Monday, May 9, 2011

What else?

So the question is...Wouldn't you think that starting a trip having to meet three separate flights from 3 different airports on two different days using two different bus companies,THEN having the first bus be an hour and a half late to pick up the first group, THEN having a lady break her arm on the first morning of the trip, wouldn't you think that all THAT would be enough stress for a Tour Manager?  Wouldn't you?  I would.  I did.  But NOOOOOO...that evidently wasn't enough stress and aggravation for this Tour Manager.  Because on the last day the three factions of the group were to leave on two different coaches to the airport.  BUT the first coach didn't EVER show up.  And the second coach was an hour and a half EARLY.
After I called 5 taxicabs to get the first 19 people to the airport I then greeted the second bus driver with the news that he would have to kill an hour and a half because I had no intention of trying to round up the second 18 people from their various activities at Niagara Falls to get them to the airport 6 hours early for their flights.
I assume everyone is where they need to be, including me.  I'm at a hotel looking forward to my second of three tours which, I assume will be STRESS-FREE!  Please?

Thursday, May 5, 2011

OUCH

I'm on a three-in-a-row week-long tour of Niagara, DC, Philadelphia, NY and back to Niagara.  I took Amtrack to Toronto to meet my group.  The group consists of 37 people who arrived on three separate flights, from 3 different airports in England, on two different days.  So after back and forth trips to the Toronto airport to pick up the three segments of my group I finally had everyone collected and we were to leave this morning from Niagara Falls, Canada at 8:15AM.  Feeling pretty comfortable that I had achieved the seemingly impossible task of gathering this disjointed group together and was ready to begin the tour I left my hotel room, took the elevator down to the lobby to meet my driver for the tour and as I stepped out of the elevator I was greeted by a gentleman in the group.  He uttered the dreaded words..."We have a problem..."
My mind instantly went thru many possible scenarios in a split second and then he finished his sentence..."my wife fell while getting out of the shower and I think she broke her wrist."
Really?, First morning of the first of three tours?  Really?
We were leaving Canada and heading thru NY to PA to our second hotel in Gettysburg.  I really didn't want to deal with Canadian Hospitals, and make these people have to find their own way to Gettysburg or make the whole group have to wait in Canada for whatever Canada might put us through so I got an ace bandage and some ice and we headed for Gettysburg.  She wasn't in much pain and some ibuprophen helped.  When we got to Gettysburg at 5:00PM we dropped off the group at the David Wills House (where Lincoln slept before he delivered his Gettysburg Address) for their tour, took Fay and Norman to a walk-in clinic where we were told that their x-ray tech had just left.  They said they would evaluate her but she would then have to go to the ER for an x-ray.  We declined their offer and went straightaway to the ER, where I left Fay and Norman to wait for treatment.  I went back with my driver to the David Wills House to get there just in time to pick up the group after their 45 minute tour and proceeded to the Gettysburg National Cemetery for the rest of their tour.    Then we took them all to the hotel and got them checked in by 7:00PM.  I heard from Norman at about 9:00 PM and he told me they did x-rays but had no results yet.   I waited until 11:00 to finally hear that they had results, her wrist was broken in a few places, they put a cast on it and sent them on their way.
Tomorrow we leave at 8:15Am for Washington DC.  The tour continues without skipping a beat, except that Norman and Fay have their own War Story to tell about their trip to Gettysburg!
Have I mentioned that I love this job??!!!