April 2023.
Fargo, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Recife, and a few unexpected stops along the way…

Next month (July 2026), we’re scheduled for our first European river cruise with Viking Cruise Line. Even though transatlantic flights include free checked bags, we’ll still stick with carry‑ons only. Experience has taught us that even a carry‑on isn’t guaranteed to stay with us. Our upcoming route from Fargo to Minneapolis and on to Amsterdam is on a single airline, but I can’t help remembering April 2023, when a long travel day took us from Minneapolis to Boston, then onto a different airline for flights to São Paulo and finally Rio de Janeiro. Because our first flight was on a small regional jet, we were required to gate-check our carry-ons before we even left Minneapolis. The real breakdown happened in São Paulo, where we discovered our luggage hadn’t made the transfer. After long lines, missed connections, and plenty of shrugging in Portuguese from airline staff, we eventually reached Rio—just in time to discover we’d be starting our trip with no luggage at all.

We had flown into Rio two days early just in case of airline delays—giving us enough time for a scheduled city tour and some unscheduled shopping for replacement clothes. Our carry‑ons had trackers hidden in the lining, so from my phone, we could see that our bags were perfectly safe in a warehouse in Boston, and later, that they made their way to São Paulo just as we were boarding the ship in Rio. Once aboard, we stopped by guest services to explain our situation. Norwegian Cruise Line quickly became our hero: they handed us “care packages” with toiletries and t-shirts, gave us a $250 onboard credit for clothing and essentials, and even provided complimentary laundry service for the entire cruise. They also offered free ship-to-shore calls so we could coordinate with the airline and arrange for our wandering luggage to catch up.

When we stopped in Salvador, our trackers noted that the luggage finally arrived in Rio. Another ship-to-shore call, which included a conversation between airline and cruise line staff, assured us that our luggage would be in Recife before our scheduled stop. According to our trackers, it was at the airport in Recife, but no one delivered it to the ship, and we sailed away again sans luggage. My next call to the airline was a bit more blunt; I told them to just ship the bags back to Fargo, since there was no use chasing us all the way across the Atlantic. After our 15-day cruise and a four‑day weather layover in Montreal—and the now‑necessary additional shopping for clothes—the Fargo airport called on our last day before flying home to say the luggage had arrived. We have no idea where our luggage went, but judging by the wad of luggage tags, I’m sure it went to more places than we did.

The final hiccup of the trip came when we tried to leave Montreal. The airline rebooked us as quickly as they could, but somewhere in the shuffle, the new carrier received two seat assignments—without the airline’s payment for my seat. Lynn’s ticket transferred perfectly; mine apparently took a detour on its own. That meant one more wait in line to sort things out, but at least we didn’t miss the flight. In the “All’s well that ends well” department, we picked up our luggage on the way home and submitted a mound of paperwork to our travel insurance carrier. By the time we finally walked through our front door, our claim included emergency clothes and luggage purchases, plus three extra nights at a hotel in Montreal—all of which the insurance company ultimately covered.

About the photo: Heading to another continent next month means tempting fate again, but my phone is ready to track any unscheduled excursions our bags might take. This photo was captured on my Samsung S23 Ultra in our home’s entryway, moments after we returned from the trip. No edits were made to this image; it served as documentary evidence for the travel insurance claim we submitted.

I invite fellow bloggers to join in by creating their own Cellpic Sunday posts. There’s no set theme. The first rule is that your photo must be captured with a cell phone, iPad, or other mobile device. The second rule is simple: link your challenge response to this post or drop a comment here with your link so others can find it. And remember, despite the name, there’s no penalty for sharing on a day other than Sunday.

John Steiner.