Monday, August 30, 2021

So how did we skip from Saturday all the way to Monday?  Well, let me tell you.  Lots happened.  We had an Uber ride scheduled that was to pick us up on Sunday at 8:30 AM to get us (Bob, Lynne and Gaye) to the San Diego airport by 10:00 or so.  Due to Covid, the airlines were consolidating their schedules and all of a sudden Gaye was flying to Denver (from San Diego) and Bob and Lynne to Chicago...this was after we had been all set to travel all three of us through Denver.  Try as we might, Viking was unable to get us all on the same schedule so we decided to "bite the bullet", just take the flights offered, meet up in Munich and take the final leg to Budapest together.  Decision made.

Next situation:  Viking recommended that we get a PCR covid test to show that we were negative 3 days before entering Hungary.  At the time of their recommendation this was just that - a recommendation in case things should change and the test become required.  No problem.  After much discussion and math work we figured that if we take the PCR test on Friday just after 2:00 PM that this would be 72 hours before entering Budapest in their time zone and hopefully give us enough time to get our results.  Bob and Lynne got their test at the Minute Clinic at CVS.  Gaye got a PCR test at Earl Warren Fair Grounds in Santa Barbara from a start up company by UCSB students that advertised same day quick results.  The Minute Clinic said that they would give us the results 1-2 days after testing - which was really cutting it close for us because of the length of travel time to Europe.   But we figured, that since they gave the results electronically that if we got the result even as late as entering Munich that we would be OK for Hungary's requirement.  Well, Hungary now required the test results and we had to show those results not in Hungary but at the first leg of our trip to Hungary which was San Diego.  No exceptions!  So that flight was scheduled to leave at 10:30 in San Diego on Sunday.  Gaye got her results in 6 hours and Bob and I were beginning to get worried that we might not get the results before we went to the SD airport.  Plus covid testing is increasing in San Diego and Quest, the testing company, said that it could take longer due to higher volumes.  So, you guys, were we stressed?  You bet.  We were checking the online website for results every 15 minutes on Saturday.  Bob got his negative results at 9:00 pm Saturday and I kept checking until 10:30 pm with no results showing.  I just went to bed.  I needed the sleep.  In fact we all went to bed not knowing if we would even qualify for this trip because of this testing requirement.  I had to get up at 3:30 AM and just decided to check at that time and, yes, the negative result finally was showing.  Ahhhh, so that part of the trip decision was also set.  Gaye got up in the morning and called out, "are we going?"

After a Parnelli Jones uber trip to the airport (Yikes - even Bob was scared) Bob and I got on our flight to Chicago and a short time later Gaye got on her flight to Denver.  Because air travel is always an adventure something had to have a glitch!  Gaye did fine all the way from Denver to Munich...in fact she got 3 seats to herself on that night flight and could lay out flat over the 9 hour flight.  Lucky girl.  Bob and my flight from Chicago to Munich was delayed for an hour in Chicago O'Hare Airport....the lay over from Munich to Budpest was only 1.5 hours.  To make a long story short...we did an OJ Simpson in the Munich airport it was at the farthest gate in the Terminal G - (run Forest run) and made that final connection.  Finally met up with Gaye on this flight going to Budapest.

After all of this diatribe, we are here on the lovely Danube on the Viking Skirnir (translated to Baptisms) and feeling relaxed and happy.  But what a journey to get here.  What can be better than that?

Elisabeth Bridge over the Danube with the Viking Skirnir in the foreground.  Wikipedia says of the name Skirnir : Viking Longship Skirnir - Skírnir is actually not thought of as a god but the god Freyr‘s messenger.  However the literal translation fromNorwegian is Baptisms.