Exploited at the Airport! My Mom Denied Entry After Flying Across the World (To See Me!) ๐ซ๐๐ค๐ญ PART 2!
What if you flew across the world, hours on a plane to be denied entry at your destination? Is that thought scary? It happened to my mom just a few months ago.
Source:
Here's where we ended off last time!
So poor momma landed, tired, afraid, stressed out and alone and her daughter (yours truly) was not waking up despite having a fully charged phone on full blast beside the bed.
Now that her phone was dead as well, she got in a cab and showed him the address I sent her of the hotel I had booked for her online and hoped he would take her where she needed to go.
I just have to tell you guys, after this all started going sour and extra money was being spent on the new flights, we kind of went for one of the least expensive but best rated places I could find on some hosting sites.
I found a hotel that had ratings of 7.3 within a reasonable price range and so knowing nothing about Hong Kong, I booked it for her after scanning some reviews that seemed to enjoy their stay.
Well, after the long drive from the airport over to the area her hotel was in, it was about 3 in the morning so when she got dropped off, everything was dark and looked closed for the night (despite the hotel advertising 24/7 check in desk!)
She unlocked a gate and made her way through the property until she came to a locked door. Not being able to get in, she went back to the cab driver who was on the street with her bags and started trying to tell him he had dropped her off at the wrong place.
The cab driver didn't speak English and so what ended up happening was a scene in the street as she tried to get back in the cab and he kept trying to get her to go inside.
Mom also didn't have any local currency and was trying to pay in USD which the driver wasn't accepting. Eventually he ended up charging her a ridiculous price and drove away, leaving her standing there.
Just after this confusion, a couple came along and entered the gate. They were obviously staying there so mom called out to them and the man came back to see what was going on with her. He told her that they could let her into the building but it wouldn't do her any good as far as getting checked in or into a room as they didn't have any keys or way to contact the employees there. Feeling bad for her, they encouraged her to come inside off the street regardless.
Helping her into the door, they began listening to her story and helping her get her phone charged a bit. By this point, she was extremely exhausted and could barely accept the fact that she was not able to check into the hotel that she had finally arrived at.
The couple were from the states and the man was especially kind and helpful unfortunately the woman was tired as well and fairly so, said "it wasn't their problem" when he tried to take my mom to another hotel close by.
My mom didn't want to cause any problems so once she got her phone charged a little bit, she took off down the street in the direction the man had told her another hotel was.
She says it could have been the adrenaline or the fact that it was dark but it was "sketchy as hell" and she felt a million eyes on her as she made her way through the dark streets, alone with her suitcase trailing behind her, hoping the next hotel was close by.
That's when her friend "Hoolio" showed up and with his limited English, began "showing her the way!"
Frightened by this random stranger who now had hold of her luggage, she tried to tell him she didn't want any help and that she would be just fine on her own but he insisted and continued marching off down the street with her bag beckoning for her to follow along.
Not knowing what else to do, she followed behind him.
Becoming incredibly aware of how hungry she was, she asked him if he knew where to get something to eat (hoping he would take her somewhere public!) Luckily, he took her to a famous fast food joint, right by the Police Station so she decided to get some help from the officers.
The police officers turned out to be zero help which is a shame because this poor, tiny, Canadian woman was on the streets at now 4am trying to find somewhere to get some rest before she passed out on the pavement.
Giving in to Hoolio's persistence, she continued following him along the way to where the hotel was. When they finally got there, she was incredibly relieved however, it was all crushed in an instant when she found out they were fully booked for the night.
Wouldn't you know it, so were the next half dozen places around!
Hoolio (still dragging her bag behind him) started telling my mom to just come home with him since they were not having any luck elsewhere but my mom refused and being a little bit cheeky where I get it from accidentally offended him.
In this unsettling conversation on the street, some other dark shadows appeared wanting to know what was going on.
Hoolio was pointing at my mom saying "Seester!" and from what my mom could gather, he was trying to explain that she was not in danger and that she was his sister so they didn't try to take her off into the alleyways.
She says at this point she sat on the ground and started using her battery and international plan (that I had managed to set up for her) to message everyone back home on FB asking for advice.
Of course this made everyone lose their minds, telling her to get back to the airport and come home from the crazy danger land that is outside of the Canadian border lines!
Hoolio was speaking to her but she was defeated and worn down so she sat there, ignoring him as he was pointing and frantically gesturing at her to get up.
"I'm tired Hoolio. Leave me here!"
She said she was at that point so exhausted all she wanted to do was curl up with her suitcase and sleep right there.
After a little while, Hoolio ended up convincing her to get up and they walked into this really fancy hotel that my mom was at first going to pass by as it was obviously far beyond the amount we were looking to pay however, they both went in, desperate to find somewhere safe for her and she ended up booking the only room they had: an exec suite!
