Hurricane EARL Adventures

Dear Steemers:
Now I can really tell you a story. I was due to come to Pensacola to sort out some missing information & misinformation on my online attempts to start receiving my Soc Security checks after my 62nd birthday, in Sept. I had to do it in person, so I booked my Delta flight (weeks in advance!) from Belize International to Atlanta. Then on to Pensacola on Thur evening, Aug 4th was my arrival. I had a 9:00 am appointment at the Soc Sec Admin Building, on Cervantes that next day, Friday Aug 5th.

So to get off this island of Ambergris Caye, where San Pedro Town is located...you take Tropic Air or Mayan Air to the mainland. A 15 min trip with 11 other passengers in a small single prop airplane. With the storm due to arrive, Tropic was closing the airport in advance of Hurricane Earl, on WED by noon. If I was getting off this island, I had to do it a day early and get my butt to Belize International, on the mainland. So I was able to get on the LAST PLANE off at about 12:50 pm. Whew...that was a close call.

I arrive at a closing Belize International Airport (actually one of two airports on the mainland. BI is 70 miles north of downtown Belize City. They had already closed Belize City Airport, the day before!) to have the porter pull my 2 suitcases up to the un-staffed Delta desk. Oh, no...I think I am in trouble. He knocks of the door behind the desk, it opens, a few hushed whispers and a man emerges to tell me Delta is closed, he is going home. I asked about hotel rooms, since he said the airport is closed. He tried several ones, but they were all full with anyone that could afford to leave low lying Belize City and get to higher ground. I tell him I have food, I can stay here on the benches. He said that was not his call, check with security. He hands me 2 large bottles of water, a neck pillow & a red Delta blanket. "Good Luck" and leaves.

So the next person I end up talking to is a very gruff, head of security. He tells me that he can not be responsible for non-staff staying here. I told him, "I will clean your bathrooms." He looks at me and asks if I had brought my chemicals? I said "NO, but you are head of security so you can open the closet and let me use what is there." He turns his head, cause he is starting to smile and he doesn't want me to see him doing so. He tells me O.K., don't go behind the desks, stay here on the benches and the ladies room is there. There was another individual, further down the row of benches and he was already on the floor with his head on his bag and his phone plugged into the outlet. So he gets the same lecture.

O.K. I am set. Food, check. Water, check. Book to read, check. Lights, check. A/C, check. I am in pretty good shape, here. I would learn from the drizzle of travelers that walked, hitched a ride to the airport after their stay in the various hotels nearby, that I was MUCH better off. They had horrible stories of spending the night in very modest hotels with not alot of protection, much less electricity or a dry bed! The manager of the airport, Mr. Reed next came and gave Mark & I (see pic) the rundown on what was probably going to happen that night. He was right on the money. We did lose power at the height of the storm (midnight) & it was out till about 7:30 am. So it did get a little warm and I couldn't SKYPE with any of my concerned friends in states.

Ivan was back at our rental with Lucky, they had shut off the water at 2 pm on WED, then the power at 9:00 pm. I was more worried about him, especially the next day, when friends started sending me Face book updates on the damage in San Pedro. I felt so guilty, having had no real issues. In fact there ended up about 35 folks that spent the night at BI Airport. Mr. Reed brought his wife (in bathrobe & slippers) along with several daughters and grand kids. They brought their own mattresses, fans & bad food and camped out in a group. All the workers that needed to be at the airport did the same, even a long haired Chihuahua on a leash! So there was plenty to see & do, I talked to several young women, who had not ever been thru a H, before. All said, it was a kind of cool situation! I didn't feel like it was a total hardship for me the Princess! The bench was so f***ing hard, I had bruises on my arms and hips for days, after wards. Oh, well...it could have been much worse.

O.K. so I left you with me, bemoaning the fresh bruises on my skinny carcass having gone thru the Wed night with Hurricane Earl. The electricity is restored about 7:30 am, and thankfully we could now flush toilets! You have no idea how necessary that is after 25 women wake up & do their thing! Everyone that lives local, was leaving to see how their homes fared in the storm. One young woman whose husband worked with Mayan Airlines came back in the morning to share with me, that all that was left of her home was the slab & a few partial walls. So Rebecca, my thoughts & prayers go out to you.

Now we have other travelers drizzling in by bits and dabs. All of us want out of Belize & back to the US! The Staff under Mr. Reed did a great job of clearing the runways, checking all systems that need to be safe. All this has to meet snuff, before any planes can be sent to get us! I think the first flight out with a large group was w American Airlines, but that was totally full of people and I had heard that some of the folks waiting in the airport were on standby status. Lots of luck with that. WHO in their right mind would NOT want to continue on their way, after the storm?

