An Unexpected Journey
It was not our intention to travel outside Scotland this year, yet here we are, almost ready to fly to Dublin for a weekend that will be our Christmas present to each other. How we have arrived at this decision is, quite frankly, epically stressful.
The story all begins with airmiles. With many years of wonderful travel we have accumulated a large amount of airmiles with a certain Dutch airline, especially The Wing Commander, who spent some years in the late 90s and early 2000s commuting weekly to Amsterdam for work. We have used them in the past to upgrade flights for special occasions but still have enough to upgrade a flight for our next big anniversary to an as yet undecided destination.
To maintain the airmiles we have to take a flight every year and this is usually easily accomplished with visits to friends in France or with regular holidays abroad. I have even flown to Cardiff via Amsterdam as the easiest (and, incidentally, cheapest) option to attend a conference. In 2020, with the global pandemic limiting the possibilities of travel for pleasure, the airline agreed to hold over airmiles for a year without the stipulated flight. As 2021 progressed and the prospect of international travel remaining unlikely we were secretly hoping the airline would continue their offer to maintain our airmiles for another year. Alas, no e-mail with such glad tidings arrived and we were faced with the prospect of losing our many airmiles.
The easiest option was obviously to take a quick flight to Amsterdam, maybe spend a day or two depending on circumstances, and return with airmiles intact. We know Amsterdam fairly well having spent our honeymoon there and visiting with The Bombers when The Wing Commander was working there. It is a lovely city but it wouldn’t have been our first choice in any other circumstances. After a quick online search I discovered nearby Haarlem which was easily accesible from Schiphol airport and appeared to have plenty of attractions to amuse, entertain and educate weekend visitors. It seemed we had a destination.
Then…
The locals became restless and there were disturbances in the streets of some Dutch towns as news of new covid-related restrictions were announced. Our, frankly, forced, travel now had another unwelcome dimension. We began to look at other destinations in Europe but with daily announcements of potential new restrictions it was becoming a planning minefield.
A chance comment by Senior Bomber prompted us to look at Dublin. There was a moment where I locked eyes with The Wing Commander and we unspokenly agreed it was a great idea! Nearly forty years of marriage can allow for such silent communications! Of course, going via Amsterdam is not the most direct route to our Irish neighbours but it was the essential component for maintaining the airmiles, which was the whole point of the travel in the first place.
We did our research, booked the flights, hotel and attractions we wanted to visit and with the help of a good friend in Dublin who works in the aviation industry (to whom we owe a large drink), we were able to keep abreast of all the documentation we required. It had been stressful but we were finally booked and could look forward to our weekend break. Dublin would be fantastic!
Then…
Omicron! A quick message from our friend in Dublin let us know we would now need proof of a Rapid Antigen Test on top of our vaccine record to enter Ireland. Anxiety levels quickly rose as I hurriedly booked tests for us both. Levels continued to rise as confirmation of the bookings did not arrive by e-mail. Several hours later I finally broke and tried re-booking the tests to discover I had not completed the first booking attempt and therefore it was not confirmed. Second attempt was confirmed and we had our tests this morning – both negative. Hurrah! Now, to enjoy a well-earned rest in Dublin.
Then…
The Wing Commander checked the KLM website. Our airmiles were going to be held over for another year…
Our eyes met. Should we cancel?
Not on your bloody life! Dublin, here we come!
Significantly Different 