As anyone who lives in the US knows, today is the 4th of July, Independence Day. It is also a week out from when I was going to be heading with a number of friends on a seven day journey around the western Caribbean. The trip had originally been planned for last year, but we all know what happened to those plans.
This morning the following appears in my email in-box:
Thank you for choosing Norwegian Cruise Line. Your sail date is quickly approaching and your online check in is now open. To expedite your time at the pier and select your embarkation time, we urge all guests to complete their online check in to provide the necessary documentation required to board the ship.
I just stare. I am having trouble believing that any cruise line would not have fixed their automatic email reminder system by now. In exactly WHICH universe am I am able to take a cruise in a week. A cruise for which I received a cancellation notice, a credit on my account, and several apology letters.
Now, I have been sailing NCL for years and never before had any reason to doubt their dedication, organizational, or safety abilities. But this email simply should not have happened.
NCL has an on-line chat. I checked the box. Sure enough, the person who answered (and I really don’t think it was a bot) replied that she had already received a number of inquiries this morning and the IT people were working on the problem. Apologies and all of that.
On the world weather front – it is cool and overcast here. The Pacific Northwest finally has had the hot air inversion breakup and temperatures drop back down to normal for the area. (Trust me, you do not want temps of 40-48*C in an area which normally runs 30*C in the summer. Not when people lack climate control in their homes). Much of a world away, Edinburg had a major storm today with flash flooding. Beverly sent me a couple of local news links. Trust the Brits to understate – just warning people to be careful. With streets knee deep in water? Seriously, just tell everyone to stay home unless it is an emergency..
Anyway, I am not going anywhere. Absolutely no interest in crowding on to public transportation or into a baseball park. I will watch from the comfort of a nice stitching chair and note the increased risk of disease transmission.