Travel to the airport was uneventful but once at the airport, not so much. We traveled on Delta Airways. Linda, Mom and I had no problems getting our ticket. Karin, however, discovered that her seat from Detroit to Amsterdam had been given to someone else. Upon further investigation, she became very frustrated to discover that the travel agent from AAA had not put her credit card through to get her the extra leg room she needed. They did find her a seat but not one with extra leg room.
We met up with the rest of our Richmond group, Victoria, Lee, and Evie, to find that Evie also had problems with her ticket. She did not have a seat from Richmond to Detroit. Then we discovered that the flight was delayed by half an hour. Normally this would not be a cause for concern but there was only 1 ½ hours between flights. We made it to Detroit with just enough time to take care of “business” and board the plane.
Once situated in the best seats I have experienced on a plane (yes, it is possible to get ample leg room on a plane for a price), the plane taxied out and then we waited and waited and waited. The captain announces over the PA system that while we are second in line for takeoff, our plane is experiencing a problem with the spoilers and we need to return to the gate so that maintenance could fix the issue. So back we went and waited and waited and waited. We finally lifted off almost 2 hours late.
About an hour into the flight, they began dinner service. Mom got her gluten free meal as she ordered, but so did Linda, Victoria, Lee and Evie. Evie did refuse hers and was given a regular meal. The flight crew tried to do that for the breakfast but everyone (Except Mom and Victoria) refused it. Now I am really wondering about the agent from AAA.
This flight made me realize that I really cannot sleep on a plan. I got about 20 minutes of sleep but then again it was only seven hour flight.
I was very proud of Mom. She made the ½ mile walk from the far end of E Terminal to the very end of F Terminal in record time. Ellen joined us about an hour later. The whole group was now together as we waited for our flight to Cape Town.
We met up with the rest of our Richmond group, Victoria, Lee, and Evie, to find that Evie also had problems with her ticket. She did not have a seat from Richmond to Detroit. Then we discovered that the flight was delayed by half an hour. Normally this would not be a cause for concern but there was only 1 ½ hours between flights. We made it to Detroit with just enough time to take care of “business” and board the plane.
Once situated in the best seats I have experienced on a plane (yes, it is possible to get ample leg room on a plane for a price), the plane taxied out and then we waited and waited and waited. The captain announces over the PA system that while we are second in line for takeoff, our plane is experiencing a problem with the spoilers and we need to return to the gate so that maintenance could fix the issue. So back we went and waited and waited and waited. We finally lifted off almost 2 hours late.
About an hour into the flight, they began dinner service. Mom got her gluten free meal as she ordered, but so did Linda, Victoria, Lee and Evie. Evie did refuse hers and was given a regular meal. The flight crew tried to do that for the breakfast but everyone (Except Mom and Victoria) refused it. Now I am really wondering about the agent from AAA.
This flight made me realize that I really cannot sleep on a plan. I got about 20 minutes of sleep but then again it was only seven hour flight.
I was very proud of Mom. She made the ½ mile walk from the far end of E Terminal to the very end of F Terminal in record time. Ellen joined us about an hour later. The whole group was now together as we waited for our flight to Cape Town.
The desk for the gate opened about 45 minutes before boarding and the ticket fun began again. This time it affected Victoria and Linda, Both had paid for seat upgrades. KLM was able to accommodate Victoria but not Linda. Even though she had paid for and been assigned the seat there were none available. Apparently the seat was double booked and Linda got bumped. We boarded the plane and everyone scattered to their seats. Mom and I got comfortable but Victoria had a little more seat “fun.” Someone else was also assigned to her seat. Thank goodness she got there first. It is odd to think that in this technology advanced time we live in, one reservation system in one country cannot talk to a reservation system in another country.
The flight was very long, 16 hours. A very tall nice young man sat in the seat next to me. He was from Canada and very chatty. After a 30 minute non-stop conversation he promptly fell asleep and became an immovable object. I actually had to climb over him once to get back in my seat.
The plane landed in Cape Town at 9:06 p.m. As we entered the Terminal, there was a young man named Peter standing there with a sign for the Chermside Group. We gathered around him and headed to customs. Everything went smoothly until we went to Baggage Claim and Ellen’s luggage trolley never showed up. She put in a request at the lost baggage counter and we set off to the Cape Cadogan Boutique Hotel at the bottom of Table Mountain.
The Cape Cadogan is a quaint little hotel with newly renovated gorgeous rooms. Even though we arrived very late, we were met by Faith, who happily greeted us and sorted us out into our rooms. Mom and I had a room in the main building and the others were in the courtyard building. We were so happy to finally get settled after traveling for almost two days. Our room was a little chilly but as we slid our feet into the bed, Mom commented that the beds were already very warm. I discovered, there in the bed, was a hot water bottle wrapped in a towel. Mom and I slept like rocks.
The flight was very long, 16 hours. A very tall nice young man sat in the seat next to me. He was from Canada and very chatty. After a 30 minute non-stop conversation he promptly fell asleep and became an immovable object. I actually had to climb over him once to get back in my seat.
The plane landed in Cape Town at 9:06 p.m. As we entered the Terminal, there was a young man named Peter standing there with a sign for the Chermside Group. We gathered around him and headed to customs. Everything went smoothly until we went to Baggage Claim and Ellen’s luggage trolley never showed up. She put in a request at the lost baggage counter and we set off to the Cape Cadogan Boutique Hotel at the bottom of Table Mountain.
The Cape Cadogan is a quaint little hotel with newly renovated gorgeous rooms. Even though we arrived very late, we were met by Faith, who happily greeted us and sorted us out into our rooms. Mom and I had a room in the main building and the others were in the courtyard building. We were so happy to finally get settled after traveling for almost two days. Our room was a little chilly but as we slid our feet into the bed, Mom commented that the beds were already very warm. I discovered, there in the bed, was a hot water bottle wrapped in a towel. Mom and I slept like rocks.
I am sorry that this post is late but due to a storm in Cape Town the internet was down when we arrived.
