Spending someone's hard earned cash

Buying airfare is like haggling for camels at a bazaar, although far more bizarre and staffed by the Three Stooges.

It all started in December of 2012 with the thought of going to Iceland to see our friends. With the recent addition of direct flights from Denver with Icelandair, the first look at the fare was quite doable, and we made plans to buy tickets someday soon and told them we were coming. In hindsight, this was really not a plan but rather a plan to plan.

Weeks later, another casual glance at fares was like a smack in the face from Moe. At now twice the price, we could still make it work – we just wouldn’t be able to eat while were there. Like good planners, we didn’t buy the tickets.

A few weeks later, it was time to finally make this happen. We looked again and we were poked in the eye with fares that were now four times the original price. We could avoid eating on the trip, sleep on the street, and sell a car to pay for the tickets…or just give up.

When some wayward travelers from Iceland came for a visit, they were not amused by this turn of events. The story was told with intrigue and great fanfare, but the disappointment could not be overcome.  We were now the stooges and we had to fix it.

Three days later the stars aligned. If the trip was moved to August, and if we home schooled our children (a plan that was already simmering), then the fares were even less than where we started. And it is in fact easier and cheaper to connect with cities in the United Kingdom from there, namely the small town of London.

We leave on Thursday. With three kids, ages 8, 5, and almost 2, this trip promises to be full of stories. If you were a loyal reader of Europe with 2.5 Kids, you won’t be disappointed with what’s to come. If you didn’t read it, you have four days to fix that.

Let the journey begin…