We're not even going to drag up the pain of that charge for the room was (especially because she checked in after 5am and check out was 10am!) However, for her to be safe, have wifi, a place to charge her phone and rest her head, there couldn't be a price tag.
I woke up to the above story, picture of the room and copy of the bill. Oh boy.
I was overwhelmed with guilt when I woke up. I couldn't believe I had slept through her calls and that she had been through all this in one night. I was scared she was never going to want to travel anywhere again.
While the decision was being made to send mom to Hong Kong, I remembered I had a friend who had lived there for two years so I contacted him to see if there was anything he could do to help my extremely nervous and threatened mother.
Luckily, he gave me information of a lady who lived there who was my mother's age and spoke decent English. He talked to her and she was willing to meet mom and help her get around, show her where to go for her visa application and just give her a hug!
All of this was arranged to happen that morning but my mom slept through her calls! I got a call from my friend asking why my mom didn't meet his friend! Uh oh!
I called my mom and she sounded like hell. She started going off about the story I just told you and how scared she was.
I told her that she needed to go meet this lady who was going to help her so that we could try to get the problem solved and since I couldn't be there, this was the next best thing. So she dragged herself out of bed and got herself in a taxi to go meet this wonderful lady who was waiting to help her sort her life out!
- Does momma finally get to Indonesia?
- Do I get to give her a hug?
- What the heck does momma do in HK?
- What happened with the airline? (Was it their fault?)
I'll keep it all coming as I continue to tell you momma's least favorite travel journey! I spoke to her to make sure I got the story accurate and will be sharing with you her message to me coming up!
This ended up being a small mistake that cost way more than we had anticipated! Always make sure to check your travel documents over before boarding as the airlines often make faults like this, leaving the expenses on your shoulders!
You can see my latest post from the absolutely insane time I ended up in some pretty unbelievable escapades in Dominican Republic by clicking here!
Hope you enjoy coming on board! These experiences must have happened to be shared! ;)
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
See you next time to find out!
Leave me a comment so I can notify you when the next part is out!
XO,
Your poor mom!!! That must have been so scary! My mom used to be scared just traveling from Germany to the US. And I always ordered her a wheelchair. That way I knew she was taken to where she needed to be next...
She would have never traveled again if that would have happened to her. Heck. If it happened to me, I never might travel again. :)
Oh I know, the poor woman was just beyond herself. I was surprised I had actually convinced her to come in the first place and had no idea anything like this would end up happening. It's really too bad looking back on it because she definitely is scarred!
They should really make travel easier and less of a pain in the neck, don't you think? ;)
Yes, for sure. It seems to be getting harder though.
Although it's a intense story I must say you are tallented writer! And you can be really proud of your mother going through all that just to see her beloved doughter!
Hi @emmamia thank you for your kind words <3 I am so proud of her, she was so scared to even come her in the first place and the fact that she came alone was so huge! Now she's got a crazy story to tell everyone in her small town back home ;)
I bet she does. :) Hopefully, the experience wasn't so traumatic and she will fly around the world in the future.
We should ask her what she thinks about that ;) Somehow I think she might be apprehensive for a while to come! I'll see if she will talk about it in the next part!
Ok, I'll hold you to your word and I'm really curious if she mentions her future plans about flying. I'm waiting for the next part! ;)
Hi @emmamia! I have finished part 3, it tells about her time in HK like I promised ;) You can see it here =) <3
U thank you for an update... Will check right away. :)
oh no you didn't! broke it up into a part 3 trilogy?! you sure know how to build up the suspense! lol
that's another issue to be keenly aware of too when traveling. 24/7 seems to mean something rather different in other parts of the world, including Europe (land of the 3 hour "lunch break"). I've even had cases where I explicitly asked if someone would be available to greet us at a certain time. You're inevitably always told, "oh yes, of course!"
