August 1, 2008 1353hrs - 34,000ft above the American Heartland.
The lesson to remember so far this trip is to expect change, roll with the punches, and keep trying to fix the problems even when it seems to be too late.
Since I last wrote, I was told that the US contract the travel agency has with Eva Air does not work in Canada. That they would need to cancel the Seattle flight, book 1-way flights from out of Vancouver & Taipei and that it
could cost $500 more! I was told this @ approx 1245. The Dallas flight from O'Hare starts boarding at 1300. Stress. I call Deedra then Mallory (@ New Life) Mallory says New Life will pay whatever needs to be paid. The travel agent calls again. Other options we were discussing earlier could happen. A driver could take me from Vancouver to Seattle - $300 or I could fly - $275. Both involve getting luggage, changing airlines, checking luggage back in, customs, etc. Flying was my choice. I call Deedra. While talking with her, the agent calls again. A flight from Dallas to Seattle @ 1935 just had 3 cancellations. The flight to Dallas is boarding. The agent can't rebook me because boarding passes have already been issued. I need to talk to an American Airlines agent. The agents @ my gate are busy boarding people. They give me a 1-800 number. Called....1st operator couldn't help me because the Vancouver flight was international. Transferred. Tell the next lady my story- had to explain this is all due to the cancellation yesterday. On Hold....Boarding....On Hold....Yeah! I'm confirmed. I'm now on the flight from Dallas-Fort Worth to Seattle! This fixes any $ issues. No changes to the EVA Air flights needed. sigh. I still have another issue to deal with now. My luggage is still tagged for Vancouver. My 1st priority @ arrival in Dallas is to find a service desk & have them get my luggage asap! They need at least an hour before my flight leaves to make the change. I have about three. ***Over St. Lois right now. Very cool. I love my aerial photography class @ AQ and this brings it all back. :-)
Well, it's time for me to enjoy my complimentary beverage. Enough for now. More thoughts later. Hopefully no more problems. Just stay positive & don't just go with the flow, change the flow if needed. - ce 1423hrs.
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Deedra's email.
God is so cool! =)
Christopher has had an INCREDIBLY long day!
He called me and when I answered, he started the conversation with: "Part of me just wants to puke."
About 45 minutes before his plane was to depart for Dallas, he got a call back from the travel agency. Apparently, their contract with EVA Air was different in Canada than in the US and to fly him to Taipei/Cambodia it was going to cost an additional $500-ish. I told him that somehow, we'd come up with it - but to call the sending church to see if they would pay for it up front and then we could pay them back.
Before he could even ask, the contact at the church stated they would pay the fee! (I'm especially grateful for that because Christopher is NOT good at asking for help...period!) Then while he's on the phone with the church, the travel agency calls back...and to make this update "short" - he was re-routed AGAIN to Seattle where he was going to go before calling the travel agent at 5am! He still had to go through Dallas...but he's boarding his plane to Seattle as I type this.
Now, that may not seem like a stretch for the "God is cool" comment, but how about if I told you that he is CONFIRMED on both the trip to Taipei AND from Taipei to Phnom Penh!!! ANSWERED PRAYER WHO KNOWS?!? Only snag MIGHT be if his luggage winds up in Vancouver instead of Seattle. However a VERY helpful agent (who's actually done some mission work herself) told him, "Your luggage WILL arrive in Seattle...even if angels have to fly it there themselves!"
Oh..AND there was one team member from California who is also flying out a day late (already scheduled that way.) Christopher and she (Michelle) will meet up in Taipei. They've already talked on the phone, so they know to look for each other and they won't be traveling into Cambodia alone! (Quick side note: A friend of mine said that there must be someone on one of the planes that Christopher was meant to sit with/meet. Chris' reply: "I hope she's blonde!" And that was before he knew there was going to be another team member going! LoL)
So with all that said, he "should" be arriving what would be around noon on Sunday in Cambodia - I think.
-whew-
Thank you all for the prayers!!! Please keep Christopher in your thoughts and prayers as he continues on this new journey. Pray for some rejuvenation, some rest and some time for God to work in him and through him!
God Bless!
~Deedra