October 27
The story of the day is John and Molly. We met them at the Charles DeGaulle airport in the morning ridiculously early for our 10:55 flight. We were early because we couldn’t sleep and we were anxious to leave Paris ASAP. They were there early because they had missed a flight the day before. Everyone had boarded the plane 40 minutes before the departure time, and they were refused entry. Their tickets were useless, so they bought new tickets and had to pay for an extra night at a hotel near the airport. No one seemed to care about their situation except for one Delta employee who helped them get the best ticket price available and a good rate on a nearby hotel. They would also have to spend an extra night in Cincinnati and miss two days of work. And this was their honeymoon!
Molly hadn’t slept most the night and couldn’t even cry herself to sleep. We hoped, along with them, to check in early and relax at the boarding gate. The Delta workers would have no part of this. The supervisor told us that security was not set up yet and that we would have to wait a while longer in a nearby area. She also prevented us from using the check in computers to get our boarding passes until security was set up. It was about 6:30am. That’s when I first saw John and Molly sitting on the floor near the security area slumped over and looking terribly forlorn. John explained their plight. I offered to treat them to breakfast while we all waited. But first I wanted to find out when the security area would be open. I approached the supervisor, but she just turned the other way. I asked another Delta employee when the security area would be open. He told me he didn’t know. I got louder and asked the whole group, about six of them. They suggested that I speak with a Delta representative at a counter around the corner. When I asked her, she said that she would need to call someone. After doing so, she told me that the security area would open three hours before the first flight out which happened to be ours (about 7:55).
When I told John and Molly the news, they decided to take my breakfast offer. That’s when we heard the rest of their story. Soon after they landed in Paris, they checked into a hostel which they had booked. It wasn’t fancy, but it fit their budget. During their first night there, the toilet broke and flooded the bathroom and their bedroom. There was no one to complain to and they had booked the hostel with no cancellation option. Somehow they endured several days’ stench until the plumbing was fixed. I tried to brighten their disposition by sharing our horror story about having to jump off a Metro train in the middle of nowhere and having to walk to the next station. But they matched our story with a similar experience a few days ago. As we ate our croissants, jam with butter, juice, and coffee, we shared more Paris experiences. We had some great times there, but we were ready to get away from the scene of some trying experiences and Parisian attitudes.
Now we are finally aboard our flight to Cincinnati. A few seats away from us John is staring blankly at the tiny monitor in front of him. Molly is slumped over on a pillow, passed out from lack of sleep. Life can only be uphill from here for them.
The flight from Paris to Cincinnati to LA went as planned. We parted with John and Molly in Cincinnati. I called Rachel from there and found out that she was working in San Diego, so we caught a cab from LAX to her apartment. By 9:30 she joined us and we shared stories of our trip over wine, cheese, and crackers, and looked at pictures of our boat ride on the Seine. We thank the Good Lord for a wonderful European trip. Te Deum Laudamus (We thank you, God—traditional Thanksgiving psalm).