Caught in the Chaos!

Well...we made it to Toronto after a world-wind adventure. In the middle of a nap Monday afternoon we were awoken by a phone call at 3:00pm...Amber's parents were looking to see if we would be making it for Christmas. Turns out that our 9pm flight from Victoria to Vancouver was cancelled...in fact, all flights out of Victoria were cancelled. This was indeed a surprise to us as we had checked in the night before and there were no issues and the weather was even better this day. Given that we needed to make it to Vancouver, we decided to quickly pack and rush to make the 5:00pm ferry. (Air Canada said if we didn't make a run for Vancouver, the earliest they could rebook was Christmas Day).

After arriving at 5:05pm for that ferry, we were pleased to figure out that the ferry was delayed. We departed at 5:45pm to get to Vancovuer. Once arrived, we drove to the airport. The roads were horrible and we were not able to get in to the Park'N'Fly. After driving around for a little while, we managed to find a clear area in the Long Term Parking. Now it was time to check in...

Checking in was not much of an issue and at 8:30 our 10:40 flight to TO was still on-time. SO far, so good. With all of Amber's travels, she has managed to get Air Canada Elite status so off to the Air Canada Lounge we went. After relaxing in this area out of the hustle and bustle of the chaotic travel scene, we noticed that our flight was delayed until 11:30, then 12:30. This is where the adventure really started. Luckily, around 11:30 our names were called to come see the lady at the lounge entrance. Our economy seats were kindly exchanged for Executive seats (this turns out to be the one saving grace in this entire story).

At 11:30 the lounge closed and we headed down to the gate where we found a mass of angry people waiting for their flight. Some of these individuals had been in the airport for 2+days. When we arrived, we also noticed a lively gentleman in hand-cuffs being escorted from the gate (this was the cause of some of the delays). Due to this debacle our plane ended up being changed (this will later prove to cause more issues).

We boarded the flight shortly after midnight. The nice Captain soon came on to welcome us and indicated that due to the change in planes, the aircraft was carrying 20 tonnes of extra fuel. Now, you might think that more fuel is a good thing, but not when you have to land...we would be too heavy. So, await the de-fuel we would do...except for the fact that the de-fuel truck was broken due to the weather Vancouver had been getting. Thus, we would wait until the fuel was burnt off and then depart at 7:00am.

After deciding that we would remain on the plane while we waited, people started to get extremely agitated. This is where our luck of being up-graded kicked in. We managed to lay flat out and actually sleep - and hide from the chaos in the back of the plane.

At 8:00am we pushed off the wall to de-ice before proceeding to Toronto. That took 3.5 hrs due to the amount of freezing the night before. Things must have been getting in the back, as the Captain warned that if people were violent with the stewardesses, we would return to the gate and these people would be removed. So, at 11:30 we were on our way. We finally arrived in Toronto at 5:45pm local. By the time we got our rental and made it out of the airport it was 6:45. It took us over 1.5 hrs to get to Amber's parents at 10kph on the 401. However, we made it safe and sound after 15 hrs on the plane with all our luggage and 2x$500 travel vouchers from Air Canada for the massive disaster.

Hopefully travelling back will not be so adventurous. Hope everyone has a Merry Christmas and we will talk to you soon. M

Lost Generation

'Tis the Season

Hello Everyone,
Our apologies for the delay in posting news recently. The Christmas Season has kept us quite busy at work and after hours. Last Friday, we were at Matt's 443 Squadron Christmas party, held at a hotel downtown. It was a great chance to catch up with everyone especially since many are posted next year. On Saturday we went to a potluck hosted by one of the members of the running group we train with Tuesday and Thursday nights. On Sunday, we attended Amber's work Christmas party up at the Wardroom (the Officer's Mess). Unfortunately, turnout was low as that was the day it started snowing in Victoria - and hasn't stopped since! The weather has been very unusual for this time of year. Apparently, this is the coldest it has been in the city since 1967 and since 1942, there have only been 8 white christmases (and the forecast is predicting this year will likely be the 9th). On Monday, we helped with a hot chocolate fundraiser in support of the base Triathlon Club that has just got back up and running. On Tuesday, we attended the Annual Naden Band Christmas Concert in support of the Salvation Army. Wednesday had us back at the hot chocolate shack persuading the few people that did brave the weather to see the ship's lit up with Christmas lights to buy some hot chocolate for the bus ride. Thursday we were supposed to run at the track but once again the weather forced us back on the treadmill:( And last night we hosted the Winter Swimming Social at our house for the Navy team we swim with Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings - it was great to see everyone without their goggles and swim caps on! A good time was had by all but we must admit we were eager to start our holidays today and are thankful to finally have some time to sleep in and relax! A