Day 1 - Me and Tom Hanks

It’s been a LONG day!  Robyn picked me up at zero-dark-thirty (translation - 3:15 AM) heading to the Richmond airport.   We might hit a deer on the interstate in the dark, but we were not going to hit traffic!  Robyn, like me, prefers to arrive early for flights.  Everyone arrives 1 1/2 hours before domestic flights so we arrive TWO hours early!  Aren’t we smart but tired!


We are heading on a LONG awaited trip to the Galápagos Islands via several days in the Amazon rainforest along with Quito, the capital of Ecuador.  I have waited 49 YEARS for this adventure!  As a freshman at Wake Forest, the biology department invited students to spend spring break in the Galapagos.  I thought I would go another time, and they NEVER went again!   Robyn and I started planning this trip in 2017, but we were way-laid with a visit to see Michael and Robyn’s brother in Dubai and then to Africa.  We booked the Galapagos trip for March of 2020, and we all know what happened then.  It was postponed until 2021, then postponed again until 2022, and postponed AGAIN until 2023, but finally we are going!


After an uneventful flight to Miami International Airport, we started our LONG layover of 10 1/2 hours, and my saga with Tom Hanks begins.


Do you remember the movie, “The Terminal”, where Tom’s character lived in an airport?  I felt like that today.  Food choices ranged from fast food, Wendy’s, Nathan’s, Dunkin’ Donuts, to Asian noodle shops and sushi, Italian or quick grab pizza, sandwiches, burgers, salads, and my favorite, Cuban.  There were desserts galore - candy, cupcakes, and milkshakes to satisfy any sweet tooth.  Multiple bars are peppered between drink stands, but there is not a Starbucks in sight!  It resulted in a high-priced culinary collage of gastronomic delights!


Cuban cigars, anyone?  Magazines, books, jewelry, clothing, and video games along with gifts for loved ones if you forgot to shop elsewhere filled stores.  There were recliners where you could have a massage just make sure you insert a credit card first.  Another  option were lounges with breakfast, lunch, and dinner buffets, free drinks at the bar (Yes, that included alcoholic ones.) comfortable chairs and sofas to nap and lounge, a family play area, business and phone rooms, along with free massages and manicures!  Oh, just forget that pesky yearly membership fee!


Entertainment was floor to ceiling windows overlooking the runways where jets launched themselves into the clouds!  I took an aviation class in high school, and I know HOW planes fly.  I just don’t understand rationally how a multi-ton machine races down a runway and achieves flight!  It boggles my mind!


I never did find a place to “borrow” a uniform like Tom did in the movie. However,  our 10 1/2 hr layover has now been extended by two hours.  More time to explore, and you never know what I might find.  Wish me luck!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Croatia! Into the Hills on Day 19!

Image
Rain, rain, go away!  Come again another day! We are prepared with rain gear today as we head towards the hill towns of Istria.  There is a high chance for precipitation, but we are optimistic, and prayers are offered up to keep those rain drops from falling.  Gray cumulus clouds crowd the horizon over the Adriatic, and we are told that Opatija is the rain capital of Croatia! In fact, there is three times more rain here than London!  Residents are “part people and part frogs!”   Our local guide tells us that with the wind and clouds, residents are truly “under the weather” resulting in moody and grumpy behavior.  When the northern Bura winds blow and bring the sun, it takes all their troubles away! It is very foggy today which happens when the air and water temperatures are the same.  The mountains which reach peaks of 4,000 ft are completely covered with clouds.  At a smile break, it is sprinkling as we head in, and a downpour heading back to the bus! In the 1400’s, Austrian
Read more

Serbia! Final Exploration & Day 26!

Image
Today is my last delicious breakfast in the Balkans since we leave for the airport at 4 AM tomorrow.  Our itinerary indicated a European breakfast each morning which I confused with a continental breakfast.  I’ve learned it is vastly different!   Stale pastries and maybe a muffin with cereal and yogurt versus hot eggs, bacon, sausages, waffles, fruit…oh, the fruit!, multiple pastries, smoothies, roasted and fresh veggies, smoked meats, and cheeses..and on and on.  I even had pickles a few mornings! Since it is our last morning meal together, I bring the smuggled persimmon with me!  I cut it and offer it to the others, but only Robyn is brave enough to try it.  It is filled with tiny seeds, and I think it has absolutely no taste.  Robyn thinks slightly peachy.  I don’t think my poor misguided hope for a new taste sensation has been realized!   We catch a bus for the Church of St. Sava, a relatively new Serbia Orthodox Church built over the site where the Ottoman Turks burned the ho
Read more

Albania! Day 6 and Last Chance!

Image
Ahhh….the Muslim 1st call to prayer is at 5 AM every morning, and my hotel’s window looks out at the local mosque!  No sleeping in here! Today is our last day in Albania since we leave tomorrow for Croatia.  It’s my last chance to explore and learn about this interesting country. A spiderweb of power lines were outside our hotel. Here is a persimmon.  I picked this one up at breakfast one morning, but I’ve seen them growing in peoples’ yards and in the market.  You are suppose to eat it like an apple.  I’ve been carrying it around but haven’t tried it yet.  I’ll keep you posted. We begin the day with a walking tour of Shkoder.  Our first stop is at a local silversmith where we watch a video of 3 generations practicing, teaching and then learning the trade.  We meet the owner and the young son who is now grown!  I may have to come back here! There is a lot of Italian and even French influence in Shkoder evidenced by the architecture….    and an unusual door knocker.  I’m so temp
Read more