I would love to say it was smooth sailing (no pun intended) on the return trip home, but then I'd be lying -- BIG TIME! Ha! We had the taxi driver drop us off at the dock for the 11:05am ferry at 10:15am. After about 25 minutes, my uncle realizes something doesn't seem right about the area we are standing in and inquires at the ticket office. Turns out we are at the wrong dock. So we walk (complete with luggage) approx. 1/4 mile down the road to the correct dock for the ferry we need. Once we arrive, we come to find out that the ferry service has been canceled due to high winds and rough seas. The Vineyard Fast Ferry people will be taking us on a 30 minute boat ride to catch a bus that will drive us close to 2 hours it will take to get to Rhode Island where the cars are parked. People everywhere are freaking out that they will miss their plane or train connection. It was not pretty. Due to the new mode of transportation, we are now approx. 1.5 hours behind schedule.
Meanwhile, I got a call from the mechanic first thing in the morning letting me know he was successful in finding the part to fix Jeff's air conditioning. Yay! However, about 4 hours later, I get another call from the mechanic informing me that the part was the wrong one and no one in the area (including 2 Nissan dealerships) have the compressor needed to fit the car. Jeff has a limited edition Sentra and it doesn't take the usual compressor. The mechanic felt bad but told me there was no way the car would be fixed by the end of the day when I would be picking it up.
Just fabulous! This meant that mom and I would be driving back from Cherry Hill, NJ with absolutely no AC. For over 3 hours. Oh joy. This fact alone made up my mind that no matter how late we got back to my Aunt and Uncle's, we would do the drive back to Burke, VA that night. Our best bet for the most amount of comfort was to drive at night, when the sun was down and the cars on the road were at a minimum.
Congestion on the road caused us to go very slow getting back to NJ. By the time we pulled into the service station where Jeff's car was, it was going on 8:30pm. Mom and I stopped at Maryland House for a quick bite to eat, fill the car up with gas and hit the bathrooms. We made good time and got home just before midnight.
Once I told Jeff that the car was coming back not fixed, he quickly got on the phone and called around to see if anyone had this hard-to-find part. Believe it or not, the two Nissan Dealerships in Fairfax County didn't have it, but the mechanic across the street did. I was very skeptical that this was actually the part that no one else was able to locate, but lo & behold, the car got fixed within the same day yesterday. I am still in shock that it worked out like it did. And since the mechanic arranged for a rental car, the kids and I were able to resume our regular schedule for a Tuesday.
The trip to Martha's Vineyard was a complete nightmare, and the trip back wasn't much better. But I am happy I went and enjoyed the time I was there very much. With that said, it will be a very long time before I think it is ever a good idea to go back. Plus, I think Jeff is in the process of hiding my luggage.
Meanwhile, I got a call from the mechanic first thing in the morning letting me know he was successful in finding the part to fix Jeff's air conditioning. Yay! However, about 4 hours later, I get another call from the mechanic informing me that the part was the wrong one and no one in the area (including 2 Nissan dealerships) have the compressor needed to fit the car. Jeff has a limited edition Sentra and it doesn't take the usual compressor. The mechanic felt bad but told me there was no way the car would be fixed by the end of the day when I would be picking it up.
Just fabulous! This meant that mom and I would be driving back from Cherry Hill, NJ with absolutely no AC. For over 3 hours. Oh joy. This fact alone made up my mind that no matter how late we got back to my Aunt and Uncle's, we would do the drive back to Burke, VA that night. Our best bet for the most amount of comfort was to drive at night, when the sun was down and the cars on the road were at a minimum.
Congestion on the road caused us to go very slow getting back to NJ. By the time we pulled into the service station where Jeff's car was, it was going on 8:30pm. Mom and I stopped at Maryland House for a quick bite to eat, fill the car up with gas and hit the bathrooms. We made good time and got home just before midnight.
Once I told Jeff that the car was coming back not fixed, he quickly got on the phone and called around to see if anyone had this hard-to-find part. Believe it or not, the two Nissan Dealerships in Fairfax County didn't have it, but the mechanic across the street did. I was very skeptical that this was actually the part that no one else was able to locate, but lo & behold, the car got fixed within the same day yesterday. I am still in shock that it worked out like it did. And since the mechanic arranged for a rental car, the kids and I were able to resume our regular schedule for a Tuesday.
The trip to Martha's Vineyard was a complete nightmare, and the trip back wasn't much better. But I am happy I went and enjoyed the time I was there very much. With that said, it will be a very long time before I think it is ever a good idea to go back. Plus, I think Jeff is in the process of hiding my luggage.
My sister Lori (on the left) and my cousin Leslie (on the right).
My mom and I sightseeing.
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