Until you get there, and the doors are locked and there's no one around. You have to take it a step further... "And just in case we can't find anyone", is there another number to call, or another way to reach someone? Or maybe we can find someone behind that back door up the staircase with the giant knocker?! lol
Haha I am sorry! I thought it was shorter but then she reminded me, it was a full blown nightmare for her so I wanted to make sure I accurately painted the picture! ;)
That is crazy, I wouldn't have thought that would be the case in Europe! I guess it is a risk whenever you start venturing out of the fancier places that would need to have more than one person around at all times :P Guess we shouldn't have tried to skimp out, it ended up costing us tons more this way anyway LOL
It sure is hard when travel goes wrong, especially because you're already tired usually and just want to get where you're going... actually telling this story makes me not to excited to travel anywhere again... though I have my own horror stories of a different nature that I'm telling you guys about... must run in the family :P
oh I don't know about that, I didn't want to be a "downer" over it, but truth be told your story reminded me again why I don't like to travel all that much anymore, so I don't think it just "runs in the family"! :)
And to think, I remember a time pre-TSA when I thought the airports, airlines, and the bureaucracy couldn't get much worse... Boy was I wrong on that one! At least they haven't yet confiscated my nail clipper (lucky I didn't hide it in my confiscated bottle of water, though), but boy have I heard stories...! lol
To be fair, (at least in my experience) most cases of travel have some sort of snag or piece that goes slightly unplanned as we can't be prepared for everything and then eventually, the seasoned traveler gets used to these upsets and they are no longer a problem (though it's kind of a problem that problems are so normal!)
TSA is my personal nightmare, I hope I only ever have to fly into the states a handful of times for the rest of my life. (I would say never but my family wouldn't be happy about that!)
Nail clippers are ok, now nail scissors... you're getting taken in for questioning. How do I know? ... just guess lol!
The water thing just continually blows my mind! I have forgotten water in my purse sometimes and ended up with it on the plane with me, where other times, it was the end of the world that I was up to something!
I really want to interview someone to know what it's like on their side of the stick... maybe we're being too judgmental and harsh, it must be a huge responsibility to take on... you know the safety of so many lives and all :S
you reminded me of a comment I wrote on @kus-knee's post a few weeks back that seems especially relevant now! lol
and this one...
Last time we went down to Mexico, as their "TSA" confiscated a few of our items, we were able to peak into the barrel full of obscure items they'd "appropriated". Really makes you wonder if they weren't just trying to restock that sales booth out the back side of the airport! lol
Haha well, you know you might be onto something!
In Europe on RyanAir, they charge for toilet use... at least they did 5 years ago when I was flying with them. It was only 1 euro but still... I could not believe the cheapness of that airline lol but then again the tickets reflect that price so, you know, you get what you pay for ;)
I'm sure someone is making a side business off of this. Leaving Vegas, I had this really cool bottle opener that I had paid strip prices for and they were telling me I had to toss it. I refused so they took me out of line, brought me over to UPS and had me pay for everything to ship it back to Canada. $20 later... it never made it to my house! I have always wondered about that one!
:S Somethings going on over there and I don't like it haha
This is what momma gave me for part 3 turns out it will be more than a trilogy! What a story she's got! lol
Wow, it really is turning into a whole saga! On the positive side, at least you have some more great stories to share that can perhaps help others at least somewhat avoid some of these "travel" pitfalls.
However, I had hoped she managed to trade in the expensive exec suite for a more reasonably priced room the second night!
Always great to come across people like that in the world. In this regard, you may also appreciate my last post...
Link: HURRICANE RESCUE: What would YOU DO with YOUR OWN private JET?
Besides that, looking forward to reading Part 4! :)
I would be exactly like your mother on every point ... well most points ... I get really stubborn pretty quickly. This does not necessarily move me to better places, though. So, at some points I might have been a little different, I probably would have ended up on the same paths. LOL
Hate when my comments shoot out from under my keyboard like that and post when I'm not finished ... Anyway ... All I have to say is this had better have a happy ending or I might cry for you and your mom, both!
And yes, I did back up and get caught up :) Your multi-part stories are so great. ... ok so ... are you going to finish tomorrow? Like maybe is it up already? I'm going to go refresh your blog.
I'm glad you have so many connections and experiences before you drag your mom out of her little cottage by the sea (or wherever her cozy spot is).
She's done it! got us a part 3 to read ;) Here it is in case you want to keep following her on this one ;) <3
OOh thank you for the heads up!
Haha well at that point, being tired and annoyed, it's not ideal for the emotions! She is saying I might have put it too lightly. The whole fiasco on the street probably should have been an entire chapter on its own with all the little nuances that happened. Poor thing, I feel so bad for her reliving this and trying to share it with you all! It sounds like a damn nightmare!
I am trying to catch up but as you can see since I'm late replying to this, I am a bit behind. The volcano had everything all stressed out and so I fell quite behind buttt I promise to let you know as soon as I am able to get the next part out! <3
Hugs to you both. The first time we write, we generally have to write about trauma at a lighter level. I've kind of felt that in your DR story, too. But do not think it is pointless to write a light version about our past. For you it gets the first layer out there. For me, as your reader, it lets me find out horrible stuffs went on for you (and your mom) without reaching the point of feeling like it's too much to absorb.
I'm sure others are waiting for the full novel, though. So keep writing a little bit deeper. I'm rather certain it is a novel that would sell!
For us, you can always come back and say ... "You remember that time I told you about ... Well here's a little detail I failed to mention. It might be important."
