What can I say. We finally boarded and wheels left the ground at around 1:15 AM. Everyone knew connecting flights would be missed. No one spoke about it. By this time everyone just wanted to sleep. One baby cried for a very short while and then it was quiet the rest of the way. 
     The female flight attendants all had long hair worn in a braided ponytail. Stepford Wives crossed my mind. I wondered if the style was required or if they showed up for work and made a group decision. There were no male flight attendants in the rear section at all. One thing I noticed was the flight attendants were chatty with French speakers where the rest of us received the turn up the corners of the mouth "I'm smiling at you because I have to." grin. I got to thinking about it today. They were diverted and had to wait around too. 
     I apppreciated the way AF took care of the feeding and watering of waiting passengers on the ground and in the air. We were served dinner in the morning but who cares. It was so delicious. I had a curried chicken with orzo, salad and a dessert. Spectacular,
     They were also very good about alerting those that missed connecting flights about what to do & where to go. That made everyone feel reassured. However, there was still that overlying feeling of aloofness toward non French speakers. Upon landing, the staff around the terminal was not very helpful at all. I had been warned about this earlier in the week. Those missing connecting flights were sent to the service desk to be reticketed. The French are not loud like Americans when speaking in a crowd. I was standing in line with two guys from the Detroit area headed out on a medical mission in Southern France. We couldn't hear what the counter girl was saying so I asked a man about it. He looked at me and kept talking. I then walked up to the counter and asked the frazzled gal what she had said. She passed me to a man that began looking for a connecting flight for me. The man I had asked for clarification began yelling, "No! No! We are first. We need a flight!" I told the counter guy he could take care of the man first. His reply? "He talks too much. He will go last." My new flight was on Egypt Air two terminals away. On the shuttle I met a woman from the Detroit Area traveling with three small children. She used my cell to text her husband & give her new flight

     According to the old saying, one should never judge a book by it's cover. That holds true for the start of my Egyptian experience. Arriving at Detroit Metro at 6:10 PM, I was ready to check in for a flight to Paris that I already knew was pushed back to 10:00. 
      The waiting area was packed with people waiting for the same flight. It is important to note that there were many families traveling to the Middle East to celebrate the end of Ramadan & then Eid with their families. The flight was Air France and traveling to Paris, so there were also many French speakers. There was something exhilerating about listening to the symphony of languages playing in my ears.
​     An announcement was made that our flight was in the air and we would be notified Of the ETA. Shortly after that announcement booms of thunder and the sound of driving rain were added to the, now, much quieter symphony of voices. We all anticipated what we heard next. "Ladies and Gentlemen, we regret to inform you that due to the weather the flight has been diverted to Cleveland. We will provide an estimated time of arrival as soon as we know the flight is in the air." Silence followed by frantic chatter.
​     Action at the phone charging stations picked up after that. So did the volume of frantic outgoing calls. I loaned my phone to a French couple who had been visiting their daughter in Ypsilanti. Many were worried about missing connecting flights. (we did) After the flurry of activity everyone settled back in at the business of waiting. A priest in a cassock began pacing the length of the waiting area. He was speaking to himself the entire time. I imagined he was praying. The talking gave way to Bible reading until an estimated time of departure was announced. Snacks and beverages were distributed to all who wanted them. Later Air France distributed snack boxes. The man who had borrowed my phone brought one for me and I hadn't even asked.
     The plane did arrive. Passengers disembarked. The plane was cleaned, fueled and made ready.