Living the dream and remembering the Bagman COMPLETED IN THIS FORUM - Page 8 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
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Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
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If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
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Looks like a fun experience on your flight with the great food and drinks, which looked so good! Too bad you weren't able to get good sleep with the turbulence as you would have been able to very easily from the various refreshments you enjoyed! The photo bomb was a classic! Great photos of coming into Boston!
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October 6, 2017-Enjoying an amazing dinner at Victoria & Albert's with PP's Dot and Drew
My TR from my most recent trip is now underway. Includes: Universal Studios Florida, Disney World and Sea World Orlando Trifecta TR -Updated December 10th! TR is now COMPLETED!
Awesome that you were able to sleep! I know you struggle with that. (me too, mind you I've yet to try it in first class.... )
I love that you got afternoon tea!! That's so cool. Looked delicious too!
Great shots of Boston - with that nap on the plane, I'm thinking you weren't too tired yet?
I think the thing is when you land in a new country, you get a new surge of energy as adrenalin takes hold. It's just how long that lasts to get you through the day... you'll find out in due course.
Tea looked pretty good. Not quite what we had with you guys in England, but for airplane food, not bad.
Some nice shots from the plane as you were coming in to land.
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Saturday 10 September – part five: what’s the bad news?
Once we landed, they quickly got the doors open, but then we had an announcement to say that was the good news… uh oh… what was the bad news?
It turned out we were being told we had to stay on the plane, as apparently immigration was so full. I couldn’t believe it – we were told four other planes had come in just before us, and obviously they were struggling to cope with numbers. It didn’t help that I could see the plane next to us was a Chinese one and a Dreamliner, and of course those bring with them a heck of a lot more passengers.
We returned to our seats, expecting to be there for some time, but a couple of minutes later, we were told we were good to go, as the Virgin Atlantic ground crew had negotiated for us to get off. We weren’t sure if that was a good thing or not, as presumably it would mean lots of standing around, which would kill me with my chronic fatigue.
We set off, with US passports holders being told to stay to one side, and everyone else to the other. Those who were lucky enough to have global entry were allowed to walk straight up the middle and right through. God, we all envied those guys!
After about five or 10 minutes of standing there, I decided to ask the staff member at the front how long this was all likely to take, and explained the situation with my chronic fatigue. She couldn’t have been more helpful. She immediately took me through to the immigration hall, and found a seat for me to wait until our plane was admitted.
As we walked through, a guy rushed up to the woman and said “Global Entry?” and she told him to go on. He then asked about his wife, and if she could come with him, given she wasn’t Global Entry. The answer was quite clear. We both expected him to say “oh Ok” and head back to his wife. Not a bit of it! He set off, leaving her behind! We both looked at each other, shocked… as I said to her, I wouldn’t leave my husband behind, but I have a medical condition, and I really have no option, but that? Good grief!
It was only a few more minutes until Mark came through. Now at this point, they were dividing you into red line for US and Canadian passports, and blue line for everyone else. I think you can imagine which line was longer…
The guy then started to say repeat ESTA holders, which we are, could use the red line, but he checked. Had either of us got a new passport since our last visit? Well, yes, Mark had. Ok, that meant blue line for us.
Hearts sinking, we got in the line that just wound around and around and around. I figured we’d be looking at least at an hour’s wait, while everyone in the red line was using the automated system and hurtling through, well as much as we could see. I ended up going back to see the guy who’d put us in the blue line, and asked if I could use the red line, explaining again about the chronic fatigue. I explained that the only seats were right at the back of the hall, and there was no way I’d be able to keep track of Mark in the line to see where he was and when he eventually got to the front. I didn’t want to leave Mark in that line, but I didn’t know what else to do. I knew at some point it would become too much for me and frankly I’d pass out. Not how I wanted to be admitted to the States…
The guy I’d seen immediately said both of us could go through the red line, and I could’ve hugged him, but I figured better not to, as I might’ve got arrested. We headed to the machines, expecting them to reject Mark’s passport, but there was no problem, apart from his customs label had a cross on it, and mine didn’t. We double checked with a guy, and he told us to go ahead.
Now this was where it got a bit silly. We then had to wait in line to see a person, I assume to check everything with the machines had gone through, but we must’ve waited in line about 20-25 minutes to do that. If I say our line wound around one and a half times, whereas the blue line was at least nine or 10 times, you get the idea as to how long that line was and how long it would’ve taken us to get through.
Finally, after the guy on the desk took a restroom break just as we were second in line (you couldn’t make it up! ) we were seen, and Mark immediately spotted his name… Myers. This was Bill’s surname. It was as if he was looking out for us from above. I couldn’t help it and started to fill up, not for the first time today, as I was finding flying into Logan quite emotional, as that’s what we’d done the day after Bill’s death. The guy was really nice, and Mark had to re-do everything – fingerprints and photo, probably because he had a new passport, but that was done quickly enough and we were through.
Of course, the only bonus to waiting so long to get through immigration is you know your cases will be going round and round forlornly on the carousel waiting for someone to pick them up, and so it proved to be. That carousel was very, very busy still, so there were a lot more people due to come through on our flight yet. I dread to think how long it took them, given we were Upper Class and at the start of the line for our flight…
We made our way to the customs check, and there were two guys chatting away. We handed our tickets to them, and just stood there, and stood there, waiting for them to wave us on. They didn’t, so we started to wonder if there was a problem. Still we waited, with a line growing behind us, and eventually the guys interrupted their conversation to say “you’re good to go”… well, thanks for paying attention buddy!
