In spite of the odds.....

 I said in our last post that this one might come from Belgium, and I was right.   

Greetings from Bruges, Belgium.

It was truly touch and go if we would make it.    We had a bear of a time getting the export paperwork for Phoebe.    Both dogs have EU Pet Passports and normally that is all we would need, but when we got Phoebe in Barcelona in 2023, we were not in the EU long enough to get her a second rabies booster that would be valid for 3 years.   As such, her EU Rabies shot recorded in her passport was only valid for 1 year and we needed to get the USDA to issue an International Health Certificate.

First there was an issue with the US rabies certificate that we sent in to USDA.   We got that corrected at the last minute, resubmitted everything and waited to see if the paperwork would come back in time to make the flight.   On Tuesday we were supposed to head to Newark, spend the night and fly out at 7p on Weds.    We received notice that the paperwork would arrive at the vets office on Tuesday between 3p-5p so we headed out to Pittsfield Mass and waited.... and waited... and waited.

At 4p we were informed by FedEx that there was a "delivery exception" and the paperwork was being rescheduled to be delivered on another day.     Our trip was starting to look doubtful.   If it was sent to the Vets office on Weds, it would likely arrive there too late for us to retrieve it and then make the plane in Newark as it is a 3 hour drive to get there.

I had a plan B to leave either Sat or Sunday should we not be able to leave Weds.   That would require a lot of schedule changes in Europe but flexibility is key when traveling.     Additionally - the export paperwork is only valid for travel for 10 days after USDA endorses it - so we had that to be concerned with as well.

Before we left the Vets office I was on the phone with FedEx Customer Service pleading my case.   I needed to get my hands on that overnight envelope and I needed it now!    I asked them to hold the package for pickup at the terminal and was assured it would be held and I could pick it up Weds morning at 8am.

All night I monitored the FedEx tracking info and saw it had been rescanned.  It looked like it was being held and things were going to work out.   But when I checked again at about 0400, I saw it was now listed as loaded onto the delivery truck!   My plan was falling apart again.

So at 5am I am back on the phone with FedEx and insisteing that they contact the terminal manager to hold that package.     At about 0800 I received a call from the terminal manager in Pittsfield.   I explained the situation and he told me that he would call the Albany terminal (where the package was) and get ahold of the manager of that facility and see what he could do.     He was like a PitBull with a bone.   He called me back several times in the next 90 minutes to update me, and then finally the call came that the package had been pulled off the truck and was waiting for me at the terminal!

I was becoming cautiously optimistic again, but until I had that envelope, opened it and saw that they had not sent paperwork for someone else....  I was not counting any chickens.     At 10am I had my export paperwork and we were back on track.

All that was needed now was for us to make it to Newark in one piece, no breakdowns, no accidents, and no plane cancellations, and we'd be on our way.

Well we are here - so you know how it ended.

NOW FOR THE REST OF THE STORY

We arrived at EWR around 3pm.   I dropped Kate, the dogs, and the baggage off at the terminal, and the returned the rental car.    We had to wait around for about 2 hrs for check in to start.

We're here - so far so good

We cleared TSA without problems.   I had made up leashes with all plastic parts so it was easier to pass thru the metal detectors.   Last time with Lucy we had to take everything off her and with these two high energy monsters, I did not want to chance them running loose.    It worked out great!

We went up to the gate and I hung with the girls while Kate checked out the lounge.    The check-in lady was adamant about no dogs being allowed in the lounge.     We had Lucy in the lounge last time but this time I was in no mood to push the envelope.

The dog carriers are set up and ready

At 630 we boarded for a 7p departure.   La Compagnie boards quickly as there are only 74 seats on the plane.

Dogs in a bag

The policy is dogs in the bag for the duration of the flight but its pretty much unspoken that once you take off they can get in your lap.    Lucy was in our lap the whole flight last time and went back in the bag for landing.      

We put the bags at our feet - you can see them below - and took our seats.

We then had a well earned glass of French Champagne to celebrate!

Most airline food is not fit for pigs but this is one area where LaCompagnie shines.    It is actually quite good.   On the eastbound red-eye flights they serve a lighter dinner meal which allows for more sleeping time and then a nice breakfast about an hour prior to landing.

My salad was crisp and very fresh.    

The cheeses were delicious and the tart was a nice finish to the meal.

Tuscan Shrimp & Fennel Salad, Assorted Cheeses and Lemon Raspberry Tart. 

We decided to keep the dogs in the carriers if they behaved.   It was too much trouble to disassemble each one and then have to reassemble them in before landing.   

