I stood outside the airport in Lisbon with a bunch of retiree tourists from the West Coast. They were excitedly snapping group pictures as we waited for the shuttle that would take us to our hotel. It was late afternoon and the summer weather was gorgeous, but I hardly noticed the sunny skies and the cool breeze. I was too tired from a long flight from Ottawa and a little bit flabbergasted at the turn of events in the past few hours, the past few days, and the past few weeks.
I was in Portugal to commence a pilgrimage that would take me to renowned Catholic shrines in the western part of the country, as well as the north of Spain and southwestern France.
A month ago, this trip wasn’t even on my calendar. It was so last-minute that I was actually the one that snagged the last spot on this tour and booked the last available seat on the last available flight back to Ottawa.
It was only when I received the fifth notification from Aeroplan a few months back that I booked everything. I was reminded that on account of their seven-year mileage redemption policy (which eventually changed...they always do), the miles I had accumulated had to be redeemed before the end of the year, lest they get forfeited. I had no choice but to make travel plans even though I wasn’t really considering one at that time. The mileage that I was about to lose could cover a round-trip ticket to almost anywhere in the world so I didn’t want to put this to waste. By coincidence, I had enough credit card points to cover a tour package.
My husband encouraged me to go somewhere by myself. He thought it would be a good idea for me to have a personal break of some sort, as I must admit, the stress and pressures of daily life had made me a bit of a crank and a sourpuss.
So, I started checking out tours offered by the more popular operators. I figured that for a solo traveler planning a trip on such short notice, the most convenient option would be an all-inclusive package from a reputable company. After eliminating destinations that didn’t appeal to me and trips whose dates and pricing didn’t match my schedule and budget, I narrowed down my choices to three – a tour of Central Europe (that would start and end in Munich with visits to Nuremberg, Prague, Bratislava, Budapest, Vienna, and Salzburg); a tour of Eastern Europe (that would start and end in Ljubljana, Slovakia, travelling south along the Dalmatian coast through Croatia and crossing the Bosnia-Herzegovina region); and a religious tour of shrines in Portugal, Spain, and France (that would start in Lisbon and end in Madrid).
My husband and I leaned towards the religious one, but after checking flight schedules, I was disappointed to find none available for the flight back to Ottawa, unless I extend for two more days. Even that one was going to be a close call, given that there was only one seat left on the last open flight. I had to act fast.
I immediately obtained approval at work for my vacation leave and within the same day, I contacted the credit card travel department to ask if they could arrange the tour that I was interested in joining. After checking with the tour operator, the travel agent told me there was only one seat left. I asked if I could reserve it until I confirm my free flight with Aeroplan. She said they normally don’t hold seats but because this trip was only a month away and was one spot away from full, the tour company agreed to make an exception for me, provided that I call them within 24 hours.
I proceeded with booking my flight online, but as luck would have it, as soon as I paid for the extra travel fees and clicked the “book” button, the system crashed. I logged back on but for some reason, I couldn’t book the same flight anymore. I wasn’t sure whether my previous transaction went through or someone else managed to book that seat while I was trying to log on again. I called their technical support team and I was disheartened to know my payment didn’t go through the first time and that the reason why the flight wasn’t available anymore was because it had been booked by another person online, as I had suspected. He, however, advised me to check again after an hour or so. I might get lucky if there are any cancellations, he said. I did not count on that very much.
I conditioned myself to be ready to take my second choice, which was Central Europe, and to check the availability of the corresponding flights. There was nothing available on the dates that I wanted. Bad sign. I proceeded to Choice #3, which was Eastern Europe. Flights were still okay but I did not book anything yet. I wanted to wait and see if by some miracle, I’d get a spot on my first choice.
After an hour, I logged on again to the Aeroplan website. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw a single seat back on the list! Of course, I didn’t waste a minute to nab this. I booked it right away and crossed my fingers. Thank heavens, it worked this time!
As soon as I got the confirmation, I phoned back the travel agent to book my tour. She said it was a sign that this trip was meant for me. She also told me she had been on that same tour and she highly recommended it.
In one nerve-wracking afternoon and for what felt like a million phone calls, I sealed the deal.
Little did I know that this solo trip would be a very interesting pilgrimage for me...
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