Panama Day 1

Up this morning bright and early to catch the 6:30 shuttle from our hotel to the airport. Pushed away from the gate a little early and the pilot announced that our flying time would be about 30 minutes less than advertised. Taxied out to the runway and then were told that air traffic control have put us in a hold because of our route - through Florida and over Cuba - apparently a no- fly zone today. So ......... here we sit on the runway for what we are told will be 1 1/2 hours. I'm thinking that maybe this vacation was not meant to be.

Just as I finished writing the previous paragraph, the captain came back on the radio to say that the Sunwing dispatchers have managed to re-route our flight path and we should be leaving in about 19 minutes.

Despite our late departure this morning - we taxied on to the runway about 35 minutes late, however we were only about 5 minutes landing. That is when the next phase of our day started. With a plane full of people, the Dominican Republic had 4 immigration officers to process all of us - it took 1 1/2 hours for all of the people going to our resort to be processed through. Then ............ it took 2 1/2 hours to get from the airport to the resort. Two & 1/2 hours in a cramped van - at times with a maniac behind the wheel and at other time at a complete standstill.

We are here though - exhausted but here.