Welcome to....Chicago??

Well, things have certainly got off to an interesting start!  Thunderstorms in Chicago delayed our plane's landing yesterday, and as a result we arrived about 20 minutes after my connecting flight to Amsterdam had left.  The soonest they can reschedule me was the following evening, with an added layover in Frankfurt Germany.  So my expected overnight in Amsterdam ended up being here, in Chicago.  Luckily the company had built in that extra day into my itinerary, so I won't miss the boat.  Instead, I took a free shuttle to the Embassy Suites, where I paid an airport-issued discounted rate which Celebrity or Proship will reimburse.  Proship knows I'll be arriving later than expected, and is taking care of letting the port agent know. I wish things had gone as planned so I could have a relaxing night tonight before my contract begins instead of last night, but I enjoyed it anyway.

God can bless us in any situation in little ways, though.  In the hour and a half long line for Customer Service (!!!!) in order to reschedule my flight, I met a charismatic businessman who is actually from Holland, trying to get home.  His exaggerated facial expressions and his cheery and witty conversation in his loud dutch accent was highly entertaining - maybe he'll also be on the flight tonight to Frankfurt.  On the shuttle ride to this hotel, I met a neat lady who was caught by the same bad weather.  I ran into her again at the hotel's restaurant later that night where both of our rumbling stomachs had led us (only snacks for lunch and no dinner yet that day).  We chatted the night away while we ate, and then she insisted on paying for my expensive meal because she is going to be reimbursed for her expenses from her company (she's a top executive founding member type).  It was so sweet of her to do that, and so nice to have someone to talk to after a really long, somewhat frustrating day.  I think it was really good for both of us to find each other to ease the solitude of traveling alone.   

Anyway, the Embassy Suites here is gorgeous, and after a good's night sleep I had a relaxing day here.  I slept in, ate a lot of the made-to-order "continental" breakfast, and am going to see if I can get away with practicing a little before I check out around 3pm.  My flight leaves at 6:30 tonight, gets to Frankfurt at 9:55 local time, then my connection to Amsterdam leaves at 12:50 and will get me there around 2pm.  After that it'll be a whirlwind of getting my luggage and dashing straight to the ship before it pulls out at 5pm.  My agent told me to take a cab (for which I'll be reimbursed) if I don't find the celebrity contact right away.  Either way, I'll get there, God willing. :-)  I am learning a lesson in not worrying about something I can't control.  In any case, it is Celebrity's responsibilty to make sure I get to the ship, and they will get me there eventually.  And I did really enjoy sleeping in a nice bed last night and having a lazy day today.  And now, take two!  Lets try this again and hope I get there this time. :-)  The next time you hear from me, I should be writing from the decks of the beautiful Century.