We headed into what looked like a very deserted arrivals hall…
… but I guess that wasn’t that surprising, given everyone was stuck in the immigration hall. We made a quick restroom stop, and headed out into another line to get a taxi, but thankfully that line moved really quickly, and we only waited about five minutes.
When we got in, I was so glad Dave had written out instructions for the cab driver on the best way to get to their place. At the time, I was like “they’ll know where they’re going”, but he didn’t, as he had to put his GPS on. He was very good though, and followed Dave’s instructions to the letter, I think avoiding a lot of the work going on in the centre of Cambridge/Harvard, so that was good.
I really could’ve done with a cab with air conditioning though. It wasn’t overly hot – mid 70s, but it was very humid, and we both had our windows down for much of the journey to get some air. However, at least it meant I was able to get some good photos…
I have to laugh as I have global entry and Skip does not. I would leave him in a heartbeat. hahaha. Claire doesn't have it either though, so I would not leave her. But if we ever fly where she will need it, I will get it for her. It's good for TSA precheck as well and she can come through that with me for the next year or 2, so once she can no longer come through I will probably get her global entry. I used it for the first time this summer and it was so nice.
But that being said, it was not really busy at all and those who didn't have it were not far behind me anyways this trip. But if I had not had it you know it would have been super busy.
Glad you were able to go through the shorter line! Your experience sounded exactly like ours at Heathrow, with me wondering how Mike would last in the lines. There are so many people with 'hidden disabilities', you'd think they'd figure out a better system for immigration lines.
And to answer the question you asked about my doing a TR, I'd like to, but the idea of dealing with Photobucket is putting me off. Plus, I've been sick for the last week. But I probably will get around to some kind of report.
Ummm, thank goodness for chronic fatigue? Holy cow, 4 airplanes at the same time, that's like at least 1000 people. Or more. Wow!
Nice photos from the cab though, even if the humidity was a big smack in the face!
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Omigosh, what a nightmare at immigration! And if it was me, I wouldn't have had upper class, so I'd be at the back of the line! There are many reasons why people just can't stand for that long! I wish there was a better system.
I have to laugh as I have global entry and Skip does not. I would leave him in a heartbeat. hahaha.
Poor guy....
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Claire doesn't have it either though, so I would not leave her. But if we ever fly where she will need it, I will get it for her. It's good for TSA precheck as well and she can come through that with me for the next year or 2, so once she can no longer come through I will probably get her global entry. I used it for the first time this summer and it was so nice.
But that being said, it was not really busy at all and those who didn't have it were not far behind me anyways this trip. But if I had not had it you know it would have been super busy.
Glad you were able to go through the shorter line! Your experience sounded exactly like ours at Heathrow, with me wondering how Mike would last in the lines. There are so many people with 'hidden disabilities', you'd think they'd figure out a better system for immigration lines.
But this is the problem with hidden disabilities full stop, isn't it? I was asking in London earlier about the badges (buttons) they're trialling on the Underground, which say "please give me a seat". I think that's a fantastic idea, and I'd love for more places to think about people who don't have obvious disabilities and how they could help them.
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And to answer the question you asked about my doing a TR, I'd like to, but the idea of dealing with Photobucket is putting me off. Plus, I've been sick for the last week. But I probably will get around to some kind of report.
Sorry you've not been well. Hope you're better now.
Photobucket has been fine with me (fingers crossed!) for quite some time now....
Ummm, thank goodness for chronic fatigue? Holy cow, 4 airplanes at the same time, that's like at least 1000 people. Or more. Wow!
Probably more, as at least one was a Dreamliner, and I don't know how many they hold. Our standard planes hold 300+ in Economy, about another 50 in Premium Economy and 20 odd in Upper Class - actually maybe more than that, 30 perhaps? I think Dreamliners hold over 500 people.
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Nice photos from the cab though, even if the humidity was a big smack in the face!
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Too bad you weren't able to get good sleep with the turbulence as you would have been able to very easily from the various refreshments you enjoyed! 
The photo bomb was a classic! 
Great photos of coming into Boston! 
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On that subject, is there a trip report coming up from you about that? 
Just sayin'.... 
We both expected him to say “oh Ok” and head back to his wife. Not a bit of it! 
He set off, leaving her behind! 
We both looked at each other, shocked… as I said to her, I wouldn’t leave my husband behind, but I have a medical condition, and I really have no option, but that? Good grief! 
Not how I wanted to be admitted to the States… 
We headed to the machines, expecting them to reject Mark’s passport, but there was no problem, apart from his customs label had a cross on it, and mine didn’t. We double checked with a guy, and he told us to go ahead. 
I couldn’t help it and started to fill up, not for the first time today, as I was finding flying into Logan quite emotional, as that’s what we’d done the day after Bill’s death. The guy was really nice, and Mark had to re-do everything – fingerprints and photo, probably because he had a new passport, but that was done quickly enough and we were through. 
You guys are here!!
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