Getting up at 5 wasn't easy and Nick didn't enjoy it either but at least he had a better time of it. We went and checked out and got directions back to Dan Dooley's Rental. I had to call them on the way to make sure I was going the correct way but we got there.
We said goodbye to Eamon and hopped into the van to ride to the airport. Once we got to the airport, that's where things got hairy. I knew that Ryan Air is will nickel and dime you but we had to pay a 150 Euro fee for excess baggage. They said that we could move stuff around between the two bags but it was a good thing I just sucked it up because we wouldn't have made it to the plane on time. *sigh*
I was so upset because of that and then the rental car made it so much worse. I was going to be charged around 250 pounds for the car but it went up to 600 pounds with insurance. Next time, I *KNOW* to get the damned insurance ahead of time. I probably could have covered both cars with one insurance policy instead of using two different ones. I spent around $700 that I didn't plan on on that day and thinking about it still upsets me.
Not much I can do about it now though...live and learn.
So after the debacle with the rental car, we went out to see it. We got to the car and I realized that I had been given a Ford. Now, anyone that knows me well knows I HATE Fords. Two have let me down and I didn't want to ever give another one a try for 3 strikes. However, I was already so upset that I wasn't even in the mood to deal with it. I was frustrated, all out of sorts and in the mood for a good cry. I wanted to go home so badly at that point and had I known before flying to Glasgow about the extra $700, I probably would have tried to switch our tickets right there.
Nick and I went back inside because I needed a break and figured I needed to kill some time before heading to our next B&B. We went to the Starbucks in the airport and I watched people and Nick walked around and checked out the arcade.
Finally, after about 1.5 hours, I was ready to go. We went back to the car and decided to name him Gordon (aka Gordie) because, as Atkins, we're a part of Clan Gordon.
Driving in Scotland is about the same as driving in Ireland. Many of the signs are the same but the difference with the roundabouts is that they're marked on the pavement to let you know which lane to go in to get to which exit. It's still sometimes confusing but I suppose it helps, especially on the large roundabouts or the wonky ones.
Showing posts with label Flights. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Flights. Show all posts
04 October 2009
03 September 2009
Day 1 - Delta Disaster and Aer Lingus LOVE
Greetings from Ireland!
The monkey and I made it safely over here, not without some trouble though. (But we're so happy to be here!!!)
My parents took us to the airport on the morning of the 2nd (is it really only yesterday?!) and that was an interesting situation in itself because I forgot my pin number and we had to go back to retrieve it.
When we got to the airport, we said our goodbyes and then headed to check in. I was planning on using a human representative to check in but they only had the kiosks so we went over to one and I started the process. I didn't realize earlier that Delta is one of those airlines that charges you for the 1st checked bag so I coughed up $20 for my bag and another $20 for Nick's bag.
After that we had to stand in line to actually check in the luggage. The lady wasn't the most friendly and when I asked her if she could check my luggage all the way to Ireland, the response was a curt "No". Then the weighing began...
Okay...I overpack...even when I use lists and try not to overpack, I still overpack. BUT, in my defense, this time I only took 1 large suitcase and one tiny one (the size of a banker box) to check in and the tiny one is filled with snacks. (Although in my continued prosecution, I did take a big backpack that is the only size my large laptop fits in as a carry on.)
It ended up that the bag was 5 lbs over the 50 lb mark and the lady told me that I would have to remove 5 lbs or else I would be charged $90...so Nick and I started removing shoes from the large bag and stuffing them into our backpacks. Poor monkey. In retrospect it must have been pretty comical (and it is to me now) but it certainly wasn't at the time.
Once we got on the place it was mostly uneventful until we began our descent into JFK. I have never been there but I was studying the layout so Nick and I could run from our gate, grab our luggage, run to the other terminal, check everything in, go through security again and get to the 2nd gate, all in an hour and a half. Pretty tight but doable. We were even ahead of schedule...
I don't know what happened but we went from being 10 minutes early to being 30 minutes late. We taxied around the terminal building and then sat on a runway for 20 minutes waiting for them to fit us in.
There was an INCREDIBLY nice flight attendant who wanted to help us out as well as the lady next to us. The lady who sat next to me had already discussed our journey through JFK and had help me discuss it with the flight attendant. Well, when time started ticking by and we kept sitting on the runway, she called over the really nice flight attendant who told me that no matter what, I would be on a plane to Ireland that night. He said that I wouldn't be able to make our 5:45 flight but that there was a Delta flight to Dublin at 7:30 and I could almost assuredly get tickets for that one.
To make a completely long story a bit shorter, we had to go from our gate to another gate once we arrived, the guy at that gate told us to call Delta directly and they told me that they couldn't help us and to try Aer Lingus. It took a great deal of time and I was scared and upset and trying to hold it together for the sake of the monkey. Otherwise, I might have gone in the bathroom and had a good cry before dealing with the situation.
At that point we had to go and collect our luggage, take the tram to Terminal 4 and head to the Aer Lingus counter. They were so awesome and wonderful and amazing and put us on the 9:40 flight. We had to go through security again but I'm guessing that we could have even made it in the 45 minutes (it would have been REALLY tight but might have worked).
