The trip that never was ...
On February 12, we made our way to
Baltimore
in order to finally deliver our van for the upcoming ACL cargo shipment to
Hamburg.
This second Europe Van trip was meant to bring us from
Hamburg
to
Berlin, then
Dresden,
Prague,
Vienna,
Zagreb, Croatia,
Italy,
France
and then
Antwerp for the return
shipment of the van to
North America. Originally, we
wanted the van to be shipped back to
Baltimore
but this proved to be impossible due to US Customs regulations. Ok then Halifax
it would be.
On February 13, it is still a bit vague as to when the ship Atlantic
Star will be leaving
Baltimore.
Pride International (the forwarder) claims that we are still on for Feb.19 and
advised not to trust the ACL website that claims that departure will be significantly
later, listing it now as Feb.23. Whatever … we are in
Baltimore
and cannot bring the car back to
Canada
and down again a couple days later! Processing the car took more time than last
time, due to a backlog of traffic in the harbour as a result of a long weekend
holiday. By noontime, we manage to leave our KIA van at the harbour…hoping to
see her in a few weeks in
Hamburg, Germany.
In the end, the Atlantic Star leaves
Baltimore
on February 24
th … and its arrival in
Hamburg
keeps being delayed due to scheduling changes.
At first, we thought that we would have to be
in
Hamburg during the second week
of March but a number of delays (the ship went to
South Hampton,
then
Antwerp and then
Hamburg
instead of first to
Hamburg and
then
Antwerp). So, we booked a
flight with Air
Canada
(Economy Standard fare) through
London
with final destination in
Hamburg
departing
Toronto on March 15
th.
In addition, we booked a hotel in
Hamburg
with the possibility to change/cancel our reservation …a bit more expensive but
with the cargo having had so many delays, we felt it was better to do so.
Now, since mid-January, we were reading about a viral
epidemic in
China,
at that time not being worried that this would ever reach
Europe
or
North America, or, at least, to impact on our trip.
With time, however, we realize that it would be come a world
wide issue. Initially, the virus was brought to northern
Italy
by an individual who had been working in
China.
By the end of February, we are thinking of removing northern
Italy
from our itinerary … and thought that
Istria would be a
nice place to be!
Beginning of March, we realize that this damn virus is
spreading fast and wide, but cancelling our trip was still not on the
table.
We felt lucky that with the
mobility of the van we would be able to travel around any infected zones.
Unlike what we hear about horror stories of
passengers being stuck on cruise ship passengers with no way to escape!
In the second week of March, the virus spreads more and more
throughout
Europe.
On March 8
th, the news are disturbing.
Italy
is no longer on the list.
While we
thought of returning to
Spain
and
Portugal
(via
Germany or
Switzerland),
we now hear that the number of cases in the area of
Madrid
is doubling. By March 11-12th, we are rethinking our itinerary: could we stay
in
Germany as
long as the epidemic lasts? We get in touch with Heiner’s brother and with
friends, all of whom do not seem to be worried about the virus and its spread and
welcome us to stay or parked in their backyards.
Friday March 13
th, we hear about museums closing
down in
Berlin. We try to reason
that even if such public places are closed, we are camping and just want to be
in the outdoors.
But just in case, Heiner phones Seabridge in order to
explore our possibilities: can we ship the van back?
Can we store it …?
We learn that the van could stay on the cargo
ship and be shipped back to
Halifax
… Should we?
We are frazzled.
We think this over during our morning walk. When we come
back home, around 11am, we learn that the Canadian Health Agency now advises all Canadians from leaving the country for non-essential reasons. Oups !!! …This detail
is relevant and Marleyne phones Medipac (our out-of-country travel insurance).
Up to know, our insurance was covering us as long as we did not go to
Italy or
China, but this
new proclamation from the Canadian Health Agency makes a difference: Medipac
confirms that as a result of this announcement we will not be covered should
one of us contract the virus outside the country.
We come to realize that our trip cannot take place. We are
shattered.
We contact Seabridge and are
recalling the van.
As I am writing this, it is March 28
th and almost
entire world is in self-isolation and confined home. All borders are closed.
Travel by airplanes, boats, campers is almost impossible. We are trying to keep
safe, staying home as much as possible, skyping and communicating with friends
and family. The world has dramatically changed within 2 weeks!
And the van? It is currently on the Atlantic Star, on-route to
Halifax, where it is scheduled to
arrive on April 4. We will not be there for pick-up as provincial borders are
closed between
Quebec and
New
Brunswick and
Nova Scotia.
Will see how things work out.
That is the end of our trip, one which never was!
