The life of an ITB visitor is not a bed of roses. I noticed it again at the beginning of March during my 20th (?) visit to this largest tourism fair in the world. Standing in line to get into the Messe Berlin building, after having already had to stand during the metro ride to get there. Then you stand in a long queue to drop off your coat at the cloakroom, while the queue next to it, where you are not standing, goes much faster. I call that the AH experience, because I’m always in the wrong queue at the supermarket at home. Then you trudge from appointment to appointment for a whole day, in a tight schedule of one appointment per hour. Experience has shown that you desperately need the time around it. The walk from hall 18 to hall 27 takes at least fifteen minutes, not to mention congestion and traffic jams along the way. And in between, you spontaneously meet people you only see once a year; at the ITB in Berlin. When you arrive at the stand, it turns out that the person with whom you have an appointment has just started his previous appointment two minutes earlier. It all runs a bit late at such a fair. You use the ten minutes of unexpected waiting time to have lunch: an overpriced hot dog. When the salesman mentions the amount, rubbing your hands, you try to make a joke in your best German. “No sir, I don’t want to buy your whole stall, I just want one hot dog.” At the end of the afternoon, it is drinks time at the stands of ten different relations at the same time. Stress of choice. You walk along with the nicest people and hope against your better judgement that there are seats available. After drinks with a nice group out for dinner in the city, recharge your batteries. Finally sitting, catching up, laughing. After dinner, join us for a drink in a newly discovered Irish pub (really just one…). Then late in a taxi to your hotel, your lenses burning in your eyes. After a short night, an early breakfast and back to the stock exchange building. Hoping for an available taxi. There are things that you take for granted, but that you only miss when they are not there. Like the ITB in Berlin during three quiet corona years. The second post-corona edition of the ITB was busy this year. I’m already looking forward to the long queue for next year’s wardrobe. theo.de.reus@travmedia.nl
