Months ago, when I booked my flight to the U.S., I compleeeeeetely forgot about Thanksgiving, one of the most celebrated U.S. holidays AND one of THE busiest travel days of the entire year…millions of people on the move…traffic messes…How could I have forgotten? But I did, and so I booked my return flight to Italy for the day BEFORE this huge U.S. holiday. Smart, huh? 😉

When I realized my mistake, I thought, “oh well, no problem, I’ll just have to leave for the airport a bit earlier than usual…”

But then the weather reports began warning of a powerful winter storm, what we call a Nor’easter here, making its way toward Boston…And yes, it’s going to hit Massachusetts today. Soon, in fact. The forecast is rather dire…up to 12 inches of snow (not here on Cape Cod, but to the west and north of us)…high winds…you name it…

I wasn’t overly concerned, to be honest, but, just-in-case, yesterday I called my airline to see if any storm-related delays were expected. I was told that there was indeed a winter storm warning in effect, and that if I wished to rebook my flight (mind you, I hadn’t even asked about rebooking!), the airline would waive the usual rebooking fee (= $250!). Extraordinary. So I decided to rebook, of course. Now I’m leaving for Italy on Friday. Weather looks fine. No problem.

Now I won’t have to worry about driving up to Logan Airport in Boston in the wet, snowy, pre-holiday traffic mess or worry about flight delays, which might have made me miss my connecting flight to Florence. Relief.

Live and learn. The next time I book my flight to the U.S., I’m going to check on those major holidays first. But hey, this time I really can’t complain — this delay means that I will be spending a few more days with Mom and Dad. And for that I am indeed thankful! 🙂