Need to spend as much time as I can in Vancouver while the border is open. Took the big car.
And Duty Free is a must:
But the border, with added requirements like vaccine and negative PCR test:
Yes, the Nexus line is longer than the others! Finally, they opened a second Nexus Lane realizing that cross border travel is a pain in the ass that mostly Nexus members are willing to put up with.
Got to the condo around, 2, wasn’t ready, so had sushi while I waited.
Lovely evening views.
Had a lunch date with Will at JapaDog, his first time:
And dinner later with his husband, Solus, who arrived with Mississippi Pot Roast (bread, beans, salad – me):
Before I knew it my three nights were up and I had to return to the US.
Never long enough. Should have immigrated when I had the chance. Sigh.
That said, I’m still going to Reno to see Bonnie Raitt. And I’m doing a bunch of mileage runs. Booked Vietnam for July, not hopeful about that.
In the process of cancelling the March trip around the Pacific Rim, previously cancelled Barcelona, Dublin, New Zealand.
I expect NO SYMPAHY for my First-World problems, but I’ve lost ALL patience for those that don’t mask up and vax up. Sorry you had to watch your grandmother die from your stupidity.
Longest prep item, the sweet potato fries. First, put the sweet potato it in the fry cutter – I’m sure you have one of those at home. FYI, any of those tabletop ones will NOT be able to do sweet potatoes. Handy tip – if you are doing russets, cut them and soak them for 20 minutes to get the starch out.
Drop them into a bowl with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil and a bunch of blackening seasoning:
Toss them up:
Pop them in the spray greased air fryer for 10 minutes at 360 degrees:
Toss them, then another 10 minutes at 360 degrees:
Serve with your tenderloin and salad, and a couple of dipping sauces.
Most every year, early in December I slip off to Santa Fe to see my sis-in-law. Last year, because of the COVID idiots, this didn’t happen.
This year I’m flying Delta SEA-LAX-ABQ where sis and bro-in-law will pick me up. Delta? I have a bunch of upgrades that I need to start using, and they have MUCH better food in the lounge:
And that is a Caesar – not as good as the Alaska Lounge ones, but drinkable. And decent views…
Before long I was in my proper spot…
And they brought out the charcutier plate (box).
Uneventful flight, and then to the Delta Lounge in Los Angeles. As part of a status match program last you, one of the benefits was Lounge Access (sadly, no guests unless I pay for them).
I don’t recommend the cauliflower mac and cheese. And the views weren’t as good.
But there was some great artwork in the lounge:
Cuban-American artist – Nelson de la Nuez.
Boarding the plane to ABQ I was given a bad surprise – A DOWNGRADE. Seems my seat (and the one behind it) were out of service.
The Japanese businessman with very little English skills (who was travelling with two handsome younger Japanese men) was sitting next to me – he also got booted from his seat, 2A. Not sure how you have TWO First Class seats out of order one behind the other.
After I ordered, he looked at me, pointed at the Woodford and asked in heavily accented English, “Bourbon?” Then he pointed at a small water bottle, and the Flight Attendant figured out the answer to ice. This actually made it worth it to be downgraded, and it was an hour and a half flight. That, and I called up to get my upgrade certificate replaced, they said I’d gotten the longer leg upgraded, but they would put 20,000 Delta miles in my account (or $200 off a flight). I went for the miles. Since I fly so little with Delta, more upgrade certificates are less important that having a stash of miles. Generally, Delta SkyPesos are value at 1.1 cents each, making the $200 off a flight the better deal. The Points Guy is working on changing all their formulas, and the new value is 1.48, still not near the 1.8 for Alaska, who they haven’t started on using the new formula on.
Nice sunset views from the plane:
And as always, thought provoking art and displays in the Albuquerque Sunport:
Stopped on the way to house for a booze run to Albertsons. Most of it is going home with me.
And did I mention the bag full of goodies I grabbed at the lounges?
And when you are staying with relatives, you make do with a workspace:
The morning found me finishing my Green Chile Cheeseburger from the night before.
And some shots of my sis’s place:
And some interesting concoctions using Empress Gin (which is purple), fresh lemon juice, and a cranberry-ginger syrup. Too complicated for me to replicate.
Two nights with sis/bro-in-law, and then onto the Southwest Chief from Lamy to Los Angeles. Overnight in a sleeper. Train is running 2 hours late, so time to explore the train yard:
The dragon themed train belongs to Santa Fe Southern railroad – a spur line from Lamy into Santa Fe. It recently got new owners:
Lobster/crab cake for the starter, medium-rare Flat Iron Steak.
