From Frankfurt to Abu Dhabi: An in-flight story

MANILA, Philippines - A Nepalese Andrew Garfield chatted me up on the flight home. He is a student studying economics in Hamburg and will soon be taking his master’s degree in the US. “I hate Germany. It’s always so gloomy,” he said. He’s lived in Frankfurt for three years and he misses the sun. I missed the sun, too. I visited Frankfurt in February with the folks from D-Link Philippines to cover Ambiente, the largest and most-attended international consumer goods fair. “Consumer goods.” Sounds painfully dull, but it turned out to be quite the glimpse of the world’s many cultures and each one’s prize produce, as well as a lesson in conversing with strangers and navigating streets and subways without sticking out like a lost dork.

A young Middle Eastern couple sat in front of us. They played cards and at no point decided to sleep during the nine-hour flight. The woman had her seat inclined too far back and liked to stretch her arms so that her hands interrupted my quiet time with Pitch Perfect. A French boy who sat on another row, maybe in his 20s, glared at her every five minutes, and every 20 minutes, Nepalese Andrew summoned a flight attendant to “tell off” the couple for being “annoying.” He was that guy.

Eventually, we got used to the ruckus and settled into our seats. He asked me where I was from and what I did in Frankfurt. “I’m from Manila,” I said. “Philippines! Bruno Mars!” was his reply. “There are a lot of really good Filipino singers on YouTube,” he commented. I had nothing to say to that, so I changed the subject and explained that I visited Frankfurt for a design and products exhibit. “I’m a writer for a newspaper. I went to interview Filipinos who participated in the exhibit.”

A highlight for our country at Ambiente this year is Design Philippines. Every booth owned by a Filipino had this logo proudly emblazoned somewhere, and each of them had interesting products –– from holiday handicrafts to ornate metal furniture –– and stories –– from the perks of being part of the biggest products fair in the world, to the challenges of keeping up a business in these trying times.

Nepalese Andrew was unimpressed. “Have you ever been to Nepal? Do you know where it is? I miss my family. I haven’t been home in three years so I’m very excited,” he said. While waiting to board the plane at Frankfurt airport’s Terminal 2, I saw Nepalese Andrew talking on the phone, giggling like a schoolboy (which he technically is). So I joked about that. “That was my mother. Tell me about the exhibit. Was it nice?” There we were, 30,000 feet above sea level, playing a game of let’s-talk-without-actually-revealing-anything-about-ourselves, albeit a lot less loudly than the pusoy-playing twosome in front of us.

I fiddled with my headset. “Do you want to watch a movie now? Okay,” he said. At least his Spidey sense was on point. He watched The Big Bang Theory. I chose Lincoln and fell asleep.

Ambiente was held at Messe –– five train stops and one transfer away from Sheraton Airport Hotel via the S Train. I got lost going to and from the venue so many times that I had memorized which line went where, even the ones I didn’t need. Messe provided us with IDs that allowed us to use the trains for free. What’s cool about commuting via the trains there is that you don’t have to show your ticket before getting on. Train police just randomly pick passengers to check for tickets. No lines, no stress.

After two days of going around Hall 10 where the Filipino and most Asian exhibits were, I wandered around the massive (12-times -SMX massive) Messe to view the other exhibits. I found myself drawn to Hall 11 –– it was my gingerbread house, filled with beauty products and home accessories from Holland, the Netherlands, Sweden, Germany and France. The entire hall was enveloped in the smell of scented candles. Mediterranean Breeze from a French company called Compagnie de Provence was my favorite. A very chic, very slim, very cheery French lady showed me around their booth and tossed Mediterranean Breeze samples into my bag. I asked her if their company makes any organic products, because their minimalist, typography-driven packaging sure indicated so. She shrugged, “Organic products are tricky. It’s a very small market. We have one natural line, but that’s it.” I believe she used the term “frou-frou” at one point, but that could’ve been me hearing myself think. I thanked her for the tour and proceeded to the other booths showing everything from cupcake-shaped soaps to multi-way scarves to hipster bicycle accessories –– Hall 11 heaven.

I was awakened by a tap on my shoulder. Unimpressed Nepalese Andrew had to pee and I was in his way, so I stood up clutching my blanket, pillow and headset and motioned for him to go ahead, like a groggy, troll-haired, in-flight traffic aide. When he returned, I was asleep again. “Do you want to switch seats? Because you like to sleep and I can’t sleep because of these two,” he said, pointing to the insufferable couple in front of us. We switched seats.

I watched The Amazing Spiderman (the movie) for the rest of the flight while Nepalese Andrew Garfield continued with his fidgeting. Maybe the Spandex-Lycra Spidey suit was killing him? I would be restless too if I had to wear that thing through a nine-hour flight.

A few hours later, we landed at Abu Dhabi’s Terminal 1, which is not unlike our very own Terminal 1. Chaos. Nepalese Andrew said something about having to wait for five hours for his homeland-bound flight. I would have liked to have someone to wait with, but the flight to Manila was in three hours and in another terminal. Also, I had just woken up. It was morning and I felt bloated, the condition of my hair was no longer ideal, and I may have had morning breath. So I bid Nepalese Andrew goodbye and trudged on to Terminal 2 with my Mediterranean Breeze-scented bag –– without as much as a number, or a name. #hewastooyounganyway

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For more information about Ambiente, visit www.ambiente.messefrankfurt.com.