Friday July 15 Regina

 

After we arrived home Celeste and Tyler and I all tested positive for Covid. Carla tested negative. We were all negative a couple of days later. We had cold symptoms, but nothing unusual and none of the odd symptoms of Covid. We kept ourselves masked as much as possible as a precaution, but never really felt that we had more than a cold.

Our goal was to give Carla and Tyler a treat. After all that transpired, I am not sure we succeeded. Between the stress of the air travel with its cancelled flights, the Covid for Tyler, the scents, vibration, and bus rides for Carla, it may have been more of an ordeal than a vacation.

Thursday 14 July 2022 - Amsterdam to Regina

 

It was a relief to catch the van to the airport at 10 AM for a 2:40 PM departure as opposed to the original itinerary of a 2:30 AM pick up for a 7 AM departure. The airlines and airports are recommending arriving four hours before departure to cope with all the delays. As we drove past the domestic terminal, we saw a huge lineup outside the building. The international terminal was not nearly as bad, and we progressed fairly quickly to check-in. We had not been able to check-in online and we now found out why. The flight was oversold, and we were on standby! We were directed to the line for security. It extended the length of the building, then around a corner into a back-and-forth line, then up some stairs into a very large holding area with many back-and-forth lines. 

It took about 1.5 to 2 hours to reach the security clearance, but it did not seem so long because the line was always slowly creeping forward. After walking what seemed like a mile in the terminal, we reached our departure area and waited to learn our fate. Eventually we received boarding passes – Carla and Tyler together and Celeste and I split up.

I was reading throughout the flight, but I had on the flight following program. We flew northwest off the east coast of Great Britain, east of Iceland, across Greenland and the northern part of Baffin Island, north of Hudson Bay, over Lake Athabasca and into Edmonton. 

I had considered trying to get from there direct to Regina but passed on the idea. Our WestJet flight to Vancouver also had a KLM flight number as a continuation of our previous flight. I was concerned about causing too much confusion around our luggage. So, we flew on to Vancouver and then Air Canada to Regina. We arrived about 45 minutes behind schedule and, after collecting our luggage and dropping off Carla and Tyler, we were home about 1 AM.

Wednesday 13 July 2020 - Amsterdam

 

When Carla tried to do online check-in this morning for tomorrow’s trip home, our first flight out of Amsterdam was missing. This did not bode well. The original itinerary was Amsterdam – Zurich – Vancouver – Regina.

We visited the on-site Viking rep who allowed us to use her phone to call the Viking emergency line. After about two hours on the phone, most of it on hold, the agent found that our Amsterdam – Zurich flight was cancelled and eventually arranged a KLM flight Amsterdam – Edmonton – Vancouver – Regina departing at 2:40 pm and arriving home at 11:30 pm. With the time change it is about 17 hours. This is about half an hour less total than the original with less flying time but more stopover time. I was looking forward to my first flight on a Boeing 787 from Zurich to Vancouver, but, at this point, I am just happy to have what seems to be a secure path home.

With our travel disruption resolved, we took the tram to the town centre and walked the streets, exploring the sites. It was quite busy with pedestrians and there were several shopping streets with all the modern retail stores and brands. 

 Carla found a Lego store and purchased a kit that she had not been able to find elsewhere. 

 

We settled at an outdoor café by a canal for a drink. It was right beside supposedly the narrowest house in Amsterdam.

The traffic takes some getting used to. There are lanes for bikes, cars, and trams. Long before we got here people were warning us about the bikes in Amsterdam.

 

Celeste and I returned to the hotel while Carla and Tyler found a place to eat downtown then found a South African pub. I had arranged to meet a couple of third cousins from Dad’s side (Dominique and Govinda Deckers) for supper while Celeste again took the night off.