Thank you Romelle. I am planning on flying out of McAllen, Texas on July and returning on July 12th. I hadn't thought of Manchester before. I had been checking at Gatwick, but Manchester may be something to look into. I am staying with friends in Little Paxton while I am there, so any wandering I do will be with them. And about the opaque flights...I was hoping to get at least a price of around 950 for the ticket...or is that being too courageous? I had also wondered, because we cannot choose our connecting flights...they would not have us connecting through any place that is dangerous, would they? Someplace hostile to Americans? Not trying to be ethnocentric here, just curious. ?