That night I spent in border detention

Part 1 of my cautionary tale for travelling petsitters

This story was a long time coming. It’s not a horror story, it’s just tiresome to remember. I’m breaking it down into chapters for you over the next few weeks.

A note about the photos in this piece. I wasn’t allowed to have any device with a camera. For the sake of giving you something to look at, I’m adding a few pics I took in Spain in the few days before it all went sideways.

It’s Friday, December 13, 2019. I’m in a room that feels like some combination of doctor’s waiting room and adult kindergarten. I’m in border limbo, a detention office inside London Gatwick airport.

A window between me and a clerical office shows me the comings and goings of the staff. I can hear the radio they’ve got playing in the office. Elton John is singing, “lay me down in sheets of linen, you had a busy day today.” Some local DJ is spinning all the gentlest hits of the 70’s, ‘80s, ‘90s, 2000s.

Among the handful of people coming and going in that outer office, there’s a man with a playful smile—I bet he moves through life on charm. Even as I was first escorted into this space, feeling confused and outraged, this dude triggered my flirt energy.