Well, to make a very long story relatively short, after much ado, I am booked on Air France flights to and from Paris. Delta initially approved me to fly in the cabin from Dublin but then called and said it would not be possible. B spoke to many people and finally got in touch with a mucky muck who was very apologetic but confirmed that an error had been made in the original booking. She assigned a nice man to take care of re-booking so as to return home from Paris, and Delta assumed all extra costs in the pricier ticket and fees for changing. That was good of them but the policy is a shame. I am glad we are traveling Air France – hope they play Gigi!
Enough about all that. Just as complicated have been the arrangements to get me from France to Ireland which is our true destination. Irish Ferries (www.irishferries.com) run a ferry from Cherbourg to Rosslare with a boat delightfully called the Oscar Wilde. (There is another route from Rosscoff to Rosslare through October.) Oscar allows pets but only in a kennel apart from everyone else with no view of “…that little tent of blue Which prisoners call the sky” and, given that the trip is sixteen hours long, Bunny looked for an alternative. She found one through an enterprising taxi service that takes people and pets on the car train through the channel tunnel. (Pets are not allowed on the Eurostar train and there is quite an uproar about that. If you would like to learn more, check out www.freespace.vrgin.net/passports.forpets/Eurostar.html , an organization in London that has started letter writing campaign to change the Eurostar policy. The chairwoman is Lady Mary Fretwell and she is doing well by her name for us. The wife of the former British ambassador to France, Lady Mary was the mover and shaker of the Pet Passport which allows me to take this trip without quarantine.)
So after what I am sure will be a lovely time in Paris (we already have one dinner reservation), we will make our way by train to Calais (about an hour and a half) where our new friend David from Folkestone taxi (www.folkestonetaxi.com) will have a driver waiting to whisk us off for the ferry ride and take us to our rental car in Dover.
My seafaring will continue. After a bit of time in England and Wales, we’ll take another ferry, this time on our own, from Holyhead to Dublin for another rental car. (It costs less to rent two cars than to take one from England to Ireland what with fees to do so and ferry costs for cars.)There are several ferry lines that operate on this route but only Irish Ferries allow pets with foot passengers. (You cannot book pets on the website. That can only be done at the terminal. It doesn’t appear to be a big deal but I will report back. I certainly hope I do not have to swim.)
Figuring this out, not to mention explaining it to all of you, has been exhausting and I haven’t even gotten to the medical procedures necessary for the trip. I’ll get to those after a little rest. Jake has taken over my bed but he is a very sound sleeper and I think I can sneak back in.