We've Arrive

Arrving at the airport at 6 am today, we were hopeful to get on the first flight of the day.  No such luck, this has seriously turned into the worst week and I'm talking days before we even left home.  Having a hard time holding back tears and learning just how much the airlines pawn you off to the next clerk, it boils down to if you made the mess yourself, or so they think you have, you get to lay in it and they just don't give a damn.

We were told our luggage was in Houston and couldn't leave without us.  Lie.

We were told we were number on the stand by list and as those people got seat or didn't check in we'd move up the list. Lie.

First of all,  Houston is way too busy of an airport, when we were attempting to check in and standing in the line for 1 1/2 hours, the clerks were too few, they kept leaving their post, luggage was piling up everywhere and the conveyor belt wasn't working so they were transporting it by carts, people that needed assistance were not helped in a timely manner causing further back up in the line. 

And we learned that if the airline caused someone to be delayed, such as mechanical failure those people were bumped to the front of the stand by list no matter what.  If they over booked, which it seems the overbooked every flight by 20 or more people, you were 2nd on the list.  If you missed a connection, you were 3rd on the list and as I realized that this morning I began to think we would never leave Houston.  As we watched the 10:25 flight on the marquee, it showed 6 available seats, which means 6 people didn't check in before the hour mark of departure and Logan and I were 5 & 6 on the stand by list, but we had been on the stand by list  the longest.  I watched as each of the four names ahead of us were given seat assignments, then my name went up with a seat assignment and as luck would have it, because "if you have no bad luck you have no luck at all" two people came up to the check in counter and it looked like they were going to bump us.  Remember those tears, they were somewhat visable when I talked to the people in the check in counter.  I didn't get bumped, but Logan still didn't have a seat, I heard them ask the couple that one seat was open, did they want to split or not, they said no, HALLELUJAH!!! and Logan and I were on that plane and one of us was in first class.   But had that couple said yes, most likely I would have given up my seat and they would have been on the plane instead. 

When we arrive, I immediately when to the baggage claim center and there was our luggage, I didn't even stop at the baggage carousel.  So do you think it was on the same plane as us?  Noooo it wasn't, pretty sure it arrived yesterday, so much for their telling us it can't leave without us.  So we got bumped because of the hour mark, but the luggage didn't, yet from what I am told the luggage is the reason they have the one hour deadline.  I think it has more to do with allowing those overbooked ticket holders a chance to get on to the plane without having to give out vouchers and apologies, it's easier to tell the idiot who didn't check-in before the hour cut off time, too bad for you and oh yea -  good luck getting a seat.  I was a bit irritated at the number of times we were told "Hey it's Spring Break, you should know better" - so to Continental - "Hey, it's Spring Break and you should know better than to be short staffed"

So we've arrived, with a big lesson learned.  Always pre-check in the night before!!! And arrive two hours early.  If you can't pre-check in you must arrive four hours early.  

The weather's nice, not perfect, hoping for calmer winds tomorrow, and we've got our own personal taxi - escort - chauffer for Thursday.  He will arrive at 8 am and drive us to Coba and to some Cenote's an all day excusion for a mear $80. He took us from the bus station to our cottage, to the store, waited and back home again, $25.  Why would anyone rent a car down here?

I'm loving the sound of the surf...gonna go to sleep now and get some much needed rest, why is traveling so tiring, even when you're just sitting around.   BTW - the FB post - Terminal E is for international flights - the numbers represent each gate we tried to get a flight at on Saturday.  Exhausting and Exhausted!!  Good night.