Home for a rest...

You'll have to excuse me,
I'm not at my best
I've been gone for a week
I've been drunk since I left
These so-called vacations will soon be my death!
I'm so sick from the drink, I need home for a rest!!!

Well, its not *quite* that bad, I didn't drink that much. But I did have a few and I had a wonderful time, and I am SOOOOO tired. I'm more sick and tired from the travelling, than the drinking! I flopped into my own bed just before midnight last night, and I left at 4 am on Wednesday, so its been a long haul. I had every possible trouble getting through the Toronto airport, and mark my words, I will NEVER EVER EVER take an international connecting flight out of that airport again. So help me.

Aside from airport issues, my trip was incredible. But I have to grouch about my flights for a bit before I can move onto the good stuff. I didn't make my connecting flight in Toronto, despite the fact that I got off the plane and RAN through the airport to baggage claim, and I only waited 5 minutes in front of the carousel before asking for help - they told me that my flight was boarded, my luggage would be another 20 minutes, and I would miss it. I fell apart right there because the lady who was 'helping' me also told me there wouldn't be another flight to St.Louis until tomorrow. There is no way in hell I was planning to stay in that airport overnight so I started to freak out a bit. Then she sent me a bunch of wrong places, I lost my purse (yes, that is right - LOST. MY. PURSE) and I knew exactly where it was but they wouldn't let me back through security to get it - etc. It was just a mess and people sent me to see people who said, you're not in the right place, go here instead, etc. And then I finally got to the woman who DID help and with a few keystrokes, got me on a flight to Chicago, which would get me into St.Louis by 10 pm. Not bad! I thanked her a million times and went on my way.

Until I got to US customs where the guy looking at my passport said "You're going to Chicago? Why would you go there? Its horrible! You will circle endlessly above the airport and never land. It is so huge, you will never, ever get out of there. I will take a layover anywhere before I will ever fly out of Chicago. Have fun!"

Me having no fun whatsoever in Chicago's O'Hare airport while I waited an hour for a plane to stop circling the airport and land, so that we could board it.

See? That sign says O'Hare airport. What the HECK am I doing in O'Hare airport?

Hrumph. So I went back slightly into panic mode wondering what I am getting myself into flying into CHICAGO when I couldn't even handle Toronto. But I made it to my connecting flight in Chicago with no problems - they just delayed the flight almost two hours and so I didn't get into St.Louis until after eleven, they lost my luggage of course, I waited in line for an hour dealing with that - ah, the JOYS of air travel. But I made it!!

And that was the last worry I had for four days, while I had the time of my life in St.Louis with my friends. Then it was back to the airport, and everything went smoothly until I got to Toronto, again. Another short international connection, with customs etc. I ran until I thought my heart would explode, I freaked out when the baggage claim took forever, I rushed through customs and security and ran my ass off for a few more miles and got to the gate just in time to board my flight. Sweaty and dying of thirst, I was one of the last to get on board but settled in for TWO HOURS of sitting on the plane waiting for it to move from the terminal. Which it did not. They didn't have a pilot, one would be running from the other end of the airport (how fitting!!) to fly our plane. Then when he got there, he discovered a problem and so they had to wait for mechanics. Then it couldn't be fixed so we had to get off the plane and haul ourselves and our luggage to another gate (and not a nearby gate, heaven forbid, but one far away!) and wait to board THAT plane, and THEN wait for it to fill with fuel and whatever, and FINALLY two hours after Iwas supposed to be in Winnipeg, my flight left Toronto. We got into Winnipeg at just after 4 am, and after waiting for luggage (mine was lost AGAIN!!!) and waiting in the freezing cold for a cab for 20 minutes - I finally got to the hotel at 5 am.

So is it just me, or is the Toronto airport quite possibly the Gateway To Hell?

I'm going to post this so that I can put all the good stuff and pictures in the next one, so it will show up on top. :)