To Portugal!

This coming Wednesday commences a 2-week vacation in Portugal and Spain with Aunt Barby, Aunt Nancy, and my Spanish friend and former co-worker, Laura. Thus far the planning has been... lumpy.

While investigating airfare for all three of us US travelers, I noticed that Aunt Nancy's return itinerary (Granada-Madrid-Chicago-DC) was $100 cheaper than mine (Granada-Madrid-Chicago). This did not make sense. So, I called Iberia, explained the situation, and asked for the same fare. They said no. Period. A little startled by their abruptness, I booked my return flight to DC. The only way I'll be screwed by this decision is if a) for some reason they change the connecting destination to somewhere other than Chicago, or b) I accidentally check my bag in Granada in which case it will fly to DC without me and I'll probably have to pay $100 to ship it back to Chicago.

We booked our tickets online knowing that we would have to present the credit card used for purchase at the check-in counter. No problem. Until my card got stolen. As soon as I had the new number I called Iberia to update my information. They said, "you can't do that." And I said, "excuse me?" They explained that the only way was for me to have my bank issue a letter addressed to Iberia saying that my card number xxxxxx was stolen. With a month to go before departure, I called the bank and requested the letter.

Last week I got an email from Iberia confirming my flight, and I suddenly remembered that I had never received the letter from the bank! I called the bank, and after putting me on hold while the rep talked to both the Fraud department and the Senior Representatives, he came back on to tell me that this was not a kind of document that the bank would normally issue for legal reasons. He told me to call Iberia back and find out if there was any other way to work around it.

After going back and forth with the agent at Iberia, she told me she would call me back to let me know if bringing my credit card statement to the airport would be sufficient. "What if it's not?" I asked. She explained that I would have to cancel the previous ticket and purchase a new one with my new credit card. "And I'll be guaranteed the same price?" I asked. "No, ma'am," she answered.

Friday I finally spoke with someone who told me that they were waiving the credit card presentation requirement for me. Hallelujah. I would be allowed to board the plane! However the saga continues. Today they called and said that they need to transfer the ticket onto my new card -- same itinerary, same price + a $20 processing fee for doing it over the phone. I asked what my other option was to avoid incurring the fee. There was none. I refused to pay a service charge. The supervisor is calling me tomorrow.

FOR PETE'S SAKE! WHAT IS THE PROBLEM??

Apart from the airline, I also had a run-in with the car rental. I thought it would be pretty straight-forward to rent a car in Portugal and drop it off in Spain. It is straight-forward, provided one has an extra $2000 to throw around. We don't, so our itinerary required tweaking.

As it stands now, we'll start in the north of Portugal in a town called Porto. Yes, this is where port wine is made, and yes, we will be tasting it. Next we'll meander down the coast and spend Easter Sunday hiking and picnicking in a natural forest. On to Lisbon to visit the tile museum, ride bikes on the poetry-filled path along the Teijo River, and hear some deliciously nostalgic fado music. Here we'll say adeus to Laura, and the three of us Americans will continue to the southern coast of Portugal, driving through olive groves and cork forests along the way. In Faro we'll breathe in the salt air and listen to the stories of wrinkled old fisherman and their rosy-cheeked old wives. From here we'll hop over the border to Spain and end our trip in Granada, home of the old moorish palace, the Alhambra.

All of this planning stress had made me need a vacation more than ever! I'm pretty sure that all the hassle leading up to take-off means that it will be smooth sailing once we arrive. Pretty sure.

Stay tuned.