Well, after much speculation, I have made it to Halifax. It wasn't an easy week leading up to the 19th. It was only on the Monday before that I realized that I only had one hour to get to my Air Canada connector flight to Halifax in Montreal. This would have been fine had I not had to deplane, retrieve my baggage, check back in, and go through security. Needless to say, I was a bit anxious in the days leading up to leaving. To make matters worse, when I got to the airport in Kuujjuaraapik, I was told the plane was running forty-five minutes behind. At that point, I knew I was in big trouble as I had checked the Air Canada flight availability and the next flight I would be able to get out of Montreal would have been on Sunday. To make matters even worse, there was a huge storm in Toronto that was causing Christmas flight chaos all across the country.
About an hour into our flight as Amanda and I were watching Arrested Development, Amanda suggested that I tell out flight attendant about my situation and maybe he could call ahead. I flagged him down and explained my situation and he said he would talk to the captain to see what he could do. He came back about ten minutes later and asked me to describe my bag; that he was going to try and get me to the back of the plane when we landed, help me find my bag, and get me to the gate as quick as possible. I had already checked in online for the AC flight before leaving Kuujjuaraapik. A while later, he asked me to write down my contact information in Halifax and to write a description of my bag. He also said the pilot could not find out any information about my flight but that he would keep trying. About thirty minutes before we landed, the flight attendant came back and asked if I could leave my bag behind (I wasn't allowed to go back into the cargo area to retrieve it myself) and just run to the plane. I said sure as I had only packed Christmas gifts in the suitcase. He said they would either send my bag on to Halifax or back to Kuujjuaraapik. Either way, I should contact Air Canada the next day to see if the bag had been sent on.
I was instructed to come to the front of the plane as soon as the plane landed. I did. Everyone watched as I made my way to the front and tried to keep my balance as the plane made the long taxi. It finally stopped in front of a gate with an Air Canada plane at it. The flight attendant got me out and we ran to a staff door. He pointed to the Air Canada plan and said, "Run!" which I did once I got in the door. And...I did...
I ran and ran and ran and...I got to the gate and the plane had yet to even board! It too was late getting in from Winnipeg. I was out of breath. I waited for the plane to board and then I saw all of my colleagues from the Air Inuit flight walk by. I told them I was fine, that I had made the flight, and they too seemed relieved. I finally boarded the plane after having been tempted to try and retrieve my bag. I ended up in the plane for 45 minutes on the tarmac and watched Tropic Thunder. Luckily, I arrived at 2:30am (two and a half hours late) in Halifax to a tired mother and sister.
That was miracle number one: making the connecting flight to Halifax.
Miracle number two happened the next day. I knew I would never get hold of Air Canada baggage. So I looked up flights and knew that there were six coming in from Montreal. Three in the morning and three in the afternoon/evening...so Sarah and I went out around noon. I talked to the baggage guy and he said there was no record of my bag at all in the system but that a flight from Montreal had just come in. I was to take a look and if it wasn't there, I was to come back and file a report. We ran into Alison, Frankie, and the kids who had missed their flight in the morning due to long line-ups at the Trudeau Airport. As we were talking, I managed to catch a glimpse of my bag out of the corner of my eye. It was there! I picked it up and it had a "rush" tag on it with my mom's number on it saying to call when it arrived.
Now, I am not a miracle believer usually but I tell you, some forces were at work. I am thankful to the Air Inuit flight attendant and pilot who went that extra mile. I am going to find out their names and write a letter. Something like this needs to be recognized...
I am here in Halifax with good friends and family. Life, once again, is good. Happy holidays!
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