Sue and the DoD trip that "Just might end up on the Internet somewhere" report!--COMPLETE 6/5/09 - Page 2 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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I am so glad to see your writing a trip report Sue!
It was great to meet you and Angie!
I can't wait to see some of those pictures and re-live DoD through your trip!
Now that I had made the commitment to go, it was time to plan. This was going to be a bit of a budget trip, but that didn't mean I wasn't going to have a good time. :
Cheryl and Wendy had some plans already outlined, so Angie and I tag teamed on to most of them. A few things were different, as I was leaving too early on Wednesday to have lunch plans, and arriving Friday rather than Thursday. I also opted out of a few of the meals, and we were not doing the package, so we did not have access to the Fantasmic Dessert Buffet. And we wanted to try Sanaa this trip. Like Chez, I wanted to try a few things my meat-and-potates-no-stuff DH wouldn't have liked!
Now, before I go any further, a kudos and a huge THANK YOU to Wendy for all the ADR calls she made!
We based our ADR's on the park of the day. I was not planning on getting a park-hopper, so that worked fine for me. Than, through the magic that is Disney scheduling, the EMH came out, the parade and fireworks schedules came out, and Disney groups gave the package folks Sunday as their night for Fantasmic. So...the parks changed! And our ADR's changed! And then...a few more people joined in! And our ADR's changed! And then a few more meets were planned! And our ADR's changed!
All in all, Wendy did an OUTSTANDING job of keeping up with the changes, and we had our itinerary!!
Silly me, I opted to work a few extra hours the day before I left. It seemed like a good idea at the time (overtime is always good) but by the time I got home from work and realized how much there was to do, it didn't seem like such a great idea. But, I made a list and plowed right in. I got a bunch of stuff done, got Steve settled for the duration, cleaned the house, and began to pack. I opened my suitcase on the bed, and soon had some help:
"Take me with you, Mommy!"
Despite my "help", I was soon packed.
5 AM came really early, even though that is the time I usually get up for work. It just seemed unfair to have to get up that early for vacation. But there I was, up, packed, dressed, ticket in hand, waiting to go. Steve was driving me to the airport. I had a 10:45 flight, but he needs to be at work by 8, so we left at 6. I figured better early than how we usually fly, which is with about 6 minutes left to spare between them closing the doors to the plane and us being left behind.
We headed out and traffic was pretty light, considering it was Philly rush hour. The weather, however, was another story. It was overcast and drizzly and the rest of the day (and the week) didn't look much better for the entire NorthEast. : Steve dropped me off at Southwest, a long kiss and hug goodbye, and he was on his way to work and I was on way to FLORIDA!!
I was checked in curbside in no time at all. My gate was E9, terminal E, right next to terminals D and F, right? Well...
Let me intersperse here to say that I truly love Philadephia Airport. I know that people will disagree with me, but it is set up in order, there are no surprises, and it is pretty well marked. What I didn't know was that they are in the middle of a reconstruction to make security a little easier. This works...it's a good thing...but it is also a total change from the last time I flew out of here, in September!
So here I was, wandering around trying to find Terminal E. There were signs, there were notes, there were stairs...but no Terminal E. I finally asked, and was told that I needed to go through the communal security area (like MCO has) and then go to my Terminal! AH HA!! Light bulb moment! They used to have an individual security check point for each terminal. The system works though, I was through in no time at all.
I grabbed a bagel and coffee and settled in to wait for my 1045 flight. The 915 flight took off a bit late, so I thought I'd better check..OH NO!! Now my 1045 flight is an 1145 flight!
I texted Angie and called Steve, bought a magazine and waited. I also walked around the airport, and took a few pictures:
You can see how gloomy it is:
My luggage is there somewhere:
Look ma, no plane!
The gate attendant explained that the delay was in Manchester, NH, as they were having some pretty bad weather and all the flights were delayed. Every flight that day that originated somewhere in the Northeast ended up with some sort of delay.
