Sorry for the delay not posting to the Blog, but the internet in the apartment is not working at this time, so I am working off a public WIFI site.

We finally made it to Alicante Spain on January  6th at around 2 pm. What a trip, lots of mishaps and adventures along the way. One of the things I am learning is to be patient and flexible when things don’t go as planned. We left Montreal and landed in JFK International Airport without any issues. Once we got to JFK we had plenty of time to get through security and managed to grab a bite to eat before boarding the plane at 7:15. The weather was cold and windy when we left and the take off was a bit rough but not too bad. We were siting comfortably at the rear of the plane and trying to get some needed rest. About 35 minutes or so into the flight, the captain got on the intercom and stated “we have smoke in the cabin and diverting back toJFK”. His voice was not reassuring as he sounded quite nervous. The stewardesses came and ensured we were in the upright and secure position for landing. The pilot did not provide any more info until he was 10 minutes from the airport and told the flight attendants to prepare for landing. As we were approaching the airport the flight was really rough and lots of turbulence was occurring. From our seats we could see the wing of the plane and the ground below. At no time did we see any fuel being dumped from the plane. It looked like we were landing at the far end of the airport away from the terminal and other planes. As we approached the landing we could see the emergency vehicles with lights flashing all along the runway waiting for us. The landing was bumpy, fast and very scary. No one was saying anything in the plane, they just stayed quiet. We landed without any issues and the fire trucks followed us down the runway until we were stopped. Shortly after we taxied to a gate and were let off the plane. It was now around 11pm. We were informed that we would be shuttled to a hotel for the night and arrangements for flights would be done in the morning. They provided a telephone number to make arrangements. We picked up our luggage and took a bus to the hotel. It was very cold outside and of course we were dressed for Spain not winter in New York. Burr…. We got a room at the hotel and tried to get some sleep, it was now 2 am or so. We awoke and tried to call for a new flight in the a.m. and after what seemed like several hours we were told the only flight available was on January 7th and in the Newark airport an hour away. After some consideration and discussion with the hotel and other people from our flight. We checked out of the hotel, took our luggage and headed to the airport to try to arrange a flight from there. We arrived at the airport around 10 a.m. and waited in line for over two hours to get help. We eventually did manage to get a flight to Madrid and a connecting flight to Alicante Spain for later in the evening of January 5th. We went through customs, checked our baggage and stayed at the airport all day. Our flight left at 7:30 pm for Madrid Spain. We landed in Madrid without incident at 8:15 am on January 6th. (Which is a holiday in Spain)

We were now looking forward to the next flight scheduled for 11:45 am. We went through customs and security again, it was fairly easy and there was no hassle of any kind. We found our gate, relaxed and waited for our next flight. At 11:30 we boarded the plane to Alicante and landed without any issues a short 30 minutes later. (so we thought)…. We went to get our checked luggage and they were not there. Apparently both of our luggage was lost. So after filling in the paperwork and providing the contact information we headed to the apartment. Tired and a little disappointed we took a taxi with our carry-on bags and went off we went to our apartment rental. We settled into the apartment that first night and tried to get some rest. We were thankful that we were safe and in Alicante where we had planned. It was not an easy trip and took us almost 3 days and four flights to get here.

update here is the video of the landing, the video really doesn’t do it justice. JFK Emergency landing

After the landing this person came and looked into the plane before we were allowed to taxi to the gate. I was videoing the event until I was told to turn off my phone. worker on the Plane

The airline provided everyone with a $20. food voucher which could only be used at McDonald’s. They were the only restaurant open at that time. Here is a photo of the
group waiting for food and directions after we left the plan. The poor staff at McDonald’s were getting overwhelmed by the orders and the amount of people they were trying to serve.

I will update you with photos and even some video of the emergency landing when I get better internet service. Until then, Adios y que tengas un gran día.