It turned out that the dogs behaved perfectly.   From prior to take off until we were able to let them out in Paris it was over 9hrs that they were in there and the never made as much as a sound.      They were perfect little girls and we were so proud of them.    All the passengers who saw them remarked how well behaved (and cute) they were. 

I unzipped the top opening so that they could poke their little heads out and feel like they were part of the action,

Is it time yet?

With the carriers at our feet,  we were unable to lay flat, but we could recline a bunch and I managed to get a good 4 or 5 hours of sleep on the way over.  Not too shabby.

Tonights menu

About 90 minutes prior to landing they slowly began to brighten the lights, a bit at a time, and just as the sun was coming up outside, breakfast was being served inside.

French toast - yum!

Sunrise is almost here - a new day dawns.

Fresh off the plane in Terminal 4,  it's now a long walk thru immigrations to baggage claim and then onward to terminal 2 where I will pick up the rental car.   In all - we walked 2.5 miles in the terminal with me carrying the dogs.    The luggage carts are free and that made a huge difference getting from Terminal 4 to to the rental car area.

After all the struggles getting the dogs paperwork plus 7 hrs on the plane, Kate is still beautiful.

All those creams and emolients must be paying off.

After getting the car, we left Paris and headed north to Belgium.   First stop was MaxiZoo in Seclin France to get stocked up on some needed dog supplies.    Food plus incidentals like bowls, beds, bones etc.    All the stuff that would either not be allowed, or just too much to travel on the plane with.

Shopping at Maxi Zoo

Spring is springing in France

Next stop was a 5:30p appointment with a Vet in Bruges Belgium.     The dogs both received fresh rabies vaccines, had their EU Pet Passports updated, and they are now good till March 2028.   No more stressful USDA paperwork to worry about.   With all the firings going on, the already overstressed program will likely become a nightmare and make it impossible for people without Pet Passports to travel with their dogs.

At 630p we were arriving at the Hotel Orangerie in Bruges.     Bruges is a lovely Medieval City.   We were here several years ago and just loved the place.    Our hotel is right in the old city and just lovely.   What a great place to finally unwind and take a couple of deep breaths.

Our canal view room with super comfy bed

The white building on the right is our hotel.  Our room is  the two windows just above the name on the building.

They set us up a nice table in the lounge where we could have breakfast and bring the dogs along.

Then we were off for a nice stroll around the city.    The weather is a perfect cloudless sky with temps around 70 and a light breeze.

Everybody rides bikes everywhere

Belgium means chocolate, and who doesn't love chocolate?

Last time we were here we stocked up on some blocks that traveled with us for evening nibbles,  and this time was no exception.     We are well stocked up for our future travels.

Kate in the main square

All day as we walked about, people would come over and ask if they could pet the dogs.    It's easy to spot a dog owner  on vacation who is missing their dogs.    We must have at least a dozen people come over to pet them, and 3 or 4 who asked if they could pick them up.

Doggie Fix provided by Annie & Phoebe

Annie and Phoebe are already living up to the Cobberdog breeding purpose and doing their therapy work. 

After coming back to the room for a bit where I pounded out the first part of this post, we headed back out for dinner.   Fish and Chips for me and Steak and frites for Kate.    The dogs came along and slept at our feet.

We walked around for a bit again and said goodbye to Bruges.   We are only here for 2 nights.   Tomorrow we head up into Holland and Tulip Country where we've rented an AirBnb next to the beach.

Being in Holland during tulip season has been on my list for many years.   We have a lot of great places to visit.   The sights (and smells) of all the flowers are greatly anticipated.

On the way to our next place tomorrow,  we will stop and visit Kinderdijk - a neat place with a good concentration of windmills.   We visited here with Gracie and Lucy a few years back and took the pictures below.   We hope to recreate the dogs in the shoe with Annie & Phoebe if the shoe still fits.

The Kinderdijk Doodles

Kinderdijk Windmills in 2018

See you in Holland.

New York or Bust

We left you last in Little Rock, Arkansas...

Departing there, our next stop was about 4.5 hrs down the road to Red Bay, Alabama.

A beautiful warm sunny day was ours as we enjoyed the first of the spring blooms on the trees lining the main drag into town.

Red Bay Spring Blooms

Our first stop was Sabrina's RV wash.   We had an appointment for a full interior and exterior "Spa Day"

Sabrina's Red Bay

Kate and the dogs kept a keen eye on the goings on, and as usual,  were a highlight on the lot.

They started at 8am and by dark we were done and treated to a like new interior.

