WHERE IS KAREN???

 My friend Karen and I (here we are, winning the quiz at the Sleeping Camel with our mutual friend Hank above) had a drink at the airport in Bamako on the evening of the 19th of December. She was flying Tunis Air via Tunis, then onto London Gatwick where she was changing to Ryan Air to go and visit her mother in Ireland for Christmas. She is then returning here and spending New Year with me. We were happy and excited about our trips and said goodbye about 9.30pm.

Then all went awry:

Karen on Whats App from Tunis airport, morning of 20^{th .} 

(I am in Charles De Gaulle airport, waiting for my London flight to Heathrow) 

“ Hi Sophie, I’m stuck in Tunis... our flight is delayed AT LEAST  5 hours to Gatwick. U are probably not affected because u fly in to Heathrow? What a huge hassle for me... I will miss my connecting flight to Dublin!”

Sophie replies from Charles De Gaulle airport: “ What a pain Karen! So sorry! I do fly in to Heathrow, yes. Have not heard of any trouble?”

“ It is Gatwick only. They closed the airport because of drone sightings!”

Later, midday, Karen from Tunis to Sophie at Charles de Gaulle, boarding flight to London:” I am still stuck in Tunis” I don’t know how long I will be stuck here. If I manage to get to London this evening, would there be any chance of my crashing at your place for the night?”

Sophie only sees this message once back home and replies: “Karen of course you can come here! I am now at home. Let me know what is going on”.

Karen replies at 18.37 from Tunis: “We are still stranded in Tunisia after sitting all day long at the boarding gate and not being given any information at all. They came about half an hour ago to tell us that the flight would not be leaving until seven o clock TOMORROW NIGHT! We were all going crazy. We just couldn’t believe it! I mean, you know, I only have nine days and now I am going to lose three days! And finally she said that they would put us up in a hotel and that we should go and get our luggage because the coach was waiting outside. It was all lies! We all got our luggage but there is no help and there is no hotels -there is nothing! And every time we talk to an official here they say it is not their problem. It’s just unbelievable. And we have no guarantees that there is going to be a flight tomorrow! I don’t know Sophie if there is any thing that you can do.. we are trying to get to the media- because this is outrageous! They won’t even see us! They won’t even give us a place to stay! They said WE are wasting THEIR time when we talk to the officials!!!!(Karens’ voice is breaking up..)Well, sorry Sophie to be going on like this. But obviously I won’t be there tonight. I might be there tomorrow night... thanks for the offer of staying Sophie. If the plane leaves here at seven we get to London about nine.. it would just depend on if I can get a connecting flight to Ireland. Anyway, big hug Sophie and I’ll let you know what is going on.”

9.30 in the morning, 21^st December. Karen from Tunis:

“Hi Sophie, This is so dreadful. I am in Tunis. So our flight is rescheduled for tonight for ten after seven pm. That is a whole other day wasted and it gets me in to London around nine o’clock at night. So I am going to try and ask them to re-route me on an earlier flight through Barcelona to Dublin. They are telling me it is fully booked but if I go to the airport I can be on stand-by. So that is really my only solution to get to Ireland today. And if I can’t get on that flight then I will be in London at nine pm. So then, Sophie, I will just have to decide whether to get on a train and travel all night to Fishguard and get that one o clock ferry or whether I can stay with you but then I will have to get an expensive flight because I am booking at the last minute so I don’t really know...I am not really in a good place.. I have a splitting head ache and I just feel like crying- it’s been hell. I did finally get put up in a hotel last night. I was the only one in the whole flight that got put up in a hotel! You know, it was chaotic and everone was shouting and they said that they were not putting up anyone in a hotel and it wasn’t their fault! So this went on for a couple of hours and then finally I got to talk to one of them and I said, ‘look, I am in transit. I came from Bamako on your flight. You were supposed to connect me and you haven’t! You can’t just leave me stranded! So they finally put me up in a hotel. That is where I am at the moment. But I am just getting ready to go back to the airport to see if I can get on this other flight to Dublin. So that is my story Sophie. I’ll let you know if I am going to take that later flight today. I need to look at my options if I stay with you tonight, how will I get to Dublin? So OK Sophie. Thank you for checking in with me. Bye..”

Karen from Tunis airport at 14.05 today: “ Hi Sophie. I managed to get on a flight to London that arrives around 6pm today. I will then continue to Ireland by train.

London. Six o’Clock news: “ After reopening this morning, we have just had news that Gatwick airport has once again had to close about twenty minutes ago, due to another drone sighting.

WHERE IS KAREN??? She must have been on her way in to Gatwick and then they must have been derouted. No reply from Karen...

                                                                                
Later- here she is! Her Tunis Air flight was bound for Heathrow - she finally turned up here about 10.30 Alhamdulillah. And off to Fishguard tomorrow morning and the Irish ferry. What adventures...

And taking this opportunity to show off my Christmas tree, newly delivered  this afternoon, and decorated to the sounds of the Messiah as usual...