Some of you may want to start smiling right now, muttering, “I knew it!”

Because, yes, after years of traveling around the world during the pandemic I was finally stuck in London because of COVID-19.

At least that’s what I tell my boss.

No, seriously, I really do, but you realize it’s not MY COVID. Let me explain.

Two years ago I planned to take my niece to England for graduation school and the 18th anniversary. We were all very excited. Then – well you can guess what happened next. The poor girl received neither a graduation nor an 18-year-old. I think maybe someone gave her a candle to blow out.

So it was her make-up trip: a week in England: Bath to explore Jane Austen’s places and London because it’s London. We took her older brother with us for comic relief. And for the company, when I needed to take a nap, that was often.

We had fun riding like tourists until Saturday when my nephew had a positive test on COVID. We had no worries in the world when we went to the clinic on Saturday for testing to fly home to Virgin Atlantic on Sunday.

The US requires a negative antigen test (rapid) one day before departure home. You have to show it to the airline to board the plane.

My niece and I had a negative test, but our 26-year-old nephew did not. So we put my niece on a plane, I stayed with him in London and called the insurance company.

It is more important than ever, my friends, to buy insurance only for these cases. Don’t buy it from an airline. Buy in InsureMyTrip.com or SquareMouth.com They will both give you many companies to compare and choose from. It’s easy. Just follow the prompts on the screen. Or call them.

I started buying travel insurance about 15 years ago when I spent a fortune on plane fares for a trip to Argentina and then broke my leg before leaving. I didn’t think I would enjoy dragging two small children around Buenos Aires with just one functional leg because I can’t jump like a rabbit. So I had to call a lot and beg like crazy and fax doctor’s notes (remember faxes?) To get my money back.

After that, I bought insurance for every trip abroad.

You should too. This time it was definitely needed because I found that we have $ 3,000 in benefits for hotels, transportation and food until we fly home. The amount of benefits depends on the total cost of your trip.

Luckily, I used miles of frequent pilots to buy plane tickets, so Virgin Atlantic allowed me to simply move these award-winning seats five days later, to Friday, at no extra cost. It was lucky because otherwise last minute tickets from London to Los Angeles would require selling the kidney.

Spending $ 3,000, we moved from our cheap budget hotel to a more beautiful one in Covent Garden, where you are actually given beds. There is even an espresso machine in this hotel room. Too bad I don’t know how it works.