Oct. 18, A "Not so Fresh" Start

OK folks, I hope this will be my only negative post.

The bad news is that I missed my flight from Chicago to Amsterdam. It's a long story, but know that I did my best.

I'm not one to look for the Devil in the details, but it sure seems that he doesn't want me to get there. I've faced obsticals at every turn:
- hours in bumper to bumber traffic on the way to the airport
-extra long lines at the counters and security
-a medical emergency on my flight that caused us to return to the gate to let a sick flight attendant off the plane
-a three hour delay at the gate
-a plane mechanical problem...
-we even had to refuel on the tarmac because it had taken so long to get going.

I finally arrived in Chigago at 3:50 for a 4:20 flight to Amsterdam. I ran - no, I SPRINTED accross the airport with a hundred pounds of camera gear on my shoulders... probably faster than anyone has ever made the trip... I got to the international terminal and KLM ticket counter by 4:10, but they had already closed the doors and wouldn't let me on. So close, but no go. I would have had to go through another winding, snaking line to get through security before getting to my gate.

Do you ever get those moments when you feel like you've just ran straight into a brick wall?

I spent the next 5 hours trying to get on other flights, with no luck. I went back and forth between 3 terminals more times than I can count.

The worst part is I made another mistake. Ieft my cell phone at home. At $4 a minute for calls to and from Africa, I decided I would rely on email to keep in touch. I also didn't want to loose my new iphone. Who knows, if I had my phone, could I have called and talked to a competant customer service person who could have helped me get on a flight? Lesson learned.

Instead, I stood in line for hours until I finally got to the counter to talk to people who acted like it was their first day trying to figure out how to problem solve. Of course, when you are the victim of a missed flight, it always seems like the world is working against you.

Lesson learned... never leave your phone behind.

I'll trying to stay positive from here on out. The good news is United put me up for the night and I am arriving in Nairobi only a day late.

Heres are the details of my revised itinerary:

Friday, Oct. 19 KLM Flight 612 From Chicago O Hare to Amsterdam - Departing 4:20pm and Arriving in Amsterdam 7:15am

Sat., Oct. 20 KLM Flight 200 from Amsterdam to Nairobi - Departing 10:15am and Arriving in Nairobi at 7:10pm.

I'll promise to be upbeat from now on.
Pray my packed bag- tripod, chargers, clothes, stand, etc. make it.