Last days in England

As we were packing on Saturday morning for our journey to Oxford and then meet up with my cousin Ellie, Theresa realized she didn't have her passport. Theresa is probably the most organized person I have ever met. Apparently she was either pickpocketed or it fell out of her purse, which seems highly unlikely. In any event, we spent Saturday morning calling the US Embassy as to what to do if you lose your passport. Since it was Saturday, the Embassy was closed, but the recording said to file a police report and contact the airline -- both of which we did. Needless to say, we never made it to Oxford, so this gives us another reason to come back to the United Kingdom again.

Alan and Gaye took us to South Mims (the equivalent of meeting at the Fort Pierce Plaza on the Turpike) and we were handed over to my cousin Ellie with whom we were going to spend the night and would take us to the airport on Sunday morning. After having a bite to eat, we said our goodbyes to Alan and Gaye and proceeded to Ellie's house.

Steve (her husband) barbequed for us and Ellie prepared the rest of the dinner. It was delicious! Soon after it was time to get ready for bed as we wanted to be at the airport early to see what needed to be done due to the lost passport. When we got to the airport, Theresa went to an immigration person and took care of everything to be able to get back into the U.S. While we were waiting around, we noticed that Delta had prepared a letter for passengers explaining that they had overbooked several flights and were looking for volunteers to give up their seats. If needed, the volunteers would be reimbursed $1000 Delta dollars. Bingo! That's my trip to Alaska! Of course we added our names to the list, but in the end, apparently our flight had some no-shows and they even let some stand-by passengers on. Darn!

We didn't get to sit anywhere near each other, so I watched 3 movies (Hotel for Dogs, New in Town, and He's Just Not That Into You), played Bejeweled (I'm hooked), and read for a while. Landed in Atlanta, went through immigration with no problem, and headed home on a flight to Orlando. (I learned a valuable lesson: If you have a connection, try for Atlanta instead of JFK.)

Scott had gone to New York for the weekend and booked his return flight at the same time I was to arrive in Orlando. It worked out perfectly - he met me at the Delta baggage claim and we went home, only two be greeted by Hondo and Murphy who were stuck like velcro to me the rest of the night.

I'm over London now -- two years in a row -- so next time I'd like to travel someplace different -- not quite as "different" as Lauren's adventures, but Australia isn't out of the question. I'd love to hold a koala! That would make it all worth while.