UMTravels

Got to sleep in, a bit. Breakfast was English Muffins for me, Muffins and Miso for Helene.

Then packing and sandwich making (with all the leftovers). Too much chicken and lamb left over, so we will have an early lunch of stew (from the chicken stock I made the other day).

Out of the condo by noon (just barely) to check the luggage into the gym downstairs since the boat doesn’t leave until six.

First stop of the day is the Tilley store for Helene to by a 40th birthday present for a friend — and a couple of blouses for her next India trip for herself.

That done we are off to the Natural History Museum for the Titanic Exhibit and accompanying IMAX movie. They give you boarding cards of real passengers — and even though I was an 18-year-old in second class (how’s that for a dream!), I perished that fateful night. Helene missed the registry wall, but I’m assuming a 50-year-old woman might have had a better chance. Click Here for list of surviving passengers.

Starving, we head off to the Noodle Box for a mid-afternoon meal. Cute cooks. Then it time to start thinking about getting home. Since it’s raining, we catch the little putt putt water taxis and get a ride to the hotel next to the condos.

Check-in is a little bit of a hassle with that damn case of wine… $10US extra because it has to be hand carried on as baggage (rather than thrown into the bins). Plenty of time. No hassle with immigration and I get us window seats in the back — which we end up sharing with an Austrian couple.

Customs on the other end was amazingly simple — the guy ask if we had any alcohol and Helene said, 5 liters of wine and 750ml of cider. I was expecting to have to hassle with paying duty — but the guy just said, “Welcome Home.”

Cab to Helene’s since I was exhausted from having four meals today (we ate the sandwiches on the boat). I was so tired I didn’t even raid Helene’s liquor cabinet and was stretched out on the couch by 10:30.

Oh — and here are the pictures now that I have a real computer connection (and the upload card!):