I don't know if I mentioned previously, but ever since my ex left (and the kids have moved out) I have taken a vacation during the winter months. It breaks up the winter and is so nice to get away from the cold weather for a bit. It makes the winter all a bit more bearable. Anyway, for 2018 I have decided to go to Costa Rica. I will be travelling with a new (to me) group which comes highly recommended by a friend who has previously travelled with them (Sri Lanka, Iran, China). Anyway, this group flies from London so, having paid the balance on this holiday yesterday and gotten the flight details, today I was looking at flights to London the day before, plus an overnight hotel stay.
Typically, I was whinging to my colleague at how bloody expensive the flights were already. I mean I was looking at 350-400 Swiss francs (around $400). I guess it is because of the ski season, as people have already begun booking. Anyway, C must have been tired of my whinging because he said "let's look at British Airways because I have 10 trillion air miles, some of which I am going to lose anyway, and if it will stop you whinging you can have them". Well, actually he said nothing of the sort (he loves me really) but offered to give me his air miles so that they wouldn't be wasted. Anyway, after much huffing and puffing we found a flight for the day before to Gatwick (it means I have to get the bus over to Heathrow) and outwards from Heathrow on the return leg, but we were having trouble booking it online. So C gets on the phone and spends ages booking it with the BA rep, telling him it's a "birthday present for my aunt"!!!!! I should have hit him then! Buuuuut, after he hung up, he said "you're all booked but you're going business class"! Wow. It's not the business class part (nobody needs to fly business class on such a short flight) but it was the fact that he had thought to do it. It ended up costing me just 100 Swiss francs in fees (just over $100) but when I looked at the round trip flight, business class, it would have cost me 740 Swiss francs (around $750)! Somehow I think I have to forgive him for referring to me as his "aunt" and I sense a nice bottle of wine winging its way to him don't you?
Damn he could have called you Grandma for that - what a great guy! Definitely wine...maybe homemade cookies too :)
ReplyDeleteYeah, he's the person I work the most closely with and while he can be difficult if he doesn't like you, seemingly he loves me!
DeletePS I loved Costa Rica, went five years ago, here are some of the blogs from that timeframe: http://livingrichonthecheap.blogspot.ca/2011/07/costa-rica-paradise.html, and then read the few blogs after that one :) So many monkeys there
ReplyDeleteOh I will check out your pictures. I am really, really hoping to see a sloth - I doubt it will happen - but they have to be my most favourite animals ever. I remember them from Washington zoo. It puts me in mind of my oldest son!
DeleteWe went to an animal rehabilitation centre, that is probably where you might see sloths.
DeleteThat is so nice of him to do that! Definitely a bottle of wine is in order :) I'd probably be giving him crap forever about calling me "aunt" haha.
ReplyDeleteAnd you know the stupidest things is, when I was (again) whinging that it was a bloody early flight (I worry about traffic/snow, justifiably) he said, well stay with me the night before (he lives in Geneva). Damn, I have to find him a wife!
DeleteThat was a very nice treat. Live it up in business class-some day I would love to experience it.
ReplyDeleteThat has always been my thing. If (when?) I win the lottery I wouldn't change much about my life (if anything) but every time I travel it would be business class! Aah, bliss. C is Uruguayan so clocks up the miles every time he goes home but even so, it was adorable of him to do that. He is a sweetheart.
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