour, then another 1/2 hour and cancelled altoghether. We were herded back into the busses and returned to the center. We were not allowed to access our checked baggage, so it became tricky making sure to put clean clothes in the ECW carry on bag. The check in time for the next morning was 6:15 am. We spent the rest of Tuesday exploring Christchurch.