Italy - The Passport Challenge~

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It was a trip that almost didn't happen for me - twice!  Daughter Courtney had invited me to accompany her, on a vacation to Italy late last year.  She was going with a small group of people from the Northwest Art Center in her hometown of Duvall, WA.  The plan was to stay a week at a 500-year old villa in Tuscany.

Flying has always been so difficult for me, my motion sickness, along with claustrophobia makes me pause to even fly back to WA.  But, it was a chance-in-a-lifetime & I decided that I just needed to Cowgirl Up & go!  What I didn't count on, was my partial vision loss the end of April.  That was so disorienting & difficult to deal with that I decided it was best I stay home.

After physical therapy & time to adapt, I was getting around better & had already paid the funds for the trip that were non-refundable.  Our son-in-law made the flight & accommodation arrangements.  Courtney flew in a day ahead of our scheduled departure.  She was checking us in on-line, when she called me into the office & said;  "Mom, your passport is expired!"  No!  I'd kept both Butch & mine in the same place, had opened the one on top a couple months ago & it expired in 2019.  I was certain that we'd gotten them at the same time - but I was wrong.  Mine was due to expire in three days...

I was packed & I was so sad that I would now, not be able to go.  Thursday morning, Courtney told me to bring my bag anyway.  I would walk her to the check-in & there we'd explain our dilemma  to Delta.  The lady at the counter was so helpful, but explained that nothing could be done.  She could see no way that I could leave the country.  She did say she would check with her supervisor & called him over.  That gentleman, listened to our story & started typing on his keyboard.  Within minutes he explained that a passport office was within blocks of many of the major hotels in Atlanta.  He further explained that I could obtain an expedited passport in just a few hours.  He changed our reservations for a layover & managed to find us seats on a fully booked flight out from Atlanta, late afternoon on the following day!  We were on our way!

Over the Missouri~

Courtney was on the phone to David & he made calls to find us a room reservation in Atlanta.

Blue views~

The plane was jam packed, but Courtney & I had plenty of catching up to do.  We'd been in the air a while - when the crew made an announcement that we were going a little north. We were running into some turbulence from the hurricane.

Hurricane Clouds~

By the time we'd landed, we had a room at the downtown Hyatt, within walking distance of the passport office.  We planned to be there when they opened at 8 a.m.  One of the busiest airports in the nation, we still got through security in record time.  Courtney called Uber for a ride.  We settled into a very clean, comfortable room, before walking a few blocks to Max Lagers for a late dinner.  I was actually relieved to have the night to recover, before facing the long flight overseas.

Belle~

We were up early & walking downtown.  It was a very busy city.  We found the building & took the elevator to the fourth floor.  I was one of the first people there.  With my passport still not expired, my birth certificate & correct forms filled out - I was told to return at 1 p.m.

Hard Rock Café~

We walked back to the hotel & had breakfast while we waited.  Courtney had planned for us to spend two nights in Venice before going on south to the Villa.  Now, because of my error, we would miss the first night :-(

Carnegie 

Walking back to the passport office at 12:30, I had my new passport in 5 min.  With a couple hours to spare, Courtney again called Uber & we took a short ride out to a shopping mall for lunch.  It was a beautiful sunny day, but very hot & muggy.

At the Mall~

Soon, we were back on our way to Hartsfield-Jackson International.  I had the unpleasant experience of my first full body scan.  I had cards for both my new implant & the old repair to my right femur, but neither were asked for.  We had just enough time to find the gate for our 4:53 flight!  

The plane was an old one & so packed with people that I couldn't believe it.  No room in the seats at all & the seat itself was rock hard.  Both our seats were in the center, Courtney gave me the aisle, but to say it was the most miserable 9.5 hours I've spent in a long time would be an understatement.  Finally, I tried to sleep.  A landing couldn't come fast enough!