Our Little Stay in Rota, Spain

The academy would have been proud.  I'm certain the performance I pulled in the lobby of the Gateway Inn in Rota would have earned me Best Drama.  The clerk told me I couldn't stay because Juliette was under the age of 12 and I immediately went into the "ugly cry."  You know the one... bright red face, snot, hyperventilation, and where your nose seems to widen at least 2 or 3 inches.  It could have been the stress leading up to our travels, or perhaps the fact it had just been a long day, or maybe because it was midnight and all three seem perfectly reasonable reasons to have a complete emotional breakdown.  I even pulled the "you're going to kick me and my baby out in the middle of the night in a strange country" card.  Oh yes.  I did it.  It didn't work, but by the end of it I had one of the hotel clerks crying. 

But here's the good news and here's how I know God cares about the details in my life... I mentioned in the previous post that one of the women at the desk was on the phone when I walked in the door.  Guess who she was talking to?  Greg! (although you probably already guessed that).  How's that for timing?!  He had already made us a new reservation at a hotel in town, and yes, he is always that wonderful.  One of the clerks drove J and I in her own car to the front gate, helped us with our paperwork, they called a cab to come get us and told them where to take us.

Both of us were crying as we walked out to her car and she said "I want you to know there are nice people in this country.  You will see that the people at the gate and at the new hotel will be very helpful.  My cousin is living in another country and I would hate to know that she was in this kind of situation and people did not help her."

Our new hotel was very nice and had beautiful views of the harbor.  A family we knew in Georgia are in Rota and took great care of J and I as we waited to check in to our flight.

We had a great flight, sleeping most of the way in a sleeping bag on the floor.  I'm telling you, cargo flights are the way to go! 

USA bound!

The call came on a Thursday morning.  Juliette did not have a diagnosis for Lupus and her ANA level was higher than before.  This left us at a crossroad.  We either needed to go to a pediatric Rheumatologist (our choices were a doctor in Germany, one in Venice, or back in the States) or begin re-running tests here.  It did not take much to determine we needed to have her seen by the Specialist.  But where?  That choice also did not take long as the States seemed the best option. 

My parents live fairly close to Duke, so the process of trying to get her an appointment with the Pediatric Rheumatologist began.   By Saturday night, Juliette and I were on a cargo Space A flight (aka: free military flight).  By cargo, I mean we sat in seats along the walls of the airplane and the rest of the space was filled with cargo boxes. 

I have motion sickness and the thought of flying sideways made me nervous.  There were no meals or drinks served, no handy trays to fold down in front of us, and no warm towels to refresh our faces.  However, armed with a backpack of snacks, warm jackets, a sleeping bag, and ear plugs (no insulation = extra noisy airplane) we had an absolutely wonderful flight.  We could move around and be as loud as we wanted because you couldn’t hear anything anyways!   J sat on her suitcase using her seat for coloring and playing. 

 

After a 3 hour flight we arrived in Rota, Spain and were to be back at the airport the next afternoon for our flight to Norfolk.  Before we left, Greg had made us reservations at the Gateway Inn on the base to spend the night.  It was close to midnight and I was exhausted.  J had been so good and was holding strong while we made our way to the hotel.  We walked through the hotel doors when a lady on the phone said “Are you Anna Harris?  I’m sorry, but we don’t allow children under the age of 12 to stay here.”

To Be Continued…