Waco, TX: Arriving at the airport in Houston, TX (IAH)

23FEB08 Houston-Intercontinental Airport, Huston TX (IAH)

I headed straight for security as my phone rang; it was my aunt, I had called her earlier and left a message. I talked with her as I quickened my step, placing her on hold as I made it through security. I turned right as I cleared security and then in a few moments after printing my boarding passes at the nearby kiosk realized that I had gone the wrong direction. I turned around and headed in the opposite direction towards gate 33.

Once there I carefully ran down the stairs arriving at 11:19a at the door of the waiting bus. We left the stand at 11:22a and headed first for Terminal B at gate 67 and then for Terminal A at gate A2. On our way to Terminal B, the driver asked if there was anyone for Waco on board. I held up my hand as well as shouted “Yes” over the noise of the engine. She said something over the radio and continued driving.

Once at Terminal B, she asked for my name, it was now 11:24a. At 11:28a, we arrived at Terminal A’s gate A2. She called me forward telling me to go up the jetway and over to gate A1 where they are waiting for me. I thanked her and sprinted up the jetway to the locked door. I clicked on the exit button and nothing. I then turned the handle and it turned in my hand as an agent was opening it from the other side.

I raced over to gate A1 where there were two agents talking, on holding a boarding pass aloft. He asked me my name, I concurred and he slid my boarding pass through the gate reader and gave it to me, plus a return boarding pass with a seat assignment on it. He then directed me down the jetway as I said thank you and followed his direction.

I got to the end and a guy stopped me and told me to wait; he was trying to find a bus for me. The view was cool, there were Saab 340s on the tarmac in Continental Connection colors and off on runway 8R there was a Continental Express ERJ-145 landing. There were also buses all over the place. I could see A2 where I had arrived across the way.

My view was disturbed by him telling me to follow him as he called over a bus.