Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Travel

I am still recovering. The trip was fantastic but yesterday was a hellish day for the record books.



The drive from the hotel is about 2 hours of a twisty turny bumpy road. I was in a van with my VIP and his wife. Less than half way to the airport, I knew I was in trouble. See, I get a little motion sickness. My palms started sweating, my breathing became labored. I had to ask the driver to pull over. Yes, I puked in front of my VIP.



While the puking was commencing, I got that oh-so-special girl feeling. I had started my period. Great. We still had an hour+ to the airport.



Check in was pretty easy but we had about 3 hours to kill before the flight. I finally board and I'm seated next to this old, creepy guy who proceeded to drink 8 whiskies. He had no concept of personal space and was all up in my area. I was practically leaning into the aisle just to avoid his hairy arm touching mine. Also, he seemed to not be able to figure out the headphones. He went through 4 pair, bitching and complaining to me the entire time. I had my nose in my book and blatantly ignored him. It didn't work - he just kept talkin' and bitchin' away for four hours.

Finally we land in Houston. I have an hour and 15 mins to go through customs and catch my next flight. But nobody was moving. The Captain got on the speaker and said that we may as well sit down because the plane would not be unloading for a while. I look out the window and see an ambulance and the CDC van.
CDC - Center for Disease Control.
This is NOT a good sign.
We are then handed a form that we have to fill out that is titled "Information for People Possibly Exposed to Nuclear, Biological, or Chemical Substances." Seriously!?!?

The clock is ticking. My flight boards at 8:20 and departs at 8:48pm. It's 8:30 and we are still sitting there. LUCKILY, we were cleared by the CDC and they let us off. I RAN thru Immigration. My bag was sitting there, I grabbed it and headed to Customs. It was 8:45pm. I had 3 mins. Let's just say thank God I'm a runner." I got to my gate only to find that gate and terminal had been changed. I sprinted to the new gate where they were closing the doors. But I got there in time!

Phew. So you think that's the worst of it? Oh no.

Landed in the beautiful OC Airport - my home away from home. But my luggage didn't. Oh well, that happens about 25% of the time, I know the drill.

I hopped in a cab to head home- just wanting my bed. It's now 11:45 pm. It's been 14 hours since I left the hotel. I've had 2 beers, a tomato juice and 2 small packages of pretzels.

I get to my front door to find this:



It's a 4ft deep hole, about 4 feet long directly in front of my door step. Oh don't worry, there was a small wooden plank that I could walk over to get in, with tons of dirt surrounding it.

Overall it was an awesome day.

31 comments:

BOBBI McCORMICK said...

some times traveling can be a pain, but most the time its worth it:)

teacherwoman said...

Oh my goodness. You are bound to have some good luck after all that!

Aron said...

yikes that does not sound fun! at least you are home safe and sound now... hope you get your bag soon!

Bootchez said...

OMG, is this for real? What a horrible day! I guess the only bright spot is you didn't miss your connection . . . though the CDC and the arrival of Aunt Flo almost cancel that out . . .

Christine said...

what a freakin nightmare! I hate those days of traveling and traveling and traveling. It really makes you appreciate your bed haha (As if you didnt already!)

Amy - the gazelle said...

YUCK! What a craptastic day! I hope that things are rapidly getting better! (And at least you made your flight....stuck in Houston sounds terrible.)

C said...

Total suckage. So sorry for the bad day. I too suffer from motion sickness so I feel your pain.

Jogger said...

What the hell is up with the sinkhole in front of your door??!!

RunnerGirl said...

Wow, it can't get much worse than that. A hairy stranger arm, the CDC, AND a sink hole?!?! You deserve a drink.

Carolina John said...

holy shit, chica. that sounds miserable! i feel so sorry for you now. a sinkhole thing with a board already there? gross people on long flights are the worst. almost as bad as being stuck in texas for any length of time.

buckle up, virginia! get some rest, food, liquid, medicine etc and start feeling better. i missed you dearly, and i'm glad you are now back safe and sound in the oc.

RunToTheFinish said...

holy schnikes...well the good news is you're a live...you are finally home and hey Costa Rica is friggin awesome.

Hope you are feeling recouped soon... i miss your funny posts

Sarah said...

Uggh! that sucks. I love going places, but I hate travelling.. and you had the trip that illustrates why!!

ShutUpandRun said...

Geez, puking in front of the VP. Doesn't get much better than that! Sounds like quite a trip. Also nice to come home to the big hole.

Laurel said...

Wow dod, you win for sure. That is one craptastic day.

When you said the "Captain" came on the speaker, I was wondering why the "Captain" was traveling with you, and why he had a speaker.

Amber said...

Haha oh no! Glad to hear you got through it.

I've never had my luggage lost on a flight yet but I've been flying a lot more frequently in the last year since moving 1000 km away from home. I sure hope they don't lose mine anytime soon :S

Dr Wednesday said...

This post is so painful! I feel for you ; ) It really reminds me of new mothers birth stories-- haha. Hey, it will get better for sure- it has to.

Alisa said...

Geez what a day! The joys of international travel.

Hope you got some sleep and your bags arrived safe and sound.

Shoshanah said...

That sounds so awful, but at least you managed to make your flight. On your luggage was lost on your flight home, not the other way around.

Sarah said...

Oh lord. Nothing like drama to make you appreciate your life! Welcome home, chica!

Lily on the Road said...

OMG, sounds like when I use to be a Flight Attendant! Oh, and the guy, he sounds like my exhusband!

Glad you are home safe and sound!

doctorval said...

Friggin' awesome.

I will read this when ever I'm feeling put upon and know, things could suck more.

Michelle said...

Yikes, i am soooo sorry for your bad traveling day!!!

I hope things are looking up for you!!!

kristen said...

What the hell? Sorry about the travel mishaps. I used to like airports, now I despise them.

My Life said...

Funny. I was thinking the same thing Laurel did when you mentioned the Captain... oh, she took him with her. I am so confused, I thought they broke up again... ;)

And sweaty, hairy arms up in your personal space is NEVER a good time. Hope you've recovered!

X-Country2 said...

OMG. I hope you slept in extra long today. What a mess!

Jess said...

Apparently I thought like everyone else about the Captain lol! I'm sorry you had such an awful travel experience! Hope you get your luggage soon!

Anonymous said...

Doesn't sound like a fun 20 hours. Hope things settle down.

Lauren @ Sassy Molassy said...

Um, wow...that's a seriously awful way to end your trip. It was probably quite a relief to finally go to bed that night. It can only get better from here!

Judi said...

wow. i am glad you are now home, safe and sound, and really hope you don't have to travel anytime soon.

xxoo-
judi

Susan said...

When it rains it pours for POM!

Paul said...

Hey POM,

If your title for this post was a reference to the 'Alexander' book I have a brief bit of trivia...
When I worked for Simon & Schuster one of my colleagues for a few years was Nicholas Viorst - son of Judith and brother of Alexander. Yep, they all really exist. Follow on trivia - Nick was a pretty decent runner who I ran with in a few Corporate Challenge races.