Saturday, June 3, 2023

Someone is missing

We received the email to check in for our flights to Paris  on Sunday May 28. My check in went smoothly. I  decided to buy a  window seat rather than risk being stuck in the middle of the row.  My preferred seat would be the aisle but no aisle seats remained. Bill finished his gardening and went downstairs to check in. He came upstairs  only to announce that the airlines would not permit him to check in because his passport would expire in two months. France requires that one's passport be valid for  at least three months from first date of entry into the country. Never mind that Bill intended to visit France for only two weeks or that the airlines  had sold him a ticket  after he  submitted his passport information. The next day being Monday  Memorial Day, Bill could do nothing to sort out his dilemma until Tuesday. He woke up at 5 A.M. on Tuesday to book an appointment with the emergency passport office in Seattle. Why this could not be done online seemed incomprehensible to me.  It soon became clear that I would fly to Paris solo, and Bill would miss the French Open and the visit to the Catacombs, our two major planned events. Daniel felt bad for Dad. I felt worried, and Bill felt horrible.  Bill's appointment is Tuesday June 6 and if all goes well, he will get a new passport that day. He is planning to fly to Paris June 8 to arrive  June 9. Luckily, he found an available dog sitter that could stay with Maggy for an additional week so he could extend his trip. As of this writing, Bill still does not have a new passport.  Will he be able to get one on Tuesday June 6? Stay tuned to find out.

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