the broken plane

We (Sonja and I) were so excited on Thursday 8 June. Soon we were flying to BWI, Baltimore. We had all our stuffs in her red luggage. We went together from office. The day was bright, the sun is up, it looks like one idyllic day to hop on a holiday. It was on MIT Graduation day -- this makes everything even merrier. People walk by, pets, balloons, flowers, teddy bears, the chatter, the laughter, flashes of camera...

We arrived at the airport pretty early. So after we checked in our luggage, we were pretty much relaxing and sashaying along Logan airport. During the first half of the trip, we were commenting on the silly things they sell in the Sky Mall. It's not the shopping you do inside the aeroplane, but a cataogue you can collect and order later.

Then the flight attendance made an announcement "Due to some hydraullic control problem, we will have an emergency landing in JFK, New York." Some of us started getting worried, though not so much to consider it as panicking. After being bugged about the same question about our safety over and over again, he made the second announcement "The captain is very sure that we will land safely. It's part of the company regulation that we have to make an emergency landing in the nearest airport whenever such problems occur." When we landed in foggy JFK, we saw rows of ambulances and fire trucks lining up to greet us. What a greeting.

Anyway... we were abandoned for approximately 20 minutes in a crowded JFK to wait for our next fate. After a wait that felt like an eternity, they made an official announcement that the flight is officially cancelled and the passengers are requested to proceed to the Customer Service Counter to arrange for rebooking and accommodation.

Lo! The line was already sooooo long. Apparently, in such foggy weather, many flights were canceled. Hundreds of passengers were estranged. Some just left and catch Amtrak to the destination. I didn't do that as I don't know what would happen with our luggage.

Well, it wasn't a pleasant experience at all, but Sonja and I kept telling each other that "Things can be worst than that." "Imagine if the engine stopped working and we were still airborne." And after listening to some people on the line, we still indeed felt lucky. There was one Professor who was supposed to give a lecture on the next morning, 8 am. It was already almost 10 pm and there was no more flight that night. Some people needed to attend a cousin's wedding or birthday. Lucky for us *still*, it was only for holiday. "The broken plane" was the keyword for the night. When we talked to the Customer Service person, she said "oh you're another one from that broken plane."

Anyway... we were allocated to this far far away hotel, and we got the 8.15 am flight the next morning, but from La Guardia airport (not JFK). The hotel was said to be 1.5 hour drive from JFK!!! Due to the many cancellations that took place that night, all nearby hotels are full full full. So we waited in dismay for the shuttle bus to pick us up -- a wait that seemed like an eternity. Meanwhile, we also tried to track our luggage down. We'll feel much better if we have our luggage safe with us. But. To No Avail.

After a long wait, we were told that all of us will get rooms in a nearby Ramada hotel, which is approximately only 5 minutes away from the airport. Soon after, the bus came and off we went. The hotel was nice, but it was chaotic. What with a sudden surge of hundreds of people at one night. Oh, in the bus, a 7-year old boy, Dion, smiled to us and asked "Are you sisters?". If only sisters can have different hair color and 15 cm difference in height. Haha we indeed got close with some of the broken plane passengers... *we're in it together, yeaaahh...*

We were allocated in this room just in front of the elevator, on second floor. It was so noisy, what with people passed by, and got in and out of the elevators. It was already almost midnight so we decided to just sleep as the only morning shuttle was at... 5 am!! It wasn't my best evening I tell you.

We got this small survival kit from the airport. So we could only change our t-shirt to the free white t-shirt given in that kit. I slept with my jeans. We didn't have our dinner but we didn't feel anything close to hunger. I couldn't sleep that night; thinking about our luggage, about our flight tomorrow, and I forgot what else. Guess what, when I started dozing off from tiredness, I heard the fire alarm ringing!!! I quickly got up, woke Sonja up, switching on the light and went outside to check. I saw people gathering in the main hallway (right in front of our room), made noises, but somehow I found out that there was no fire. So I went back to bed to try to sleep again. I woke up at 4 am because I want to take a nice shower and hair-wash. Well, if I still deserved anything... it's cleanliness and hygiene.

There were 6 people from the broken plane who were rebooked to the same flight as ours. Guess what, we stood in the wrong line!! Lucky for us to come so early, we still had time to go to the correct terminal (which was soooooooo far) by shuttle bus. I was so skeptical about the flight. Only when the plane really flew that I could sit back and relaz, but still thinking about our luggage...

So we arrive in Reagan airport (no longer BWI) shortly before 10 am... without our luggage.

to be continued....