During the volcanic ash and more recent snow episodes there were countless media shriekings about people "stranded" or "stuck" in Europe.
Perhaps the most vitriolic was by a lady journalist from the Independent who said she had been stuck at Geneva Airport which was another place affected by snow. It wasn't just Heathrow.She was obviously suffering considerable distress when she wrote her article and had even lost the ability to figure out how to painlessly and pleasurably eat a large Toblerone. You don't just stick the whole thing in your mouth dear or those ridges will indeed be painful.Just break the triangles off one by one and all will be well. Much more alarming was her rant about a Captain trying his best to keep the passenges up to date with a fast changing situation and her alarming fantasising about stabbing anyone present, past or future who looked as if they might have anything to do with BA. It was an extraordinary outburst, forgiveable perhaps if she had no option but to be incarcerated in Geneva Airport, or any other place, for three days. But she did have an option as did tens of thousands of other "stranded in Europe" people last Spring. Even a basic knowledge of geography should tell most that Europe is not a series of islands. Apart from the UK and Ireland it is one continuous landmass= roads and railways connecting everywhere to everywhere else.Did she sleep through all her geography lessons at school? If so, the purchase of a map at the Geneva Airport bookstall would have been a good investment and enabled her to either while away the time in deep learning or get a clue that Geneva is linked to Paris by train. It takes three hours. There are then trains from Paris to Calais Ville via Boulogne. After that a short taxi ride takes you to Calais port where you are spoiled for choice of frequent ferries to Dover and bingo,- in a matter of hours you are no longer stranded at Geneva but on firm British soil and less than a hundred miles from London.
The airlines perhaps made a big mistake when most dumbed down their route maps by taking out all but the most basic information and making them totally uninteresting. They could have left them as they were as an aid to those who they had to leave "stranded" or "stuck". Maybe now they should hand out wartime style escape maps to all arriving passengers so that in extremis they can see where they are, where they have come from and how to get back there without an aeroplane. "Oh look,- it's land nearly all the way".
