Mickey Nut 50
07-28-2002, 08:05 PM
Part I – Day One of the Much Needed February Trip
The cast:
Carol, fellow Disney nut, sometimes needs a wheelchair
Michael, 13 – Carol’s nephew
Me, tour guide, addicted to Disney
Grant, 14 my son and Disney pal
Let me start by saying we had PERFECT non-stop flights scheduled and bought before 9-11. Thanks to Osama, those flights were cancelled and subsequently changed many times by Delta. Let me also say that this is the first and last time I will take a late night flight to Orlando!
Now, on with the show!
We left Columbus OH at 9:00 pm Feb. 14. Flew into Atlanta where we had to change planes. Not only did we have to change planes, we had to change concourses. After de-planing from Columbus, a wheelchair was waiting for Carol at the gate. We asked if we could all be taken to the next gate in the electric cart – yes, of course! Mr. Wilson was our attendant. He was so pleasant. He took us to an elevator, and called for a bus to pick up. (The bus was actually on ground level). We all piled in the elevator, only to find the bus hadn’t waited for us. (This miscommunication only the beginning of a very long night.) He had to take us back up to the passenger loading level, and called for another bus. We all piled back into the elevator to go back down to ground level. This time the bus was waiting for us. (“Hey boys – do you realize it is WARM out here?” ) The bus was a courtesy bus for Delta employees. It takes people like us and employees from terminal to terminal out amongst the planes. Looking at those planes from “down under” sure is a different perspective! All of the Delta employees were so pleasant and courteous to each other. They addressed each other with “Mr, Mrs. or Miss”. The driver of our bus was Mr. Palmer. He was very nice and took us inside and up the elevator to our next gate.
OK – onto Orlando (and what turned out to be more communication problems) at last. Our plane was full – 258 passengers. While waiting I talked with a man who really looked wrung out. Turns out he had been waiting 38 hours as a standby. We arrived in Orlando on time at 1:00 am. I sent Carol, Michael and Grant on to get the luggage while I went to get the car at Budget. As I walked towards Budget, I noticed that they were the only rental company with customers – and a looooong line! (That should have been a “heads-up” clue – but I am an eternal optimist – after all, I had confirmed reservations!) There were several adults ahead of me, apparently traveling with a high school group. They had been promised two 15 passenger vans. At least one was rented out to the people ahead of them, and it left with only 2 people in it. I felt very sorry for them. They had a bunch of teenagers who needed to get to bed because they had a performance that day. (Keep in mind it’s now going on 2:00 am). While they were dealing with their difficulties, it finally became my turn. I had been in line for about an hour at this point.
Some background on this ressie first – When I made the reservations back in Sept., I requested an intermediate so I could bump up to a full size with my “Entertainment” coupon. I placed the reservation over the phone with a real live person. She kept saying, “I’ll book you a compact, so you can bump up to intermediate”. I finally agreed since there isn’t much difference between intermediate and full size. I asked her to note on the ressie that I had a coupon for upgrade. She said I would have to turn it in when I picked up the car.
Back to the present – at the counter – I gave the Budget person my ressie number and coupon. He said he couldn’t/wouldn’t take the coupon. “You reserved a compact and that’s what I’m giving you. That’s all we have left. It’s an Escort.” (We were a group of 2 long-legged teenage boys, and 2 shall we say, good size women, plus luggage).
Let’s just say I expressed my dissatisfaction with Budget, and asked when I could get another car. He told me, “early tomorrow morning”. “How early?” He wouldn’t give me a time. I asked if I took a cab both ways, would Budget pay for it. “Yes, it would be deducted from the car charge.” I opted to take the Escort. There were still about 15 people behind me in line. I wonder what they did. When we took our car, there were only 3 Budget cars left. Honestly, I think half our plane decided to rent from Budget. I had heard others talking who had checked some of the other car rental companies. They said no one had spare cars to rent.
We lugged all of our stuff and very tired bodies out to the garage, getting slightly lost for a short time. (I know, it’s really simple to get to Budget’s cars, but remember we’re going on 2:30 am now, and I’ve been awake since 5:00 am the previous morning).
Trudging through the garage, we see that Budget’s area is nearly empty! There was a 15 passenger van, a pick up truck, an SUV, and one Escort! We piled our luggage in it – and it fit – along with us. I turned the key and nothing happened! My right hand dropped between Carol and me – I felt a shift lever. “Oh – now I know why it won’t start – it’s a standard!” Sure enough, my left foot found the clutch. Carol nearly panicked until I said I knew how to drive a standard. She doesn’t, and we would have been in a real pickle if she had been the driver. I was upset because I felt I should have been told when I rented the car.
After we were all loaded and all fit, we decided to keep the car, only because exchanging it would mean a loss of several hours of park time in the morning.