The airport is now full of folks waiting for the final Delta flight to Atlanta. WE leave finally at 8:30 pm (Thursday, Aug 4th) and are grateful as hell to be lifting off! I arrive at the International Atlanta airport. (this was not two separate airports, the last time I flew) It is now 1:18 a.m. on Friday. 8-5-16. Delta gets us checked thru immigration, they take my luggage for the morning flight to Pensacola, Fl and give me snacks, water, pillows & blankets for my use.

YEP, you saw that one coming, right? Carla the Princess Traveler is SPENDING ANOTHER NIGHT IN AN AIRPORT! Two nights, back to back! O M G. No benches here, just the cold, hard floor on Concourse B in the Domestic part of Atlanta airport. DID I mention the tram was down for servicing? THANK GOD I had Dr. Cann's orthotic inserts in my tennis shoes, made the lonely 20 min trek with my pillows, blankets, water & backpack all by my lone some. I had checked the monitors & I was leaving out of Gate B14. Found a wall that I could camp out next to and layed down and tried to sleep. IT WAS 68 degrees or colder. I have evidently acclimated to Belize temperature, because I was so cold my nose was numb and I was shivering. No sleep for Carla!

Another traveler sets down next to me, she is leaving in the morning also. I asked her to watch my back pack, I needed some hot tea & something to eat. I come back with my goodies & sit down. She says she is going to Mobile. My sleep deprived brain didn't think of anything other than she was driving there from Pensacola. She looks at her ticket & then looks at mine. "Carla, how can another plane pull up to this gate and leave at 8:15 am, when I am leaving at 8:08 am? Are you sure you are at the right gate?" she says. HOLY MOTHER OF PEARL, I grab my stuff, thank her and head out to the concourse to check the monitor! My heart is pounding because I just almost made a bad mistake. NOW the monitor says gate D16 for Pensacola. S**t, I am down the stairs grab the tram, to go to the D Concourse in a blink of an eye!!!! But I have plenty of time...WRONG, Carla forgot about the 2 hour time change. I get to gate D16 as the LAST PERSON BOARDING!!! This is sooooo not like the girl scout prepared Carla that I know!!! What the Hell am I doing?

O.K so fast forward to landing in Pensacola, my previous home of 11 years! It looked so good as I was landing. Now I go get my rental car and head off to my friends that are kind enough to host me for my stay. Did I mention that I haven't driven anything in over a year. Did I mention that in San Pedro Town you only drive golf carts, which we don't have. Did I mention my last vehicle that I drove was a 1996 Chrysler 2 door coupe with no working air, only passenger power window worked, no radio but excellent tires & a new battery? So what is waiting for me at HERTZ? A mid-sized state of the art 2016 SUV, called a Rogue.Oh no.... No keys, a "fob" was handed to me. Dear God, how the hell do I open the door. Now mind you, I am really feeling out of my league here. MY BRAIN has atrophied in Belize, I can't open the trunk door. So I go over to the attendant and ask for help. Can you show me how this thing works? He was polite and did that without asking any questions. He was thinking, " poor grey haired lady, she must be experiencing some serious mental decline." I got the hang of it, and out of the airport I go, heading down highway 98 to my friends in Navarre, FL.

The good news is, I got my Social Security issues fixed (3 hours+ 3 people worked on it, 2 of which were supervisors!) got all the cell phone issues & other errands done and am now enjoying a Monday breakfast (Aug 8th) with my two hosts. The news flashes on their TV "DELTA IS DOWN, WORLDWIDE". That is their computer system that is a bust. Well, I didn't have to leave till early (5:50 am) Wednesday the 10th. I am good, right? Let me just say that I ended up with a cancelled flight from P'cola to Atlanta. They re booked me for Thursday morning and I spent another night at the Hyatt Park at Pensacola Airport. On a REAL bed, with a FEATHER-LIKE soft pillow & hot tea maker in my room with the Olympics on a large screen TV. This ALMOST made up for the two "Airport" nights I spent. Almost! I had to be up at 3:45 am to get thru the TSA lines, as three different airlines had flights that all left in & around 6:00 a.m! I was taking no chances!

Needless to say I was soooo happy to return to my husband & cat. Kick back and enjoy my simple, uncomplicated life on a island with sand, surf & sun. No time changes, no airlines, no cars to drive & very little damage to San Pedro Town. Yes, the piers took a beating but for the most part, the powers that be got things up & running in record time. Soon I was enjoying a delicious ( the BEST on the Island) rotisserie roasted chicken from Ali Baba's (just south of Tropic Air on Coconut Street. Large GREEN building, can't miss it), the magic of Billy's seasonings is mouth watering. Made some fresh non-GMO, organic corn on the cob and a tall glass on my own Ice Brewed Tea. Life is good, once again.

That is the tale I tell of Hurricane Earl & my travels to Pensacola, Fl. Update, a $200 Delta voucher is in my hand & I will be back to visit again, soon. This time I hope to not book my flight, 6 weeks in front of a Hurricane in Belize! Happy trails, to you all.