Harrowing Heathrow

July 7 - A LONG day

Most of the time, you leave the bags in he hall and they are picked up and taken to the lobby for you. This hotel told us not to leave the bags in tthe hall. We got up at 5:45. At 6:20 no one had come for the bags (and others told us that no one came for theirs either), so A took them and went down in one elevator and I used the other elevator with the scooter. We picked up our breakfast bags which had a bottle of OJ, a bottle of water, a thing of yogurt, a sandwich and an apple.

I had decided to ship the scooter and use a wheelchair in the airports but I had not apparently communicated this to the PTB. In the lobby, we took the scooter battery out and put it in the computer bag. That was all that was in there, which made it much lighter. And we got into a taxi-van (prepaid) with the couple who made a big fuss about the soot on the train. She was still talking about it. She said trains in California didn't have soot. I suppose that maybe they have air quality rules on the steam trains out there, but I doubt it. She just wasn't paying attention.

I drank the OJ on the way to the airport. The drive to the airport normally takes about half a hour and there wasn't much traffic. We got to the airport about 7:15. We let them off first. When we got to our section, I emptied the water bottle. Mistake

They were going to let us off, but I wanted a wheelchair. They wanted to know why I wasn't using the scooter, but when A leaves Heathrow to go to Bush airport in Houston, I will have no one to fold the scooter, so I wanted to ship the scooter. They said normally that one went to check in and then asked for a wheelchair and I said that I did not want to do that - that my plane reservation said that I needed a wheelchair. So the cab driver went into the airport to check if that was true (and it was) so he came back with a wheelchair person. The Ama person and the wheelchair person and A and I and the suitcases went to check in.

Now we come to the battery quiz. We had to take the battery out of the bag so they could see the power rating on it (or something) and they eventually decided I could have the battery in my carry-on. I did offer to put it in my suitcase - I had room. But they reacted to that idea with HORROR. While the Ama person was there (the wheelchair guy had gone), we got the bags checked - each to its destination airport. Mine was marked Heavy. Then they said that the scooter would have to go on a separate luggage belt, and that they would call for a wheelchair person who would know what belt to put it on. So they left us - me in the wheelchair with my cane, pocketbook and computer bag-with-battery, and A with her backpack and the scooter in the middle of the airport to wait for the wheelchair guy. It was by now about 7:45. We waited about half an hour with travelers ebbing and flowing around us like the surf on a beach. I had taken the tag off the computer bag and put it on the scooter just in case.

Scooter folded flat

I ate the yogurt and the apple and then tried to take the Naproxen which says not to chew it. But I had emptied my water bottle and when I tried to swallow it without water it made me gag. I should probably have skipped it or waited.

Eventually the wheelchair guy came and put the scooter on the other belt which I found out later was to gate check it- not what I wanted. We went through security. I walked through the gate and then we got all our stuff on the other side - including a different wheelchair person and a different wheelchair. Apparently there are specialist wheelchair people for before security and after security.

We did not get to the gate until almost 9.

9:09

Waiting at the gate

There was no plane there. The plane was late. My fear was that they would change the gate, but they didn't. Eventually the plane came and we got to board with the first group. It was one of those triple seats with a board across the middle seat - they are very hard for me to get into. So we were on the plane about 10 and the plane had been scheduled to leave at 10:10.

On the plane

I looked our the window and they were loading pods of cargo. I don't know if that was suitcases or some other kind of cargo.

Loading pods

We took off at 10:50 - 40 minutes late.

Taking off

They gave us some kind of lunch - A had a gluten free meal. I got some kind of tart, a stewed tomato, a yogurt and some fruit.

Lunch

I gave A my kiwi fruit. I also went to the bathroom.

Flying to Heathrow

We landed about 1:20.

They tried to give the scooter back to me, but I told them I wanted a wheelchair and to have the scooter checked to Baltimore. They were confused but agreed. They took us on a bus ride of 15 minutes to the international terminal, and up and down some elevators, and then through security. At some point yesterday my left big toenail chipped and part of it pulled off. So my big toe was bloody and it hurt to put the shoes on. They wanted me to walk through the doorway barefoot. But I said putting my shoes on was a problem, so they let me go through in the chair. Then we were taken up to the lounge and there they said that A's plane was boarding (it was not) and so she went off to go home. They gave me a beeper and said someone would come for me.

This left me with a wheelchair which I could not push myself - it was one of those that you push down on a bar at the back, with my cane, my computer bag (which just had the battery) and a pocketbook and no way to get to the bathroom or get anything to eat.

14:55 (Is that the right time?)

Looking for your gate

I waited until about 3 and then I moved the wheelchair to in front of the information desk and said that I needed to go to the bathroom and to go to the plane. So since I was in the way there, they got someone to come and get me and take me to B36 which was my gate. They pushed the wheelchair to a cart, and I got on the cart. The cart went down the elevator and

Speeding on a cart through the bowels of Heathrow

through miles of corridors under the airport and up and down at least two more elevators until we got to the gate and there they left me and said that someone would come with a wheelchair to take me to the plane.

So I sat there while everyone else (including Standbys) boarded the plane. It was 3:40 and the plane was scheduled to leave at 3:45. They kept saying "You won't miss the plane". Finally at the very last minute as they were getting ready to close the doors, a wheelchair person came rushing up and took me down the elevator and to the jet way. I was the last person on the plane.

As soon as we took off and the seat belt sign was off, I used the bathroom. They gave me a menu and a packet and let me keep my pocketbook. They gave me Lunch (or Supper?) at 5pm UK time. At this point I have been up for 12 hours. (UK time is one hour later than Barcelona)

Starter Lemon roasted asparagus

Main- roast beef with mashed potatoes

The beef was good but hard to cut - I needed a sharper knife. I didn't eat much of it.

Lemon Cake Dessert

They brought the desert board around and I got some lemon cake thing.

I had to use the toilet three more times. Usually my ankles swell on the plane over and then they go down during the trip. This time my ankles were fine after the plane trip and they swelled after I had been in France a few days. Other older ladies also complained. Maybe the heat

I slept some and played some trivia and read my Kindle. About a hour and a half before we landed they offered sandwiches or tapas, but I opted for tea and crumpets. They gave me milky tea which I guess is one way to keep tea from being too hot to drink. I hadn't thought of that possibility before.

We landed and there was some confusion about where the scooter was. Were they going to give it to me on the jet way - or Not. Eventually someone came with a wheelchair (I was the last one off the plane except the crew) and we decided that it was not going to be there - then when we got to the top of the jet way, it apparently appeared on the jetway. I don't know if it did or not. I didn't see it.

I went through immigration - since I was the last one off the plane except the crew, I was also pretty late going through immigration. And then customs. I collected my bag and then we found the scooter and the wheelchair guy unfolded it and we put the battery in. We went out and the wheelchair guy picked Bob out where he was sitting waiting for us right away. I tipped him $5.00 (not Bob - the wheelchair guy)

We loaded into the car and drove home and got home a little before 11 (almost 24 hours after I started). A's plane landed about 45 minutes after mine did - Houston is in the central time zone. But she was probably home about the same time as I was because we are farther from the airport than she is.

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Our next trip was to attend our grandson's wedding in Fort Lauderdale in August
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Eventually, I'll do a -Then and Now album of the photos from this trip and past trips.