This summer, I traveled with my parents so when I was planning the trip, I avoided odd timing commutation and of course, poor bus service (you know which company I am talking about). By the grace of God, the whole trip was a great success with only minor delays (delays less than 2 hours). Since our schedule was pretty laid back and flexible, those delays didn't affect us at all.
Yesterday, I sent off my parents at 10 am and my flight back to Indy (JFK-RDU-IND) was scheduled to be at 5 pm. I was supposed to reach RDU (in North Carolina) by 6:50 pm for a short layover, and reach Indy before 10 so that I could catch the last shuttle home at 10:20 pm. After spending more than 6 hours waiting at JFK airport, I was tired and all ready to head home.
I boarded the flight at 4:30 pm and fell asleep right away. I woke up at half an hour later, only to realize the flight has not moved at all and all the passengers were asked to de-board the flight because the flight door couldn't close. The person sat beside me jokingly asked the flight crew whether they have tried to use duck tape to secure the door. Ha!
The flight was rescheduled to fly at 7 pm (with another aircraft). During our wait, we were given airplane snacks and drinks to munch on. I knew for sure I was going to miss my connecting flight, so I went to ask for a flight change. The attendant told me to board the flight to RDU anyway, and they will reschedule my flight and compensate me at RDU.
I was fine with the arrangement because at that point, I just want to get out of JFK. I was sick of NYC never-ending crowd.
I got to witness a breathtaking sunset with Manhattan skyline at the horizon during the takeoff from JFK. The bird-eye view of North Carolina was mesmerizing too. The meandering rivers, the nicely structured neighborhoods surrounded by large patches of green bushes, and the sight of city buildings at far. The sky was stained with vivid hues of orange, pink, and indigo.
Upon arrival, I was greeted by the Delta staff and I was quickly rescheduled to stay overnight at a nearby hotel to catch a flight this morning. I was taken to the hotel by a shuttle, and was given cookie and water as supper before I was sent off to my room.
The delay was surely tiring and unsettling. But hey, I got a free night stay in North Carolina! A state that I have yet to explore and a rather pricey hotel that I will not have stayed if I have to pay.
I took a nice hot shower, did some photo editing, and dozed off to sleep right away. This morning I was once again taken to the RDU airport by shuttle, and both the hotel and Delta provided me snacks and drinks, so I didn't have to spend on food.
During my three years stay in USA, I have had a fair share of flight/bus/train delay experiences. Thankfully all of those delays happened when I was on vacation so I was not in rush to do something important.
Besides that, I am very thankful that the delay this time happened after my trip with my parents has ended because I don't want my parents to go through all the waiting and frustration. I was praying hard that all the hotel/hostel would be decent and all the commutation would be smooth; God has lovingly answered all my prayers and gave us more than what we asked. I will talk more about my hotel/hosteling experience in coming posts. So stay tuned!
Overall, I consider the flight delay this time a present from God, rewarding me for my hard work planning this family graduation trip, with a free night stay at a comfortable hotel.
And now, for one last time, I am Bloomington-bound.
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