Our next stop was Precision RV Repair in Belmont, Ms.   Red Bay is right on the border with Mississippi.

We had some preventative maintenance performed on the big DS slide.   Afterwards it was opening and closing like greased lightning.     I also had a bad kink in the kitchen sink drain which was hard for me to get to - so I let the guys who are skilled at that clean that up for me.

Precision RV Belmont, Ms

Next was a stop at Bay Diesel in Red Bay to try and get my EGR code taken care of.

The EGR valve is on top of the engine so access is gained thru the hatch in the rear bathroom. 

They did not have an EGR valve in stock, so they pulled it, cleaned it (it was pretty carboned up) and reinstalled it.   They also replaced the EGR pressure sensor. 

The big red dust-coated Cummins

Fingers crossed that the repairs would solve our issue, we left Red Bay just ahead of the bad storms that were beginning to sweep across the country.

Traveling thru Huntsville, Al we passed the big Saturn V rocket.    The ominous clouds told us what was chasing us - not very far behind.

Unfortunately - about an hour out of Red Bay, the engine again threw off that EGR code.  This time it remained on rather than cycle on and off like it had been previously.

We arrived late afternoon at our next stop - The Two Rivers Landing RV Resort in Sevierville, Tn - just outside of Great Smoky Mtns National Park.

It's a beautiful park with Motorhome only sites that face-in on the French Broad River.

In season all of the shrubs and flowers here are quite beautiful.

View from our site

Our plan was to spend 3 nights here.   I like to pad a few extra days in our travel schedule in case of any issues, and here is where we would spend them.

After settling in, I contacted the Freightliner 24/7 help line to discuss the engine issues.     They explained that the issue could be several things, but since it is related to the emissions control system, the computer could decide to shut the bus down and put is into "limp mode" at any given moment.    If that happens we would only be able to "limp along" at something like 10 miles per hour.   His advice (no doubt from the lawyers) was to find service asap.

Considering the above, we decided to leave in the morning and try to get to NY as quickly as possible.   This way, if we did have a breakdown, we'd be closer to our destination which would give us more options.   Our pressing need was to be able to make the Vet appointment on Weds 19 March for Phoebes export paperwork.    Without that - we can't go overseas.

About 40 gas lanes at Buckees....   Wow!

It was 850 miles from Two Rivers to our destination.   I had planned 3 legs for that.    But instead we decided to cut it down to 2.     

We pulled out at 0-dark-thirty, just as the thunder from that big storm we are running from started to move in.

Our first stop would be what was going to be our second stop.    570 miles down the road we arrived at a big parking lot with RV Parking outside of Cabellas in Hamburg, Pa.     While there I ran in and grabbed a few pairs of shorts since I've recently lost 45 lbs and my pants are falling off of me.

Cabellas, Hamburg Pa

It was a great place to spend the night.   Quiet and even had a security guy driving around.   They had horse stalls and dog kennels in front of the bus where you could leave the animals if it was hot and you wanted to shop.

Cabellas, Hamburg Pa

We left Cabellas again, just as that big storm was starting to move in on us again.    The first few drops were beginning to fall as we pulled back onto I-78 east.

Our last leg was only 4.5 hours and with luck we'd be settled in with no worries about Vet appointments etc.

By 1430 we'd arrived.    3 days early - but its still winter so there was plenty of room at the inn.   Most (all) of the others here are full timers.   Brenda, the duty person who met us when we arrived was super nice, friendly, and helpful.    She got us checked in for the extra 3 days and gave us the rundown on the park.

The scenerly is sort of dingy right now.   Its that ugly time of year in the Northeast.   Grey, cloudy, the grass is dead and the trees are barren.    There is still a bit of snow on the ground and the winter potholes have not yet been filled.  That storm finally caught up to us last night and we got pounded with lots of rain and high winds, but its lost most of the severe aspects of it were gone.

I think when the sun comes out, our view will improve, but not to worry - 2 weeks from Weds we'll be winging our way to Paris!

We'll be leaving the bus here for the summer so if I was not able to secure an appointment for the repairs now, I could certainly schedule something for October when we get back.

The view at Saratoga RV Park

As luck would have it - I've scored an appointment at Cummins (the engine manufacturer) for monday morning at 0700.   So we'll be there bright and early and hopefully get this resolved once and for all.

I'm guessing that our next post might be from Belgium...

I do make more regular mini-updates of my new Facebook page.    I'm not a big FB person but it is easy to run a mini blog there.   I think this link might take you to my posts where you can follow it should you wish.

See you down the road.