The Journey Home - Part One

It is almost a month since this trip but it has taken me this long to get over the traumatic trip home.

Let me take you back... that last night in Nashville it had started to snow and snow, the next morning it was still snowing a bit but luckily wasn't settling too much in Nashville. And my flight was still listed as going on time. So off I went to the airport full of expectation that I would be in Newark that afternoon and spending a lovely evening with the delightful Anna Sugden (of such places as the Romance Bandits) and her lovely husband.

I settled at the gate with all my trashy magazines and waited to board the flight. And waited. And waited as the takeoff time was pushed back and back. Originally due to take off at midday we eventually boarded at 2pm and pushed away from the gate. We sat on the tarmac for 20 minutes and then went back to the gate to disembark because we now weren't leaving until 4pm.

So we waited some more... and more.

At about 6pm I approached the desk for about the seventh time.
"Just tell me, this flight isn't actually leaving is it?" I said.
"It's still on the system as going." said the lady, not meeting my eye.
I should have realised that I wasn't going to get the truth from them... so I wandered off to get some food. When I got back there was a twenty people queue at the desk and the flight had been cancelled! CANCELLED!! Five minutes after I had asked!! Over six hours since the flight was supposed to takeoff!! They must have known!!

It turns out that due to bad weather at Newark there were problems getting people in there... but they knew that hours ago and now there were no direct flights with space to Newark from Nashville until Monday morning! It was now Saturday night and my UK flight was going on Sunday night. Not much use to me. ARGHHHH!!!

I stood in the queue and started up a conversation with the lady behind me. She had also been to CRS and was trying to get home for a friend's baby shower that she had organised. Both of us were getting a tad irate. By the time I got to the desk I was resigned to not seeing Newark until Sunday but when I was told I would be flying to St Louis that night to stay over AT MY OWN EXPENSE and then fly to Newark I will admit to being a little upset. Especially when I heard the lady behind me, Annabella being on a flight the next morning via Chicago. I queried the lady, who stomped off complaining and eventually gave me the 6am flight from Nashville and a hotel voucher!

There I was still in Nashville, I had a few choices I could go to the Opry, go see Trent Wilmon play or collapse at the hotel knowing I had to be at the airport at 4.30am the next day. Oh and the clocks were going forward. After a salad, glass of wine and a bowl of fries I tucked myself into bed. Sometimes a girl just has to be sensible... and I was glad I was. Because it still wasn't over.