Today has been a major clusterf#$k!  My driver (scheduled for 11:30 AM) was early and offered to give me a tour of the city before going to the airport but I had seen online that there was an earlier flight to Miami where I could maybe catch the last flight to Tampa tonight so I opted out of the “tour” and asked him to take me to the airport.

The first agent I spoke to said there is a $250 change fee so I ‘t worth the change but then, the agent next to him said, she’s paying with dividend miles and is not subject to the change fee.  I was SO excited!  They changed my flights so that I would be to get home tonight instead of having to stay overnight in Miami and fly to Tampa tomorrow morning.

Checked bags, went through security (all the normal stuff), got to my terminal, bought water which I put into my thermos and a snack for the plane (American doesn’t give you food for free).  Then, I wandered down to Gate 7A and found there is ANOTHER security line right at the gate!  They took every single thing out of my carry-on (I was not alone suffering that indignity) and they threw out my just purchased water.  Then, to make matters worse, we are stuck in an area with no restroom!  But, of course, with no water to drink, perhaps they think we don’t need a restroom.  Apparently, they didn’t have mothers who always told us to go to the bathroom right before leaving for any trip.  As I was growing up, that was so  ingrained in me, that I, to this day, cannot get in a car, on a plane, bus, train, any mode of transportation without first using the facilities. 😊

Anyway, we were herded onto the plane on time, taxied out to the runway where we sat for a while.  We just figured we were waiting for clearance or whatever but then the captain came on and said we had to go back to the terminal for a “little” maintenance problem.  We did and sat and sat and sat… Then, the captain announced that maintenance said it was a bigger problem than originally thought and we should deplane.

So, we all get off and, by this time, my originally scheduled flight is boarding at the next gate and I am now in a line waiting to be re-scheduled.  An hour goes by and our line has not moved but inches.  The agent finally announces that those of us who checked bags must go down and reclaim our bags and then go to check-in to re-schedule.  This is not as simple as it may sound.  We are in a foreign country so that means going back through immigration.  Do you think they bothered to tell these non-English speaking officers that this was a re-schedule?  Of course not!  Another major delay.

Then, we get to baggage and, despite their telling us our bags are on Carousel 5, no bags.  We waited another two hours!  Bags finally come (soaking wet as it was raining pretty hard).  So now, by this time, you would think that customs would have been notified that we are not trying to illegally enter the country but no.  Another delay.

Finally, at about 5:00 PM, I got my new tickets for tomorrow, a voucher for a hotel stay, vouchers for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  So, I was escorted to the shuttle to take me to the Riande Aeropuerto Hotel in Panama.  It is actually a pretty nice hotel.  I should be in Miami right now but I guess I would still have to be interpreting Spanish so what’s the difference.  I will be home tomorrow, just a little later than expected.