Not Without Its (7) Challenges

It is with great pleasure that I write the initial posting to the VSB-Dubai blog.
Those of you who have been in contact with the staff and students know that our voyage to the UAE was a difficult one; here's a quick debrief of the 32-hour travel drama. Suffice it to say that the group has already bonded!

TRAVEL CHALLENGE #1: Snow storm

A nor'easter hit the entire east coast over the weekend, dumping 2 feet of snow in New York City. JFK Airport closed to all traffic as of 8pm on December 26th. Since our flight was originally scheduled for departure at 10:30pm on December 26th, Royal Jordanian rescheduled for the 27th at the same time.

TRAVEL CHALLENGE #2: City under snow

I awoke to find my own car in a 3-foot snowbank, and my block (in the city) under 18 inches of the fluffy stuff. Getting onto Villanova campus to catch the bus up to JFK was easier said than done-- the parking lots and driveways weren't plowed, and several cars spun their wheels just trying to drop people off students.

TRAVEL CHALLENGE #3: Snow drifts undo earlier plowing

Most of the highways up to New York were fine, but as we emerged from the Verrazano onto 287, all traffic stopped. An accident kept us there, virtually unmoved, for close to 2 hours. Although some segments of the BQE had been cleared earlier for driving, strong winds kicked up snow again causing congestion in the most inconvenient places.

TRAVEL CHALLENGE #4: Stranded travelers

Arriving at JFK (4.5 hours later), the dropoff area was a parking lot. These roads may have been cleared away earlier, but they certainly weren't by the time we arrived. We waited for 30 minutes or so just so the bus driver could deposit us near a walkway. All the students teamed up to unload luggage from the bus, carrying in suitcases that didn't belong to them, just so we could all get out of the cold. Inside, a mad house. Aggravated travelers who spent the night on the floor, people with babies and elderly family members, everyone waiting around to find out whether or not their flight would depart on Monday. Imagine what it's like when you suddenly convert an airport to a campground- overflowing trashcans, filthy bathrooms, and limited food options-- JFK was the perfect storm.

TRAVEL CHALLENGE #5: Will we or won't we get out of JFK?

Many flights continued to be delayed even after JFK officially opened to arriving flights. Loudspeaker announcements frequently included "Flight X has been diverted to Chicago" and "Qatar flight Y has been delayed until December 28th at 2 pm." On the board our 10:30 pm flight was listed as "On Time", we didn't actually board the plane until 12:30 am, Dec 28th. Then we sat at the gate for another hour for unknown reasons. By the time we left the runway, it was nearly 1:45 am, and we had no way of knowing whether or not we'd miss our connection in Amman.

TRAVEL CHALLENGE #6: Will we or won't we make our connection?

Upon arriving in Amman, we were whisked through security again. They had held the plane for us (and for many other people including a Univedrsity of Hartford MBA group), but we were quickly rushed to get the Dubai flight. Kristy Irwin (Associate Director/All-things-Dubai Coordinator) requested assurance from the airline that our bags (some which had been mislabeled with Amman as the final destination) be put in the cargo hold before takeoff. She received a firm "NO," with the threat that if we didn't get on the plane at that moment, we try a different flight... tomorrow. All Villanova students boarded without incident.

TRAVEL CHALLENGE #7: So what about that luggage?

Once in Dubai, and after spending about 2 hours clearing customs, Kristy fiied claims for the missing bags. Unfortunately at that time, Royal Jordanian couldn't say exactly where the bags might be, or when they could deliver them to the campus. We left Dubai International, fingers crossed, and arrived at campus about 7 am. We did our best to refuel for our 10:30 "high tea", but those without luggage were at a disadvantage in this regard. So we pooled our resources to help each other out in the meantime-- students lent each other clothing, toiletries, hairdryers, and a sympathetic ear if one was needed.

P.S. As of this post, I hear that all luggage has been delivered to the campus and the rightful owners are happily sorting through their belongings.

Check back tomorrow for new updates.