Aer Lingus is definitely at the top of my wonderful airline list (along with Lufthansa and British Airways). They allow you to COMBINE the total weight of your luggage so if you have one ginormous suitcase and one tiny one, you can have a total of something like 50 kilos! I'm totally in love with them! (Just a side note, the ticket agent that we got was from Ireland and had such a great accent. It was a bit difficult to understand some of the things he said because he spoke rather rapidly but after learning bits and pieces of 6 languages, I didn't have too many problems.
Now, for Nick's take on the travel: I love flying on airplanes and Delta didn't have really great service. The food on Aer Lingus was great but I couldn't sleep at all (Note from Carolyn here...he did sleep even though he thinks he didn't...he had his feet all over me most of the night and even snored a bit!). The first airport (JFK) was really large took a long time to get through. It also took a long time at Dublin's airport (because of Passport Control, getting the luggage, etc...)
So the day started out wonderfully, had some yucky middle parts but ended well only wonderful, beautiful, terrific Aer Lingus.
Stay tuned for Day #2 - Arriving in Dublin and Misadventures in Driving.
The monkey and I made it safely over here, not without some trouble though. (But we're so happy to be here!!!)
My parents took us to the airport on the morning of the 2nd (is it really only yesterday?!) and that was an interesting situation in itself because I forgot my pin number and we had to go back to retrieve it.
When we got to the airport, we said our goodbyes and then headed to check in. I was planning on using a human representative to check in but they only had the kiosks so we went over to one and I started the process. I didn't realize earlier that Delta is one of those airlines that charges you for the 1st checked bag so I coughed up $20 for my bag and another $20 for Nick's bag.
After that we had to stand in line to actually check in the luggage. The lady wasn't the most friendly and when I asked her if she could check my luggage all the way to Ireland, the response was a curt "No". Then the weighing began...
Okay...I overpack...even when I use lists and try not to overpack, I still overpack. BUT, in my defense, this time I only took 1 large suitcase and one tiny one (the size of a banker box) to check in and the tiny one is filled with snacks. (Although in my continued prosecution, I did take a big backpack that is the only size my large laptop fits in as a carry on.)
It ended up that the bag was 5 lbs over the 50 lb mark and the lady told me that I would have to remove 5 lbs or else I would be charged $90...so Nick and I started removing shoes from the large bag and stuffing them into our backpacks. Poor monkey. In retrospect it must have been pretty comical (and it is to me now) but it certainly wasn't at the time.
Once we got on the place it was mostly uneventful until we began our descent into JFK. I have never been there but I was studying the layout so Nick and I could run from our gate, grab our luggage, run to the other terminal, check everything in, go through security again and get to the 2nd gate, all in an hour and a half. Pretty tight but doable. We were even ahead of schedule...
I don't know what happened but we went from being 10 minutes early to being 30 minutes late. We taxied around the terminal building and then sat on a runway for 20 minutes waiting for them to fit us in.
There was an INCREDIBLY nice flight attendant who wanted to help us out as well as the lady next to us. The lady who sat next to me had already discussed our journey through JFK and had help me discuss it with the flight attendant. Well, when time started ticking by and we kept sitting on the runway, she called over the really nice flight attendant who told me that no matter what, I would be on a plane to Ireland that night. He said that I wouldn't be able to make our 5:45 flight but that there was a Delta flight to Dublin at 7:30 and I could almost assuredly get tickets for that one.
To make a completely long story a bit shorter, we had to go from our gate to another gate once we arrived, the guy at that gate told us to call Delta directly and they told me that they couldn't help us and to try Aer Lingus. It took a great deal of time and I was scared and upset and trying to hold it together for the sake of the monkey. Otherwise, I might have gone in the bathroom and had a good cry before dealing with the situation.
At that point we had to go and collect our luggage, take the tram to Terminal 4 and head to the Aer Lingus counter. They were so awesome and wonderful and amazing and put us on the 9:40 flight. We had to go through security again but I'm guessing that we could have even made it in the 45 minutes (it would have been REALLY tight but might have worked).
Aer Lingus is definitely at the top of my wonderful airline list (along with Lufthansa and British Airways). They allow you to COMBINE the total weight of your luggage so if you have one ginormous suitcase and one tiny one, you can have a total of something like 50 kilos! I'm totally in love with them! (Just a side note, the ticket agent that we got was from Ireland and had such a great accent. It was a bit difficult to understand some of the things he said because he spoke rather rapidly but after learning bits and pieces of 6 languages, I didn't have too many problems.
Now, for Nick's take on the travel: I love flying on airplanes and Delta didn't have really great service. The food on Aer Lingus was great but I couldn't sleep at all (Note from Carolyn here...he did sleep even though he thinks he didn't...he had his feet all over me most of the night and even snored a bit!). The first airport (JFK) was really large took a long time to get through. It also took a long time at Dublin's airport (because of Passport Control, getting the luggage, etc...)
So the day started out wonderfully, had some yucky middle parts but ended well only wonderful, beautiful, terrific Aer Lingus.
Stay tuned for Day #2 - Arriving in Dublin and Misadventures in Driving.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)