Worlds Unluckiest Traveler: Family Travel Stories

	Down Under but not out! Bumpy start and finish. Feb. 18th at Tampa Airport, headed to our plane for Australia, my husband fell back on the escalator and knocked me down, breaking my ankle in two places. His back was all scraped up but he refused going to the hospital. I could turn my ankle so did not think it broken. In wheelchairs we went on to the plane and upon arrival in Sydney, were met at the hotel by his cousin. Next morning, she took us to a walk-in clinic where the x-ray showed breaks. Wrapped in an ACE bandage we stayed our four days without regret but not wanting to have surgery there, we cut our trip short to come home. Surgery was March 3 which meant my cast would not be on long enough to go to Israel on April 5. There I had Travel Guard insurance too. Family insisted it would be no problem so off I went, cast and all and saved another cancellation. It was a wonderful trip, friendly people and I wish I had a picture of the camel with two humps that I rode. I am thankful we departed the 14th with tail winds from volcanic activity: 119mph. Bumpy bumpy!
	The wheels on the bus go 'round and 'round Last year, my mother decided that we needed a little "quality family time," so our family went on a Caribbean cruise vacation. And, quality family time we had! The boat left me seasick, and I was ready to go home. We headed to the Miami airport where we were supposed to catch a flight to Tampa. The flight was canceled. It wasn't announced on the overhead, so we get down to the gate and find out it's canceled. The airline then had a brilliant idea—they would put us all on a small charter bus and drive us from Miami to Tampa where they assured us that we would catch our connecting flight. The bus drove for 4 1/2 hours without stopping; the entire time, I had to use the bathroom. The bus driver didn't speak any English as well. Of course, we missed our connecting flight. The next flight home wouldn't be until the following evening (24 hours later!), so they sent us to a hotel with $5 in food vouchers. $5 doesn't buy you much food. Oh, and my luggage was left in Miami, so I had none of my things with me! Oy!
	Fire at Sea My grandmother was turning fifty and her family decided to treat her to a cruise. Nan had raised ten children and was a widow at fifty; no one deserved a holiday more than her. We saved for a year and then off we went to Florida to pick up our ship. We all said this was a trip of a lifetime. The ship was beautiful and Nan's birthday went off without a hitch until we went to bed. The next morning at 3am we were woken up by announcements coming from the bridge and the smell of smoke. Our ship was on fire, at night, in middle of the ocean. We all made it to the muster station, but getting an 80 year old woman and an aunt who required a wheelchair down several flights of stairs was a challenge. We waited for ten hours while the crew bravely fought the fire. Lifeboats were lowered but never used. The ship was deemed unseaworthy and that was the end of our cruise. It was a birthday we will never forget.
	Never felt so good to get home After being a one-income family for nine years, we booked our first "real" vacation, a trip to a popular theme park. It was our children's first plane ride, our seven year old son's first hotel stay, and their first time at this park. The plane trip was great, the resort was wonderful, and we were off to the park the first night. After the first couple of rides, our son started complaining of a stomach ache. We thought maybe it was the roller coaster (another first), but soon he started vomiting...all the way back to the hotel. After becoming dehydrated with the flu, we had to take him to the ER for IV fluids; another first. Three days later, my wife was in the ER for the same illness. My wife and son spent the week in the hotel room, and we only had one day together as a family in the park. Then, on our flight home, we were alerted that our credit card number had been stolen, and used by someone to purchase $600 worth of plane tickets. It never felt so good to get home.
	Nature's worst and best In 1999, the entire family left for a two week vacation in Hawaii after a very stressful winter for all of us. Eleven hours after arriving, the first morning on the beautiful sandy beach, I was hit by a monster wave which broke my leg in three places. After being rescued by my kids, I was rushed to a trauma center for a five hour reconstructive bone surgery. After coming out of the intensive care and healing a blood clot in my leg, I survived the ordeal, thanks to my two brave kids. My operation and rehab was successful and is still going well. We visited Honolulu with me in a wheel chair and it was great. I was well insured, thank God. I would be bankrupt. Nature's worst unforeseen incident gave me one of the best close up relationship times with my loving family.

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