So, I almost didn't write this, but I decided to do it because sometimes trips don't go the way we'd hoped or planned, and that's as valid an experience as the trips that turn out well.
This one did not go well.
We drove down to Orlando on the 5th and were originally scheduled to return this weekend, giving us just shy of a month of sun and Disney Magic. The first half of the trip went really well: we saw Festival of the Lion King and the Festival of Fantasy Parade, watched Wishes a lot, rode all the rides, ate at Be Our Guest. We rode Kali River Rapids at night even though it was 58 degrees, because gosh darn it, we LOVE Kali River Rapids. It was shaping up to be a really great trip, much like last year's.
I mean, how great is this?!
So great. We were having a wonderful time.
And then this happened:
That is (or was) our front door. Halfway through the trip, we got a call from the Pennsylvania State Police that someone had broken into our house. Door busted open, cats nowhere to be found, stuff tossed around. We were on the road for home within 2 hours, but it's over a thousand miles from Orlando to our house. That trip will not be going down on record as one of our best.
We are fortunate to have good friends who organized emergency repairs to the door and sat with the house until the contractor came and re-secured it. They also checked on it every few hours until we made it home - according the police, a quick break in like this is sometimes followed by a group coming back to strip the house of everything from valuables to copper pipes and wiring. While we were driving, my mom found us a hotel in Fayetteville that would take us (and our big dog) with only a few hours notice, because there was no way we could drive straight through with half the day already gone. We got to the hotel around 10pm and were on the road next day by 4:30 in the morning.
We made it home to PA about 26 hours after we first got the call.
We've spent the last week and a half dealing with insurance, contractors, and installing a new security system. Overall we consider ourselves lucky: the cats were found safe, the house wasn't badly damaged. We had the important things with us, nothing of great value was taken. We don't keep cash in the house and don't own guns, which we are told was probably the point of the break in. The thieves have not put in a repeat appearance and are unlikely to do so now that we're back. We're monitoring our credit reports and the like, just in case.
Still, the whole thing just sucks, and to add insult to injury, we've had 2 snowstorms since we got back and are expecting a third tomorrow night.
The moral of the story is...well, honestly there isn't one. Except maybe trip insurance, though I'm not sure "burglary at home" is covered. We may get a partial refund on the 10 days we lost, but it depends purely on the kindness of the villa owner we rent from, they are under no obligation to return any money.
I think the saddest part is that we have two more Disney trips booked, one for fall and one for next winter, and we're seriously considering canceling. We won't make the decision for a while because we know we're not in the right mental place to decide, but we do feel a bit like Disney has been ruined, as has travel in general. We'll never be able to go away again without thinking about this, and worrying about it. I think for a while we'll be jumping every time the phone rings when we're away from home, even if it's just dinner out.
They stole our pixie dust, you guys. Not sure how to get it back.
This one did not go well.
We drove down to Orlando on the 5th and were originally scheduled to return this weekend, giving us just shy of a month of sun and Disney Magic. The first half of the trip went really well: we saw Festival of the Lion King and the Festival of Fantasy Parade, watched Wishes a lot, rode all the rides, ate at Be Our Guest. We rode Kali River Rapids at night even though it was 58 degrees, because gosh darn it, we LOVE Kali River Rapids. It was shaping up to be a really great trip, much like last year's.
I mean, how great is this?!
So great. We were having a wonderful time.
And then this happened:
That is (or was) our front door. Halfway through the trip, we got a call from the Pennsylvania State Police that someone had broken into our house. Door busted open, cats nowhere to be found, stuff tossed around. We were on the road for home within 2 hours, but it's over a thousand miles from Orlando to our house. That trip will not be going down on record as one of our best.
We are fortunate to have good friends who organized emergency repairs to the door and sat with the house until the contractor came and re-secured it. They also checked on it every few hours until we made it home - according the police, a quick break in like this is sometimes followed by a group coming back to strip the house of everything from valuables to copper pipes and wiring. While we were driving, my mom found us a hotel in Fayetteville that would take us (and our big dog) with only a few hours notice, because there was no way we could drive straight through with half the day already gone. We got to the hotel around 10pm and were on the road next day by 4:30 in the morning.
We made it home to PA about 26 hours after we first got the call.
We've spent the last week and a half dealing with insurance, contractors, and installing a new security system. Overall we consider ourselves lucky: the cats were found safe, the house wasn't badly damaged. We had the important things with us, nothing of great value was taken. We don't keep cash in the house and don't own guns, which we are told was probably the point of the break in. The thieves have not put in a repeat appearance and are unlikely to do so now that we're back. We're monitoring our credit reports and the like, just in case.
Still, the whole thing just sucks, and to add insult to injury, we've had 2 snowstorms since we got back and are expecting a third tomorrow night.
The moral of the story is...well, honestly there isn't one. Except maybe trip insurance, though I'm not sure "burglary at home" is covered. We may get a partial refund on the 10 days we lost, but it depends purely on the kindness of the villa owner we rent from, they are under no obligation to return any money.
I think the saddest part is that we have two more Disney trips booked, one for fall and one for next winter, and we're seriously considering canceling. We won't make the decision for a while because we know we're not in the right mental place to decide, but we do feel a bit like Disney has been ruined, as has travel in general. We'll never be able to go away again without thinking about this, and worrying about it. I think for a while we'll be jumping every time the phone rings when we're away from home, even if it's just dinner out.
They stole our pixie dust, you guys. Not sure how to get it back.
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. Take care of the family.