I'm ready for you to calm that volcano down. Uh no. I have no idea how you could do it.
You're absolutely right and I have much deeper material I am working on to share with you all here soon, though that I am preparing in a different way than these stories and definitely as you're saying a look back on what we missed.
It's funny that you wrote this to me as I had been writing exactly that for my other story series but hadn't posted it yet (from volcano stress) I posted it last night and am now reading this and it's amazing how perfectly it applies! <3
Thank you for the insight as a reader! I love hearing this, it's not often that I get such a deep look into what's going on in the person's mind who is absorbing these words of mine!
You know, this has been asked of me and perhaps someday I will end up writing a novel of some sort, the problem for me lies in staying on track and focused on one thing for a long time. I love Steemit because I can float around in all of my interests (though I guess I could just take my time with the novel one day!) Thanks for the vote of confidence, you're such a sweetheart!
I'm definitely enjoying being able to create, express and share with you and it sure feels amazing to know people are reading it and enjoying my experiences <3
Thanks again for coming along on this journey with me and not only that but for connecting with me in such a special way <3 I really appreciate this relationship we're developing! Steemit is such a wonderful, powerful community space!
Have a fantastic weekend!
You're good...Lol...the suspense from part I was killing me and now I have to wait for part III!! Your poor mom having to go through such an ordeal trying to find a place to stay in HK reminds me of the time (15 yrs ago), when my friend and I made spontaneous last minute decision to take a trip to HK after we finished all our work in China. The lesson we learned, never travel to HK without a hotel reservation or you'll be walking and searching the whole night. Your mom was lucky enough to find a nice suite room, my girl friend and I had to to settle for a small closet like room to share that had a shower head over a toilet. Later we learned that this type of hotel is frequented by night workers and their clients....Yuk!! My friend and I can laugh about this experience now, but at the time it was awful and horrific...two women walking all over the streets of HK in search of a hotel room at 1:00 AM, and with their suitcase lugging behind them, was a sight to see.
Oh my goodness @jalai! That sounds exactly like what my mom was explaining! She said no hotel was available with a room for her! That sounds just awful, at least you had each other but it's not fun being stranded and probably tired as you were doesn't help! I don't like being out on the streets at night as a woman so I feel the stress that must have been for you (and my mom!) I guess now we all know to book in advance (and pay a little extra so that you can actually get into the hotel!)
Hi @jalai here is part 3 if you would like to catch up with momma ;) Part 3, Hong Kong <3
It sounds like on her first big trip out of the country your mom got the full travel experience - I can only imagine trying to walk my own mother through all of this. Hopefully the Steemit revenue from telling her story will help cover the costs of that fancy suite!
Haha exactly... I am telling her, she got a life experience that many people would pay for since it changed her and pushed her to new limits. It's not necessarily fun but she definitely had to grow a lot more than just an easy way to the beach. Steem would have to be very high to cover all of this... it was thousands at the end of it with the last minute flight and tons of other stuff coming up but it's definitely helping heal that scar for sure <3 Thanks for that positive way to turn this <3
Oh mommy! You are such an excellent story teller. Now you have me hooked for two storiess!
Oh thanks my dear! I love story telling and have many more to tell so I will keep 'em coming <3
I am certain you will!
I really enjoyed that story. So well written! I know exactly how you feel. I can imagine that so many people reading this will run home to hug their parents.
Oh thank you so much, I love being able to write and share these stories with you all! =D Yes, I wish I could run home to hug mine but they are back in Canada! It's hard being a part from family which just makes this story all the more dramatic! Give your parents a big hug =D
In case you want to follow along, as I have promised, here is part 3! <3
Ok, now you are really killing me. :D
It is too much to read alone, can't imagine how it must have been for your mom.
Haha well that's how I am feeling writing it! It's crazy isn't it? I don't even know how to tell you guys everything! It was just too much, poor momma! I'll let you know when I manage to summarize the next part ;)
Sorrrrry @flauwy, it became longer ;) Here's part 3 if you want to continue reading it <3
No, that's cool. Great to get the link from you!
OMG... what an ordeal! I'm glad she found a friend and he was able to help her get checked in to a safe place. Holy cow! What a crazy scary experience! I hope things got better after this! LOL
I am sooooo thankful I had a friend to call on for her too! I am lucky to have networked quite a bit around the world because having someone with you makes a huge difference!
I don't know that I did her night on the street justice... it was seriously so insane hearing it.
I'll let you know when the next part is up so you can keep following her story <3
Hi @jazzybells =D I wanted to let you know that part 3 of momma's story is out! If you want to keep following her on this crazy journey, here it is she's reminding me that I like staying put where I am :P