Subsequent airspace closures have kept a lot of people from getting where they planned to be, when they planned to be there. News agencies likes to call these people stranded.
But while Dave and I were mentally ready to get back to work by the end of vacation, I can't help but think that if Eyja had blown her top before we left, we wouldn't have felt stranded. More like, Cool. More vacation.
It reminds me of a time after college, when I lived in Boulder and Mom came out for a ski trip at Crested Butte. I met her there for a weekend. Now Crested Butte is next to Gunnison, Colorado, which is surrounded by mountains. Any road going toward Denver goes through a high mountain pass. Long story short: a big snow storm came on Sunday, and the passes closed. I called work to let them know I couldn't get home, and then I stayed and skied some more. I had a raccoon tan when I finally got back to work, but was I going to waste a day not skiing? No. Not when I was 22. :)
Granted, not everyone flying through Europe in April is on vacation, and I feel for people who had vacations planned and couldn't get there. But if you had been traveling Europe for pleasure, how would you have faced the news you couldn't go home yet (and who knows when you could)? What factors would make you feel stranded? In what circumstances would you feel lucky?
*This page has video explaining volcano Eyja's name and its pronunciation.
Update: Awesome comic by The Oatmeal about How to Name a Volcano.
[image via NASA]
4 ate pie:
Being in Europe would be a dream if I couldn't get home from vacation. The only time I would feel stranded is if I had pets and left them with a friend to take care of. I would feel bad for the extra inconvenience to them, especially if those friends had made special plans on doing things after my return, but are now unable to do them.
If I'd been there, I would totally be kicking off my shoes and enjoying the extra vacation time! When we took our trip to Japan in February, it was right around the time that JAL was going through financial problems and we were both joking the whole time about the 'hardship' we would face if we had to spend extra time in Japan :D (Though I would've felt a bit guilty about how our family/co-workers would have to work more, for even longer, while we were gone.)
I'm not sure if I'd ever really feel stranded, since we have an emergency fund in place for a very good reason. Though I guess if we were renting a car somewhere and in between cities and got lost and the car broke down . . . well, as long as my husband were with me, I still really wouldn't feel 'stranded' in that situation either.
Michelle - those are the circumstances I can imagined making me feel pressured to return home, though I don't have a pet right now.
Jenn - I never feel stranded with Dave around, either. He's like MacGuyver. :D
I have been missing Europe so much lately, I would be doing the can can if I were "stranded" there by the volcano.
No, no! Please don't throw me in the briar patch!!!
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