Woke up this morning just before Newark, had the light breakfast, and then slowly got ready to man the phone and finish up on reservations if necessary. As we landed and I turned on my iPhone, a flurry of messages passed in and out of email. Pamela had verified our reservations, and it seemed as though all was secure. We cancelled the United reservations, and proceeded to shower, head to Penn Station, eat lunch, and then off to Long Island.
Train ride was uneventful, which is good, as we were exhausted.
We got in to la Casa Spengler, unpacked a little, and then I watched my hubby take a nose dive on the bed as jet lag caught up. After a while, he got up, and we had Dad open his birthday gifts, and then proceeded on to dinner. Lamb and end of season Long Island corn on the cob. Color me happy. At the end of dinner, Pam called, and the group arranged check in for seating on the jet taking us across the pond. Keeping fingers crossed, but it all looks like it’s heading for the good.
Dad had called the American Express fraud unit, and, as he had paid the initial deposit with the Gold Card, they told him he would be reimbursed that money. They also informed him that the trip insurance that he bought through ABC for the tours was not going to pay him back most likely. So, two important lessons learned here:
1. Never, ever pay for your tour through a travel agency in cash, always use a credit card
2. Always get your travel insurance through a third party agency
We learned the second lesson early on while I was still in the military - we found only one agency that would insure our trip and reimburse us in the event that I was called onto active duty or deployed. None of the ones associated with our booking agency would cover a “work related” emergency.
We did enjoy the company of two out of three Spengler cats, Carmen and Tristan. And we enjoyed the heck out of a good night’s sleep as well.
Eagerly awaiting tomorrow!
