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The price to get to Mexico

Marcus and his Coke

Marcus and his Coke

For those who are not into RoboCup: it´s world cup time in Mexico! But to participate one has to get there. Our team had to split, due to several reasons. So Marcus and I (Paul) decided to get there together. We wanted to get there cheaply. And the cheapest way to get to Mexico was via the U.S. of A! ESTA questionnaire, interrogations and complications with our Naos were preprogrammed…we were a little bit nervous. Berlin – Amsterdam – Atlanta – Mexico City also was a long trip. We had 2 Naos, one extra Head, two routers, three Laptops, kilometers of cables, 6 batteries and much more hardware to take with us.
Our best friend the ATM with 300 Euros

Our best friend the ATM with 300 Euros

First flight – all right! But now 4 hours of waiting in Amsterdam. So what is the best thing you can do to get rid of time: internet of course and soft drinks! We found free internet for 30 minutes per computer and big Cokes . This was not enough, we had 4 hours, so we started to cheat to get more free access and it worked and hoped for even bigger Cokes in Atlanta. With Marcus Coke and free internet the time elapsed, and suddenly we were late. We had to rush to get to the right terminal and were the last for boarding.
Shopping center or casino

Shopping center or casino

So after the quick interrogation of the security officers and the scanning of the boarding pass it happened: “Ahh, Mr. Scheunemann, Mr. Schütte would you please come with me?”. “NoooooOOOooOOoo” I thought “maybe there is a problem with our luggage…” But no! There was a problem with us: “We have news for you: we have changed your flight. You are now flying two hours later – directly to Mexico” Marcus and I started laughing. Perfect. No U.S. transfer. No arrival at midnight. Sit together, emergency exit seats… “Ah and I forgot to tell you the best thing: because of the overbooking, you can go to Terminal T6 and get your 300 Euros…” Muahahahaaha. Marcus and I could not stop celebrating. Did we understand right: We get 300 € for all the improvements?! Yes! Yes, yes yes! What do with all the money? Shopping? Casino?
Lots of space

Lots of space

Quesadilla, yummy

Quesadilla, yummy

In the end we just enjoyed some beer and went to Mejico, olé! There came the last big challenge: get everything into the country without paying tax. And we made it: after having “nothing to declare”, everybody has to press a button. If the light is green, it´s fine, go on. But if it is red, every single bag must be opened and controlled and if the total is worth more than 400 us$ (with some exceptions) one has to pay taxes… I had the red light.  Nevertheless Goddess Fortuna helped again: No problems, nothing to pay. More money for Quesadillas!
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