Tunisia-Med-Sahara Day 14

Day 20-15 - Sunday, March 29, 2009 - Flight from Tunis to JFK/Visit to NYC and finally to Denver

There were still people in the streets when I looked out the window at 2:00am. We received our wake-up call and our alarm went off right on time; double coverage on a flight day!

We had packed everything but our toiletries and the computer last night. By 2:40 we were out of the room and down in the lobby.

Our group of 11 was joined by a few others from another OAT group. We were all on the early 5:05am flight to Rome.

We said good-bye and thanked Khamis and then checked our bags all the way to Denver and got our boarding passes on Alitalia and those we would need for JFK.

Gennie had called ahead for seats on the transatlantic flight to NYC so we were happy to get the seats. Dan, Gennie, and I went through customs and security together and found our Gate 50 easily.

Our flight to Rome was a bit turbulent going over the Mediterranean because of rain storms. We landed on time and then found our new Gate 29. There were rumors circulating that our 9:05 flight had been delayed two hours.

We checked with the Alitalia information desk because there was another flight at 10:29 that we could make, and the delay would cause some of our friends from California to miss their flights.

The attendant would not change the flights. The California group was told not to worry; they would be able to get another flight once we arrived in JFK.

The airline did tell some of us that we could take our boarding passes to the Food Land court to get lunch. The sandwiches we ordered, a Buffalo and Capri, were great memories of our time in Italy a few years ago.

We ate our lunches and then went back to Gate 29 where we all took turns watching each other’s things and waited for the flight. I started to write a general reflection of the trip for OAT.

The Gate Agent had told us we would be boarding at 11:45 for our 12:35 departure. When 11:45 turned into 12:30, we knew that that was not going to happen.

The gate agent came and left, the security crew sat and chatted, and no one would tell us anything about the delay. Many of the passengers were getting very upset and several were very abusive to the one supervisor who could give us nothing in the way of information.

At 1:30 they sent us all through another random security check and we got on busses that took us to our plane waiting on the tarmac. We sat on the plane for over two hours until the captain finally talked to us.

By that time everyone was angry, tired, and babies were miserable. The captain explained that there was a problem when the aircraft came in from Caracas which caused the initial delay.

Then there was a technical difficulty, and the final delay was because the flight crew has exceeded their work time, so we had to wait for another crew to take us to New York.

People were livid! Connecting flight times had come and gone. Most passengers were on their cell phones trying to make alternate connections. Finally the last crew member arrived at 3:00pm.

I slept for awhile while Gennie read and tried to record this fiasco for the final day’s journal. Our original 9:50am finally left the gate at 3:56 when we were towed away from the tarmac.

At 4:11 our wheels were off the ground. We were served dinner at 5:00 flying 33,000 feet above the ground trying to make up some time. Unfortunately we also had 154 MPH headwinds that hindered our progress west.

The 9 hour flight was long but longer for the two sets of parents in the bulkhead seats whose babies cried during most of the flight. We arrived at JFK at 7:38 pm, only to find that all connecting flights had been missed and that many other flights that had been scheduled out of JFK during the day had also been cancelled due to weather.

We found a representative of Alitalia who told us we would have to see the night supervisor to get rebooked on flights for the next day and to receive vouchers for meals and hotel stays.

Gennie stood in line while I talked to a few of our group who were trying to contact OAT. She came back with the negative news that because OAT had booked our flights in a separate block their airline was only responsible to get us to JFK, which they had done and we would have to contact Delta.

Gennie then went to the Delta desk, stood in line again and a young man named Isaac helped her to get seats on the next Delta flight to Denver, leaving in the late afternoon on Monday at 6:50. However, he could not give us a hotel voucher because he said Alitalia should have done that!

We regrouped with Barbara, Vilma, Ed, and Linda who were all refused any compensation or hotel vouchers. OAT had told Barbara to make reservations at the Hilton and that they would reimburse us for the costs of our delay.

Gennie called Hilton and made reservations for the three rooms and I found out how to get the shuttle bus to the hotel. By 10:55 we finally pulled into the Hilton. The staff was superb and it was a great feeling to have a clean room, showers, and get a good night’s sleep after such a chaotic day.

