Airport Fiasco

Sunday morning, we woke up at 7am to have the hotel breakfast and go to the airport. We successfully took the metro to the airport and got to the gate for our 1030 flight (planning to get back to Orvieto around 4ish). Flight delayed. Around 130, they gave everyone food vouchers. We had already eaten lunch, but were happy to have a snack. At 230, they said we could get refunds. We waited until around 3. I was getting a little irritated, because the people at the gate said they have no idea what was going on and could not tell us anything. I started asking questions and learned: they do not have any information, they do not know when the plane is coming, do not know where the plane is coming from, they are waiting for information and will tell us when they get news, but do not know where the information is coming from. They tell us that we will have to go to the ticket office if we want to know anything else or want to know about changing flights/getting a refund. Fine. We go out of security to the ticket office. They say that we need to go back to the gate for information. So, we decide to stand in line for Customer Service. When we get to the front, they tell us that we can wait, transfer to the next day or get a refund. We file the complaint for a refund. Next, we go to another airline. As I step up to talk to the lady about tickets, a woman from our flight comes over in tears. Moira talks to her as I learn that a ticket will cost 300 euro. The girl is sobbing and saying free, they change and pointing towards our old airline, Veuling. Veuling does not cancel the flight, but moves the entire plane full of people to an Iberia flight at 740. This plane leaves around 815. We catch the last shuttle to Rome (11:36), but there are no trains back to Orvieto. We wander the streets looking for hostels that Moira's mom emailed to her. We try three, all full. So we start trying random hotels. I bargained with one guy who finally accepted 50 euro for the night. We get to the room at 130. We leave the room at 6 for our 630 flight. Neither of us can stay awake on the train, so we set an alarm. We got home at 8. What a relief to be back in Orvieto!