Everything was going great until we landed in Toronto. We then found out that our short flight to Cleveland was cancelled. All they had to do is delay the flight for for an hour and the threat of thunderstorms would be gone. But instead, they scheduled us for a flight the following evening from Toronto to Newark to Cleveland. We tried to rent a car when we found out the flight to Cleveland was cancelled but there were no rentals available. I looked at the weather for a flight to Newark the next evening and I knew that would be canceled. So we were able to rent a car the next morning and drive to Cleveland. But there was a big problem. They would not let us pick up our luggage in Toronto. After begging and informing them that my medicine was in the luggage, they relented and we eventually drove to Cleveland where our son-in-law picked us up.

If that mess in Toronto wasn’t enough, it got worse. After resting for a few days at our daughter’s place new Akron, we started our drive back to Des Moines at 6:30 AM Central this past Thursday on my EQS580. Things were going well until we neared a charging station at a Walmart near Joliet, IL. All of a sudden, I saw an urgent message on the driver’s screen. “Rear passenger side tire compromised”. We got to the Walmart charging stations and tried inflate the tire with portable inflator while car was getting charged. It was impossible as it was deflating as rapidly as I was inflating. The auto shop at Walmart said they cannot help us since the hole was so large that it could not be patched. They advised us to drive to Belle Tire several hundred feet away to see if they can get us a 21 inch tire. I’m pretty sure the flat was destroyed near a pothole where my eye caught a glimpse of some sharp metal object that I couldn’t avoid. After waiting and praying for 5 hours they could find a tire, they located a Michelin regular tire. They installed it and we were on our way home. Instead of getting home by 7:00 PM, we got home a bit after midnight. Needless to say, I was a walking zombie. I wouldn’t wish this on anyone.

The dealer in Des Moines asked if I had the damaged tire or if I took any photos of it. My answer was no. My service advisor called Belle Tire and asked if they still had the tire and the lady said yes and that she would send photos to the advisor. So, I’m just stuck with the Michelin.
But the nightmare finally ended.

Btw, it was the trip of a lifetime for me to go back to my birthplace in far southern Albania after decades have passed.

 

Sorry to hear about that nightmare return journey. I had a similar puncture on my EQS a while back. Something must have caused a crack because the tire simply would not inflate. The lucky thing for me is that my EQS came with the run flat tires so I was able to drive to the dealership the next day and have it replaced. Interestingly the dealers here just get their tires from tire-rack and are able to have one picked up same day if not in stock. So anyway since that experience - I have become a huge fan of run-flat tires. You may need to limit your speed to 55 mph but it sure beats being stranded.

Please share pictures from Greece and Albania. We are considering a visit ourselves since there are direct flights from ATL. Is it best to go in August, or is a winter trip also worthwhile?

 

The puncture was on a run flat. Unfortunately, I was never warned that the tire was punctured until I was about 5-10 miles from the Walmart charging stations. I think it happened very suddenly and it was a big hole.

Probably, the best time to travel to Greece and Albania is September to mid October when temperatures are comfortable. August is typically quite hot as it was for our visit. It got as hot as 107 one day. Otherwise, it was in the 96-101 most days. The climate has gotten a lot warmer since I lived in far southern Albania decades ago. As an example, the nearby mountain had snow near the top even in the summer. Now, that’s unheard of.

I’ll send some pictures on a different post. I’ll even send a video of me singing a polyphonic Greek song with 3 others while in Politsani, Albania. I remembered several songs since my mom and I escaped from Albania run by a ruthless dictator in late 1954.