Bumps in the road

Well, that didn't go as planned. My flight out of Regina was delayed just under 2 hours. It meant I wouldn't likely make my connection in Calgary, but just before we took off I had a message saying that flight was also delayed.

Upon arrival in Calgary I made my way across the terminal from A to E. Went through security and customs before grabbing a bite to eat at my gate. I called my daughter with an update and learned that Palm Springs airport wasn't allowing traffic and two earlier flights had been diverted to San Bernadino. Apparently 40 airports in Southern California were dealing with an FAA issue...no idea what.

I mentioned it to the couple beside me - there may have been an expletive released and I felt the need to explain.  The woman went to the counter to ask, and was told they had no idea. One of the group got on the phone and about 10 minutes layer it was announced that our flight was cancelled.

We were escorted to the Canadian customs side, provided with a piece of paper indicating DNF (did not fly I presume) and released into the main airport. Another couple and I had no checked bags so hustled to the nearest WestJet desk....back in Terminal A and were able to re-book for the following morning. 

However because the situation was beyond the control of the airline there was no further assistance.  I was able to cancel my car rental as well as my hotel. The latter was non-refundable but I'd booked through Expedia and the agent there was able to get a refund. 

I did consider getting a room at the hotel in the airport but at $369 before taxes I decided I could manage an uncomfortable night on the benches. Back I went through security and the U.S. Customs. After a few phone calls I grabbed some food and watched a few videos on my phone.

It turned out the International portion of the terminal is closed overnight so I was escorted back to Canada side by security. It wasn't a comfortable night by any stretch of the imagination but I got a few hours sleep on the bench.

In the morning I lined up at the WestJet counter again. While I was able to get a boarding pass I was directed to an agent who supposedly needed more info. She didn't and I was heading through security just after 4 a.m. The U.S. customs hall didn't open until 4:30 but there were a number of agents so I was through in no time.

I needed to eat and I wanted plain old bacon and eggs. It was pricey but I got what I wanted at Wolfgang Puck's. Then it was off to another bench for a nap to wait for the flight.

We boarded by 9:15 and after a quick de-icing we're up and on our way. I slept through most of the flight. We were delayed getting into Palm Springs due to some radio communications issue according to the pilot. Once in the ground I headed to the car rentals to determine if a car would be available. As i suspected there were none. I had a vehicle booked the day before but the company was unable to honor that booking. I has the choice of finding a hotel and trying again the next day. Or I could take a cab to the nearest bus station and take the Flix bus to Yuma. While the second option wasn't inexpensive it was less costly than the first. 

So I finishing this post as we travel through the darkening sky. I'm not certain if the arrival time is local or based on California time but at most we're about 2 hours from Yums. My friend L will pick me up at the transit location and I'll be sleeping in my own bed tonight. Hooray!