Departures and Arrivals

[28-29 March]

Susan finished packing up Friday morning. Our planned departure from Grand Rapids promised to be a leisurely one. Our neighbor Don T. would pick us up at about 11:30 for a 2:20 flight to Detroit. We would then connect at 7:24 pm for our KLM flight to Paris. 

Well, Don picked us up right on time, dropped us off with no problem and we checked in just fine. After breezing through security the two of us headed for our gate with two hours to spare. 

Unfortunately those two hours turned into eight long, boring hours of waiting for our plane to arrive from Detroit.

Apparently there was a mechanical problem discovered in Detroit right before takeoff and the plane  returned to the gate. At first we were told it was a weather-related issue but that turned out to be false. Eventually the gate staff informed us the issue was mechanical and they were working to fix it. The posted time of our departure kept moving forward: 2:20 became 2:50 which became 3:50 which became 4:00 and then 4:15. 

Now we were becoming very concerned that we would miss our 7:24 pm (1924) flight to Paris and indeed our concerns were realized.

Finally, the Delta agents informed us we would leave Grand Rapids at 8:32 (2032).Time to regroup!

We learned that there was a flight on Air France leaving Detroit for Paris at 2210 but had doubts about getting to DTW in time for that flight. We were reassured by the gate agent in GR that "we won't put you on a flight if we think you'll miss the connection" so we rebooked for that flight. Well OK then.

Buuuut . . . .  on another note, this would seriously reduce our connection time to make our train from Paris to Tours, and there would be no guarantees we would sit together. But it was the best we could do so we took it.

So we sat and waited. Eventually hunger and a need for a glass of wine got the better of us, so we grabbed plate of hummus and two glasses of wine at the closed bar on the concourse. The price would eventually prove more expensive than our first dinner in Tours!

no plane!

We left Grand Rapids on time (this time).  Since most of the other passengers on our earlier flight had been rebooked on other flights out of GR, there were only five of us on the flight and they let us sit in first class!  It was a short hop into Detroit and we made good time getting to our gate just as they began boarding for Paris.

Susie and I were seated apart but both in exit rows which was nice. Once we were airborne Susan learned, much to her relief, that the aisle seat on her right was empty. She asked one of the staff if I could join and they said oui! She came back to get me and we were able to sit together for the flight. Sounds trivial to some but frankly since last New Year's Eve I like being even closer to my wife than I was before.

plenty of leg room

The flight to Paris was uneventful, little turbulence and the food of mediocre quality. Nothing out of the ordinary. Oh, the one thing about the flight that was very cool was the camera located on the bottom of the fuselage: one got to see takeoff and landing as if you were a ball turret gunner on a WWII bomber.

view on the monitor screen of the bottom fuselage camera

We arrived in Paris a few minutes early. Although we walked about 5 miles from the gate to passport control we breezed through. Our bags were already waiting for us at the claim area and we were off in search of a taxi into the city. 

Traffic was heavy but our driver adept at getting us to the train station quickly. Frankly, we were expecting to miss our train, for which we already had reservations since it was a TGV. But we got  to the platform with a few minutes to spare. Locating our assigned coach seemed to take forever but we were soon aboard and settled into our seats for the 1 hour-plus ride to Tours.

stress-free travel

As we got closer to Tours we learned via text message from SNCF (the French national railway) that we would not be getting off at the main Tours station but at the one in the suburbs. There been a fire on the railway tracks near Tours which was disrupting rail traffic. Once off the train -- along with every one else - we were at a bit of a loss as to what to do now. I informed our host we were running late but hoped to get a taxi shortly.

But it was the "getting" part that was proving tricky. There was a taxi stand outside the station (St. Pierre des Corps) but, unlike in the big cities where taxis are lined up waiting for customers, we had to call a local number to get one. There was a bit of chaos over the disembarking of so many passengers, and we couldn't seem to get through to the taxi number. So I asked a taxi driver who had come to pick up someone else if he could send someone over. And he did.

When we got to out apartment our host was waiting for us. After shaking hands all round he led us into the courtyard and then into our apartment.

Up next: Our first day in Tours!

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