Tamen Jedad Gracia hoped by Tuesday she'd be back with her family in Colombia. The first part of the plan had gone so well. The 16 year old travelled by herself to Heathrow airport. She'd hooked up with her 18-year-old sister Aliya who'd made an arduous journey from Edinburgh where she's currently studying.
The pair had spent a night in a hotel overlooking Heathrow's north runway and spoken excitedly with their parents about plans for Christmas.
The young women got up early on Saturday. They'd heard the forecast for snow but they were confident their British Airways flight would beat the weather front and by the time the worst of the snow hit, they'd be enjoying a movie 10,000 metres over the Atlantic.
They checked in, did some shopping and made their way onto the plane. It's a long journey to Colombia but at the other end was family waiting to welcome them into the 40 degree Celcius heat.
That's when it started to go wrong.