Today we headed to Montreal to stay at the Best Western hotel near the Airport.  Our day started at 9 am when we left Pembroke in our Rented car with all of our worldly possession in a suitcase and a carry-on each. 

We drove to Ottawa to the Via Rail Station to catch the train to Montreal.

Once on the train, we settled in and relaxed. It is really a great way to travel. We had some light refreshments and enjoyed some down time using the on board internet.

 Once we arrived at the Dorval train station we boarded a taxi and headed to the Best Western Hotel to check in. We are now settled into the hotel and resting for the next leg of the journey.  “buenas noches amigos”

Today the door bell rang and low and behold guess who it was? No, not Santa Clause, even better than that…. It was the Postal worker with a package for us. We finally got our Visas in hand.

It is the final piece of the process that we needed and now we are all set.

Well today was an interesting and frustrating day to put it mildly.  We were up early today full of excitement to attend Toronto and  finally pick up our Visas. We rented a car (sold our car awhile back) and were on the road at 7:30 am. We left early because the consulate is only open until 12:30.  We had gathered up our required documents as indicated in the email “Your visa application has now been approved, and you have now 30 days in which to pick it up. Kindly bring your passport and airline ticket to this Consulate for its issue.”

We drove through heavy traffic to arrive at the consulate around 10:45 am and took a number (#45) and waited for our turn. There were numerous people there and the consulate was very busy. After about 15 minutes our number was called and a very friendly consulate staff member asked us what she do could do for us. We told her that we were there to pick up our approved visas. She said, ok that will be easy and asked us for our flight info.  We provided her with our flight itinerary and our passports and that’s when we knew something was wrong. She looked at our passports and said you won’t be able to get them back today. They need to put the visa into our passports and they won’t have time today. We offered to wait all day if needed to get them, but to no avail. She said that we needed to get a prepaid postal envelope and they would mail the passports back to us sometime next week, when they had time to affix the Visa to our passports. She told us that Tuesday next week is a Spanish holiday and the consulate is closed. Not what we wanted to hear, but at least it was a step forward towards our goal of getting the Visas.  So we headed off to find a post office in order to get a prepaid Xpresspost envelope that they wanted. Of course the consulate is only open until 12:30 and time was quickly going by….  we found a post office nearby and bought a prepaid Xpresspost envelope (total cost about $13.00). We returned to the consulate and took another number and waited for our turn. We noticed the staff member was out in the waiting area and we were able to speak to her.  We provided her with the Xpresspost envelope and she reviewed it and all was good.  Of course we had to ask….. (because you just never know)  did we need two envelopes? one for each  passport?  She looked at us, smiled and said no one will do.

We left the consulate shortly before noon upset, frustrated and not completely surprised. We knew there would be setbacks and bureaucracy, throughout the process. Today we thought we were at end of the process for the Visas. On the up side we are approved and the Visas should be “in the mail” next week.

We left downtown Toronto in heavy traffic and drove home. It was a long day with lots of emotions, but the good news is that the Visas will eventually arrive.

Well today is an exciting day for us. We have received an email notification from the Spanish Embassy that our Visas are approved.  The email today simply stated “Your visa application has now been approved, and you have now 30 days in which to pick it up. Kindly bring your passport and airline ticket to this Consulate for its issue.”

It is interesting that a simple short email could evoke so many different emotions. We are relieved that it is approved of course. The fact that we sold most of our stuff already, we are glad it wasn’t  in vain. The realization that the Visas are secured also is exciting and invigorating knowing that in one month from today we will be heading to Spain not to visit but to live there.  We are nervous about the adventure and moving to a country where we have never been to.  We are also sad leaving friends and family but know that social media will help us to stay in touch.

To sum up how we feel I guess you could say we are standing at the edge of a cliff looking down and getting ready to bungee jump. We know we have a cord tied to us, but it still scary as heck. The only thing left is to take a leap of faith and jump.

So tomorrow we go to the Spanish consulate and pick up our Visas.