Take a look at Internet booking sites, and you may be amazed at the price of flying between major cities in Europe. Sometimes the flight is very cheap. Just be careful to check which airports are listed, because some are hours away from the city center.

I flew roundtrip from the main airport in Frankfurt, Germany, to Charles de Gaulle in Paris for $7.

Or so the chart said. Government fees were an additional $109. Still, $116 for a roundtrip ticket between Frankfurt and Paris, on a full-sized Air France jet that did not charge me extra for my suitcase, is a very  good price. And it’s available most any day.

The flights went well for me, except for the waiting area at Charles de Gaulle, where international travelers were crammed into a tight section of the Air France concourse.  Seats and food were difficult to find, and announcements hard to hear.

What made the cramped, overheated wait worse was the cheery sign: It said that “For Your convenience” temporary walls were put up during reconstruction of the waiting area.

I wish that governments wouldn’t insult my intelligence with such signs. That crowded room, with scarce chairs, a tiny duty-free shop and limited food for travelers, was NOT for my convenience.

At best, the construction was aimed at other travelers, far down the road, who may find the new waiting area convenient, long after I have moved on, my suffering nearly forgotten. Nearly.