Once upon a time, two friends wanted to take a Spring Break vacation to Omaha, Nebraska. The reservations were made, the dates were set, and the countdown began. The day of departure finally arrived and the girls were more than ready to go. As they blissfully set off to the airport to begin their journey, they had no idea what was in store for them. See, the plan was to arrive at the airport at 3:30, check in, fly out at 5:00 and arrive in Omaha by 10:00.... a seemingly simple task. This, instead, is what they experienced:
3:30 pm: Check in, go through security, etc. Wait.
5:15 pm: Find out the plane they were supposed to be boarding had a mechanical issue. No worries... it should be fixed by 6:00.
6:00 pm: Problem is still not fixed. At this point, it is realized that the connecting flight from Denver to Omaha wasn't going to be happening as scheduled.
7:0o pm: Still waiting.
8:00 pm: Still waiting.
8:30ish pm: The problem is finally fixed. The plane was boarded, and off they went.
8:45 pm: Shortly after taking off, the pilot comes on and says, "Flight attendants, prepare for landing."
9:00 pm: The plane lands back in Salt Lake, after a brief tour of the air around the airport. Apparently the problem wasn't really fixed.
9:30 pm: Still waiting for the airline to decide what they are going to do.
10:00 pm: Ticket agents announce that the plane won't leave until 7:00 the next morning. All passengers are to head downstairs to get new boarding passes, new connecting flights, hotel vouchers, food vouchers, etc.
10:05 pm: The girls get in line to obtain said passes and vouchers.
11:00 pm: The line has moved a few feet. There is ONE ticket agent attempting to help the situation. However, the girls have met some new friends to make the time go quicker.
12:00 am: Still in line.
1:00 am: Still in line.
2:00 am: Still in line.
2:30 am: They
finally reach the ticket counter after 4 1/2 hours in line, and get the vouchers and passes.
3:00 am: The hotel shuttle comes, and they make it to the hotel by 3:15.
3:45 am: They drift off for a quick nap.
4:30 am: It's time to get up and get ready to be back to the airport by 5:00.
5:00 am: Back to the airport, get checked in, and wait some more.
7:00 am: Sing praises! After 16 hours, the plane to Denver actually takes off and stays airborne!!!
8:30 am: Denver is reached! (and a 6 hour layover begins)
2:30 pm: The girls leave Denver and fly to Omaha.
4:30 pm: At long last, Omaha is reached. It's never felt so good to be to a destination!
Yes, we had quite the adventure getting ourselves to Omaha. Thank goodness for a patient and good friend to travel with, laptops, games, food, and good conversation to make the time go.
This is before we knew what was coming to us.
Waiting for the shuttle at 3 am. You'd look like this, too, if you had been through what we had.
An unlikely combination of friends. They certainly made the night/early morning entertaining and go by a little quicker, though. From left to right: Rachel, Michael, Marianne, Me, Karla, and Andrew.
And there is the story of our adventurous journey of getting to Omaha. It was certainly unforgettable. But we made it out alive and have a great story to tell. Oh, and did I mention the airline gave us $400 toward tickets for another trip? Saweeeeeet. I think we'll be heading somewhere fun.
More Omaha fun to come. Stay tuned.
