I started out by getting up at 5:30am at my apartment in Amsterdam. I was so excited, I practically JUMPED out of bed! I needed to catch a tram to the train station at 6:00am, and thought I was there in plenty of time... the tram, however, never showed up, so I proceeded to haul my big suitcase, gigantic backpack, carryon tote, and purse to the train station. About 5 minutes into my walk, my tote decided to let go of its strap... I debated on whether I should just carry the broken bag, or go back and get a new one. After thinking about the long day I had ahead of me, I decided that getting a new bag was a smart idea. I finally made it to the train station, and my bank card wouldn't work in the machine (this could have been because I had sat on it a few weeks earlier, so it now has a nice crease in it... but I'm just guessing. ;)). Since it was so early, there was no one to buy a ticket from at the desk, so I crossed my fingers and got on the train to the airport without a ticket. If you are caught without a ticket, it's a 50 euro fine, which would have been a real bummer since the ticket only cost 2.30 euros. I had come up with all kinds of stories to tell the ticket collector, knowing darn well that they wouldn't care, but it made me feel better to know that if necessary, I had a good excuse. I spent the whole train ride (about 8 minutes) praying that I wouldn't get stopped... and I didn't, thank goodness.
Finally, I was at the airport, checked in, and everything was on time. We had a really smooth flight, and I was just thinking, "Wow, this has gone by really fast", when I hear on the intercom: "Is there a medical personnel on board? We have an emergency in row 32.". "Uh-oh,", I'm thinking. Evidently, an elderly woman was having some problems breathing. I was amazed that about 6 people were at her side within a few minutes. They got her stabilized, but we ended up needing to have an emergency landing in Ottawa, Canada (only 30 minutes from our destination of Detroit!). I was a little bummed out, because I knew I would be missing my connection, but happy that they take care of people like this. If it had been my mom or dad, that would have been exactly what I would have wanted them to do.
I did miss my connection, but they were super helpful at the airport with getting me on another flight... what they didn't tell me at the time was that they had HELD my connecting flight because so many other people from my flight were on that one. Que sera, sera, I got on another flight to Columbus, so everything was okay... or so I thought... until we sat on the plane for 2 hours waiting for "push-back" equipment to come and push our plane out of the gate. AHH! I was pretty frustrated, especially since I didn't have a cell phone to call my family... luckily, I met some very nice people that let me use their phones. I eventually made it to Columbus by 7:30pm (I was originally supposed to be in Dayton at 2:30pm). We scrapped the plans of our traditional Chinese dinner and midnight mass, and opted for take-out and opening a few gifts instead.
Despite the slight change in plans, there is no place I'd rather be. I'll update my blog later with more adventures from this trip, but just wanted everyone to know that I'm safe and sound, and re-charging the batteries here at home with my family.
Merry Christmas from our house to yours! :) xx
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