Monday, March 30, 2009

Our night at the Hilton Garden Inn was a boost to our spirits. We both woke up early, still on Tunisian time. We repacked our bags, found out about the hotel’s offer to store our luggage, and got directions to go into the City.

We left the room about 8:30 and had no problems following the directions to get to the AirTrain, then the E-Subway that took us to 34th street. If we had questions, we asked, and everyone was friendly and helpful.

Our first stop was a McDonald’s where we got a little breakfast. Over the years I have made many purchases from B & H Photography so we found the store easily and went in to look for ourselves.

Talk about a kid in a candy shop! We spent an hour or so looking at all of the amazing departments. The gentlemen working at the store were ready to lend a hand and very knowledgeable.

Our next learning and discovery was Macy’s, the huge department store. We had not realized how cold and windy the city would be and Gennie needed to buy a sweater.

That accomplished, we walked a few more blocks to the Empire State Building for the tour to the Observation Tower. There was a long line, but it was moving quickly.

We bought our tickets and then snaked through the red velvet ropes until we made it to the elevators. Our trip to the top was very quick and we spent time taking photos and enjoying the view of the city. On the map above, click on Satellite or Hybrid for a better view.

The exit goes through the gift shop, but we did not linger, even though it was tempting. Back down on the ground, we decided to take advantage of a slice of NYC’s fine pizza and went to Rosa’s.

The café came highly recommended and we were not disappointed. The pizza was fold-over, cheese-dripping fantastic! We finished our lunch, found our way back to Penn Station and the E-Subway back to JFK.

We arrived back at he hotel at 4:00, gathered our bags, thanked the staff, and the shuttle took us back to the airport, right to the Terminal. There were no problems, as the Delta agent helped us to get seats together and then we waited for our 6:50 flight.

The plane was on time, arriving in Denver a few minutes before 9:00. The luggage took a while, but it finally came and we were on our way to Pikes Peak Parking on the DIA shuttle.

The drive home was easy, lots of snow on the ground, but the highways were clear. It was after 11:30 when we pulled into the garage, another interesting and challenging adventure in our memories.

Please see our Trip Evaluation -- Click Here -- A Complete Review of Overseas Adventure Travel's Tunisia: From the Mediterranean to the Sahara.

If you wish to travel with OAT Click Here.

To receive up to $200 per person off your first reservation with OAT, mention the following information when reserving your Overseas Adventure Travel Trip: Mr. Victor Garcia Customer #673062

To read the review we posted with OAT, please Click Here - Look for "Vic from Monument"

A CD OF EACH TRIP IS AVAILABLE.

These CDs are compilations of slide presentations of each day (pictures of the events during the day) accompanied by music reflective of the nation and day.

On most CDs there are presentations on the people of the country, people traveling with the group, flowers, and panoramas.

On more recent trips, short videos have been included on the web pages and these videos are also available in the CD.

The CD is available for $20 US. Shipping and handling is included for US addresses. Slightly higher for overseas shipping.

To view an example of the presentations Click Here

As it is an 8:13 presentation, give yourself time to see it in its entirety.

Please contact garciatrips@gmail.com for more specific information and a screen capture

of the CD menu.

Please send me a note to GarciaTrips@gmail.com and I will gladly respond to your questions.

My wife & I are taking the OAT trip to Tunisia next March. I found this link on the trip comments you made on the OAT site. This is an unbelievable website you've created - very informative & professionally done. I'm impressed with your photos - what camera are you using?

Thank you for the long and thorough review and evaluation you placed on the OAT web site for Tunisia. I will certainly call them to be sure I do not have the Different Ticket Stock.

Wow! What an end to the trip. I would be interested in what you told OAT about the trip. Another great journal but I did not read anything about Kasserine Pass.

So you got an extra - a day in New York. I hope you got the refund from OAT for your meals and hotel.

I thought Alitalia was going bankrupt, maybe it is why they would not take care of you. Really poor company policy and will not bring them customers.

Interesting selection of doorways. Specially like the Star Wars from the Cantina. Super.

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Day 13: Azores & Madeira: Portugal's Unspoiled Archipelagos

Day 13 - Saturday, April 22, 2022 - Depart for U.S.

The hotel prepared a box breakfast for us as we had to be in the lobby way before the breakfast room was open.

Last night we found out that our departure flight back to...

Continue Reading Day 13