Day 19: Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

So sad to say goodbye to Europe. It's been an amazing trip. One of our best vacations ever. Easily in the top three.

We got up at 5:30 to get ready and finish packing. We had to leave by 7:15 to make the train to the airport. We decided to walk to station this time, instead of taking the bus. Madison wasn't exactly thrilled (it's a ten minute walk through Disney Village, the exact same walk to the parks), but it made us more comfortable time-wise, rather than waiting for the bus. The only slight hiccup was that we had to go through the Disney Village baggage check (complete with X-Ray), but that didn't take too long.

At the train station, we got directions to our train, printed out tickets at the kiosk, and found our platform. I'd booked us all on the TVG to the airport. It was a little pricey, but it was only a ten-minute shot to the airport. Can't beat that. Our train had a slight delay, but we had plenty of time.

I was worried about a repeat of trying to get our big suitcases on board like with the Eurostar, and I was right. There wasn't enough room in the luggage compartment, so I ended up staying with them. I thought I'd be in there with just the conductors, but half the car joined me. People just kept coming and coming, anxious to get off at the airport, I guess. It was starting to look like the Marx Brothers in A Night at the Opera.

We got to Charles de Gaul in no time. Marsha had actually chased someone out of my seat, only for me to not show up. After we got off the train, we had to take an elevator up. While everyone else waited in a very long line for the closest one, we walked further down the platform and found another with no line at all. 

Let me now say that Charles de Gaul is huge. I wasn't sure what to expect, but it's really one of the nicest airports I've ever seen. Of course, we also saw more soldiers carrying machine guns walking around (we've seen quite a few of those in France), which actually made me feel pretty safe, but was another reminder that we're not in Kansas anymore.

It was a long, long walk to US Airways/American Airlines baggage check in (we should have grabbed a cart). Drum roll, please, for the moment of truth! Would our bags be under 50 pounds? Did our plan using the extra carry-on work? We played it smart and did Marsha's bag first, just in case we had to shift things around again.

Yes! It passed! And so did the other two! 

With that first hurdle behind us, it was time for hurdle #2: Marsha needed to start her meds, which take a good while to kick in. Unlike the trip over, where she took them several nights before we left, this was her first dose before flying back. Major progress. I am so proud of how well she's done.

We found a McD so that we could get some breakfast and relax a bit. Thankfully, when we checked our luggage, they gave us the customs form then (the U.S. only requires one per family). Even better, we knew what it was this time. We had to guesstimate how much we'd spent in souvenirs. We figured they wouldn't ask for receipts, but we still tried to be fairly accurate. 

We hung out at McD for a good while. I noticed that they don't have biscuits for their breakfast items. Most everything is served on an English muffin (didn't see any croissants). Eventually, our boarding time was approaching (our tickets listed it an hour before takeoff), so we headed for our gate. Marsha needed a Diet Coke to take her next pill after we boarded, so I used some of the last of my change to get her one. I started to get a little nervous about the time because I realized we still hadn't gone through customs or security. Should have done that before we went to McD.

Thankfully, it all went pretty quickly, so no worries, but they took Marsh's unopened Diet Coke and asked her if she wanted a sip before they tossed it. I should've remembered to buy her one after we went through security.

We found our gate and, more importantly, another drink machine. I  scrounged through my remaining change and had just enough, but it wouldn't take the two cent pieces (of course). Marsha asked a fellow traveler who kindly donated ten cents to the cause.

We found a crowded place to sit and waited and waited. Our flight was delayed due to weather somewhere (clearly not in Paris), but that was no bother since we were flying non-stop. Eventually, we boarded and got settled in for the long flight home.

We got lunch shortly after takeoff. Marsha skipped it and nodded right off. Her plan to not sleep much the night before partially worked. She did manage to sleep for a couple of hours. 

All of the announcements were in French and English (no idea if they told us something different). Fortunately, this time the pilot didn't offer everyone a last chance to get off. But Marsha had to come back anyway.

The GPS wasn't working, so they had to reboot the system. We were already leaving the UK when they finally got it up and running. The data on how far we'd traveled was wrong, but where we were and how far we had to go were still accurate.

Thankfully, they dimmed the lights and asked everyone to close their window shades to make it easier to watch movies. It also helped Marsha and Madison sleep. It was a longer flight coming back, but still very comfortable.

I swear, having the GPS is awesome. You know exactly where you are and how far you have to go, so it really helps eliminate the anticipation.

Thank goodness for the in-flight entertainment system. We watched multiple movies, though I was struggling to finish my last one before we landed. I'd loaded up my iPad before we left home, but forgot to recharge it the night before we left Disneyland. It all worked out, though. The in-flight movie selection was much better.

We hit more turbulence coming back, and in the exact same spot as we did going over (Eastern coast of Canada). It wasn't as rough, but it lasted longer than the first time. I really thought they'd end beverage service again, but the flight crew soldiered on and got everyone served. 

After a very long flight (our longest ever!), we finally landed in Charlotte. It was so good to be back in the wonderful US of A! Thanks to having our form and passports ready (plus being on home turf), we went through customs with no problem. Then we went straight to baggage claim and got our suitcases.

That's when we hit our final hiccup. We were on our way to the exit with suitcases in hand when they directed us to luggage re-check and said we had to do it. This being our first international flight, we didn't know any better, so we did as we were told.

I expected them to check our bags and hand them right back, but they took the bags and put them on a conveyor and away they went. I immediately realized that our bags were gone, so I found a woman (who was more interested in talking to her co-worker about potato chips) and asked where we were supposed to go to get them back. She looked at me puzzled, then asked if this was our final destination. When I said it was, she said we weren't supposed to do baggage re-check, that it was only for people who were connecting. Gee, that would have been a really good question to ask before they sent us over to baggage recheck.

She pointed us to the US Airways desk at the other end of baggage claim to tell them what happened. That's where we encountered several people who clearly had no interest in our problem or doing anything to help. They said we just had to wait until someone figured out our bags weren't going anywhere, at which time they'd be brought out. They said it wouldn't take long, but it sounded more like "just leave me alone and stop making me work."

Fortunately, we found a crewman who actually does care about his customers and he went the extra mile to track our bags down. God bless him! We tried to give him a tip to thank him, but he wouldn't take it. So glad they have at least one employee who actually cares.

I went to get the car while Marsha and Madison waited at the terminal. It was scorching hot outside (big change from this morning in Paris), and none of us wanted to drag our suitcases along any more than necessary.

As soon as I got to the shuttle, I realized that I couldn't remember exactly where we'd parked. Luckily, I'd recorded it on my phone. Or so I thought. I must've accidentally deleted it, because it was gone. I quickly texted Marsha and Madison. Madison remembered the parking lot, and I was able to piece together the rest.

After nearly three weeks in the parking lot, our poor car looked like it had been abandoned. It was covered in dirt, likely from the nearby construction. I rolled the windows down and cranked up the AC to cool it down on the way back to the terminal. 

Finally, we were on our very last leg of our most amazing trip. First stop was to pick up the dog, and then some iced tea!