I had been planning to surprise my mom for her 60th birthday for a while now. I was all set to go until a volcano eruption shut down all the airports in France, and much of the European airspace for six days. I was scheduled to fly Saturday April 17, and by Friday Charles de Gaulle airport was closed. I hoped it would reopen by the end of the day, but the only thing that changed by the end of the day was that Air Canada officially cancelled my flight. I was able to rebook for Tuesday the 20th, but with the ash cloud hovering steadily over Europe, I was just beginning to imagine my two week holiday in Paris (not really such a bad second choice).
Monday night, I checked my flight online, and it hadn't been canceled. By then there was talk of the airports reopening for certain routes, but I wasn't optimistic. Erik and I made plans to meet on a patio Tuesday evening to take advantage of the great weather in Paris. Tuesday morning, the flight was still coming up 'on schedule' on the Air Canada website. I spent 45 minutes on hold with AC to be told that the flight from Montreal to Paris had left, and my flight was the intended return flight. I threw some clothes into a suitcase, and rushed out to the airport, still unconvinced that I would actually get out. It wasn't until my plane took off that I actually began to believe that I was going to Ottawa! And begin to wonder who was going to meet me at the airport?
Anyway, one magazine, two and a half movies, and too much airplane food later (plus many MEC bag and hiking boot sightings--you know you're at the Air Canada counter at CDG when....) I landed in Ottawa. My mom was waiting, and although she wasn't as surprised as she would have been if I'd been able to surprise her at her party on Saturday, I'm pretty sure she's still thrilled that I'm here.
I've been busy leading the life of a retiree, volunteering at the Shepard's of Good Hope, going for coffee, and shopping at times when no one else is. I've also been incredibly lucky to be reconnecting with some friends from high school, many of whom have babies that I hadn't yet met. The icing on the cake is the fantastic weather that Ottawa is having, which we took advantage of during our walk along the river, and visit to the tulips this afternoon.
Plus, I bought us a much needed new camera!
River walk
Tulips at Dow's Lake.
My friend Bianca and her oldest son Mian
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