Part II, Day One coming up…..
The cast:
Carol, fellow Disney nut, sometimes needs a wheelchair
Michael, 13 – Carol’s nephew
Me, tour guide, addicted to Disney
Grant, 14 my son and Disney pal
Let me start by saying we had PERFECT non-stop flights scheduled and bought before 9-11. Thanks to Osama, those flights were cancelled and subsequently changed many times by Delta. Let me also say that this is the first and last time I will take a late night flight to Orlando!
Now, on with the show!
We left Columbus OH at 9:00 pm Feb. 14. Flew into Atlanta where we had to change planes. Not only did we have to change planes, we had to change concourses. After de-planing from Columbus, a wheelchair was waiting for Carol at the gate. We asked if we could all be taken to the next gate in the electric cart – yes, of course! Mr. Wilson was our attendant. He was so pleasant. He took us to an elevator, and called for a bus to pick up. (The bus was actually on ground level). We all piled in the elevator, only to find the bus hadn’t waited for us. (This miscommunication only the beginning of a very long night.) He had to take us back up to the passenger loading level, and called for another bus. We all piled back into the elevator to go back down to ground level. This time the bus was waiting for us. (“Hey boys – do you realize it is WARM out here?” ) The bus was a courtesy bus for Delta employees. It takes people like us and employees from terminal to terminal out amongst the planes. Looking at those planes from “down under” sure is a different perspective! All of the Delta employees were so pleasant and courteous to each other. They addressed each other with “Mr, Mrs. or Miss”. The driver of our bus was Mr. Palmer. He was very nice and took us inside and up the elevator to our next gate.
OK – onto Orlando (and what turned out to be more communication problems) at last. Our plane was full – 258 passengers. While waiting I talked with a man who really looked wrung out. Turns out he had been waiting 38 hours as a standby. We arrived in Orlando on time at 1:00 am. I sent Carol, Michael and Grant on to get the luggage while I went to get the car at Budget. As I walked towards Budget, I noticed that they were the only rental company with customers – and a looooong line! (That should have been a “heads-up” clue – but I am an eternal optimist – after all, I had confirmed reservations!) There were several adults ahead of me, apparently traveling with a high school group. They had been promised two 15 passenger vans. At least one was rented out to the people ahead of them, and it left with only 2 people in it. I felt very sorry for them. They had a bunch of teenagers who needed to get to bed because they had a performance that day. (Keep in mind it’s now going on 2:00 am). While they were dealing with their difficulties, it finally became my turn. I had been in line for about an hour at this point.
Some background on this ressie first – When I made the reservations back in Sept., I requested an intermediate so I could bump up to a full size with my “Entertainment” coupon. I placed the reservation over the phone with a real live person. She kept saying, “I’ll book you a compact, so you can bump up to intermediate”. I finally agreed since there isn’t much difference between intermediate and full size. I asked her to note on the ressie that I had a coupon for upgrade. She said I would have to turn it in when I picked up the car.
Back to the present – at the counter – I gave the Budget person my ressie number and coupon. He said he couldn’t/wouldn’t take the coupon. “You reserved a compact and that’s what I’m giving you. That’s all we have left. It’s an Escort.” (We were a group of 2 long-legged teenage boys, and 2 shall we say, good size women, plus luggage).
Let’s just say I expressed my dissatisfaction with Budget, and asked when I could get another car. He told me, “early tomorrow morning”. “How early?” He wouldn’t give me a time. I asked if I took a cab both ways, would Budget pay for it. “Yes, it would be deducted from the car charge.” I opted to take the Escort. There were still about 15 people behind me in line. I wonder what they did. When we took our car, there were only 3 Budget cars left. Honestly, I think half our plane decided to rent from Budget. I had heard others talking who had checked some of the other car rental companies. They said no one had spare cars to rent.
We lugged all of our stuff and very tired bodies out to the garage, getting slightly lost for a short time. (I know, it’s really simple to get to Budget’s cars, but remember we’re going on 2:30 am now, and I’ve been awake since 5:00 am the previous morning).
Trudging through the garage, we see that Budget’s area is nearly empty! There was a 15 passenger van, a pick up truck, an SUV, and one Escort! We piled our luggage in it – and it fit – along with us. I turned the key and nothing happened! My right hand dropped between Carol and me – I felt a shift lever. “Oh – now I know why it won’t start – it’s a standard!” Sure enough, my left foot found the clutch. Carol nearly panicked until I said I knew how to drive a standard. She doesn’t, and we would have been in a real pickle if she had been the driver. I was upset because I felt I should have been told when I rented the car.
After we were all loaded and all fit, we decided to keep the car, only because exchanging it would mean a loss of several hours of park time in the morning.
Part II, Day One coming up…..