But soon, boarding time rolled around and we were on our way. Have I mentioned yet today that I love Southwest? I was spot A32, and after joking around with the lady in A31, we prepared to board. Here is why I love Southwest. They pre-boarded those with special needs, which I was fine with. But there was a large group (and not with little kids, I might add) camped out on the floor playing cards at, oh, say A12-A20. Everyone in line assumed they were the A12 group. No, not so much. they were like B54. They literally tried to muscle their way on, but the gate attendant held his ground, and they boarded when their time came. And then there was the lady in A40-something. She tried to insist that she get on first because (and I quote) "I have to have my seat over the engine you know!" Ummm... ...if you want an assigned seat, FLY A DIFFERENT AIRLINE! And the guy with the A1 boarding pass (I kid you not) who wanted an upgrade to first class. Let's just say it was shaping up to be an interesting flight. And it was full...no avaiable seats!
I was soon boarded and had my window seat, Row 3! There was no traffic in Philly, and we were off the ground in minutes. I read, I dozed, I ate the delicious snack mix, and I took a few pictures:
Yup, engine's still there!
I love this shot, with the moon in the background:
Landing in Orlando:
AND WE WERE DOWN!!!
We were soon at our gate and off the plane! Despite the rocky beginning, it was a very uneventful flight. Instead of my 1:20 arrival, it was 2:20, but what the heck. I called Steve to let him know I had finally arrived, texted Angie and a few folks back home.
Our plane through the monorail doors:
And from the monorail:
A few of the obligatory airport shifts:
Waiting for my luggage with the 6,578,993 other Southwest travellers:
I got my luggage at about 2:40. In September, we had been off the plane, got our bags and our car and were out of the airport in 25 minutes. I had a feeling that wasn't going to happen today....
Off to Dollar Rental I hoofed. The line was...well...outrageous. At least 30 people long. And the guy in the front of the line had been there for AN HOUR AND FORTY MINUTES!!!! This was not looking good. They had three rental agents on, and each rental was taking at least 10 minutes. We tried to get a manager to come out, and no one would come out. I called the 800 number and a local number, and got no satisfaction. The minutes creeped by, and the line creeped even slower. Finally, a manager came out, and let me tell you, this guy could use a little customer service lesson. When you have angry guests, you don't respond in kind. But soemthing must have gotten through, because suddenly there were 6 rental agents there. I got to my spot and immediately asked for an upgrade. The agent, Emmanuel was wonderful. He said he would give me a nice upgrade, and then asked how long I was waiting, etc. He agreed that it was uncalled for, and bad service. My counter experience made up for the wait somewhat, but it was 4:30 when I was finally in my car. He had upgraded me from a Dodge Caliper to a Chrysler 300, a VERY sweet car. I loaded my luggage, hooked up Garmin, programmed in Old Key West and away I went!
Next...check in, the resort and meeting up with Angie!!!
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to Wendy for all the ADR calls she made!
I was spot A32, and after joking around with the lady in A31, we prepared to board. Here is why I love Southwest. They pre-boarded those with special needs, which I was fine with. But there was a large group (and not with little kids, I might add) camped out on the floor playing cards at, oh, say A12-A20. Everyone in line assumed they were the A12 group. No, not so much. they were like B54. They literally tried to muscle their way on, but the gate attendant held his ground, and they boarded when their time came. And then there was the lady in A40-something. She tried to insist that she get on first because (and I quote) "I have to have my seat over the engine you know!" Ummm... 
...if you want an assigned seat, FLY A DIFFERENT AIRLINE! And the guy with the A1 boarding pass (I kid you not) who wanted an upgrade to first class. Let's just say it was shaping up to be an interesting flight. And it was full...no avaiable seats!
This was not looking good. They had three rental agents on, and each rental was taking at least 10 minutes. We tried to get a manager to come out, and no one would come out. I called the 800 number and a local number, and got no satisfaction. The minutes creeped by, and the line creeped even slower. Finally, a manager came out, and let me tell you, this guy could use a little customer service lesson. When you have angry guests, you don't respond in kind. But soemthing must have gotten through, because suddenly there were 6 rental agents there. I got to my spot and immediately asked for an upgrade. The agent, Emmanuel was wonderful. He said he would give me a nice upgrade, and then asked how long I was waiting, etc. He agreed that it was uncalled for, and bad service. My counter experience made up for the wait somewhat, but it was 4:30 when I was finally in my car. 
He had upgraded me from a Dodge Caliper to a Chrysler 300, a VERY sweet car. I loaded my luggage, hooked up Garmin, programmed in Old Key West and away I went! 
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