Table clothes are back, as is silverware and real glassware. AND – because of COVID, I had a table to myself. A little surprised that they also didn’t add plexiglass screens between the booths. Oh, and your first alcoholical beverage of the evening is now on the house.
Back to the room, cocktail in hand, with the carrot cake I ordered to go:
Additional note: real plates haven’t returned yet. They say as soon as they run out of the plastic ones.
On the upside, the bedding has improved, the towels have improved – and most importantly, the blankets will now keep you WARM.
Then there is the shower which I did at around 10PM since we are rolling into the station at 8 (which turned out to be 10, so I got more sleep).
All good things have to come to an end – it’s been a fun week in the sun.
The last full day found Rache and I out to lunch with margaritas (his regular, mine, blood orange)
We had wanted to eat at Inca – but they weren’t open (even though the website said they would be). We had ordered and gotten our drinks and then they started setting up tables at Inca at 12:15. Guess that is Palm Springs time.
Chips were hot and fresh, the salsa good. Ceviché wasn’t as good as next door, but it was plentiful:
If we all look orange, it is the sun bleeding through the orange canopies.
Rache headed his way after lunch, me mine, which was back to the condo to sit in the hot tub with Bliss:
With Daylight Savings Time, it soon looked like this:
Spent the evening doing laundry and eating leftover chicken noodle soup.
Washed my Converse Chucks, but in the dryer, they kept kicking the door open – my solution:
And had to pack up the tornado that my room had become:
Had to unzip the gusset because of all the extra clothes. Damn thrift store!
Bedtime:
Early flight:
Airplane breakfast:
Not what we ordered (Turkey Protein Platter), but it was all they had on offer. Could of been worse, though that is a lot of dried fruit.
Was home before noon, Rache headed for the coast, I headed for bed.
Well, today is the parade. 10am kick off right in front of the condo – which is why I booked a unit on the front of the building. It’s the reason I’m down here again this year. So, I set my alarm for 8am since they assemble right in front of the condo.
And Parade means Caesars!
With a piece of bacon, and a sprig of asparagus. We don’t do things halfway – dusted with Mexican Tajin Spice mix. Little bit of Canada and Mexico.
Even at 8am parade floats/teams were starting to assemble:
Got the table set up for guests we are expecting:
And more floats show up:
And to give you a clue – I put the table out in front of our door (patio has a high wall):
Front row seat – with bathroom access! And from the street:
And then our guests started to show up – bringing Jell-O shots!
And more shots from the parade:
After to parade, we all hung out for a bit before everyone went their own way:
And some of the swag I scored:
The above from the local podiatrist! A spongy stress reliver left foot.
I have several things that I do most every trip to Palm Springs.
A Pisco Sour and Ceviché Mixto at Inca, a Peruvian restaurant downtown:
Preceded or followed by Angels Thrift Store one street over to score Aloha Shirts:
And ended going back for these lounge bottoms for Rache’s “roommate”.
Was also tempted by this deco table – I used to have several blue glass tables in my early 20’s:
We seemed to have stocked up on a little bourbon for the week:
Did try a new restaurant this trip, Johns. A sort of non-chain Denny’s-style place, but with better food, like the Corned Beef Rueben:
And nice you can order it without any sides (which would have been too much food for me).
All three of us have friends in town, either who live here or are visiting this week, meaning we are all on our own schedules – mine is more home bound so this was a dinner made from leftovers:
As you can see, I’ve already made a mess of my bedroom:
Also tried out this Greek restaurant, Santorini Gyro, which is next to the Stater Brothers grocery:
Random cocktail new shirt shot:
How I fixed the shower with the top of a pen:
Random picture of Skyler, who I’ve known since she was 8:
Random sunset picture:
Random pool pics:
Random reading material:
Random signage that I’ve always loved in Palm Springs:
On the road again – escaping the dismal winter that has dumped more rain than the rivers can handle.
Caesars at the Alaska Lounge as Rache and I set off for San Francisco, and onto Palm Springs. Fortunately, our 6AM flight was cancelled, and they rebooked up on a later flight – but still in First.
Real food is being served again in First:
And we were on an A320 with the new First-Class seats – which will eventually be retrofitted on the rest of the fleet:
Our stop in San Francisco (when you want to use upgrades, you take the routing they give you) meant we could experience the new Alaska Lounge in San Francisco:
E175 to Palm Springs and I snagged 1A at the last minute – combo window and aisle:
Rache’s friends grabbed us from the airport and got us to the condo quickly – which was ready and waiting for us:
And after I remodeled the furniture position:
Dinner in the first night once Bliss arrived – he had come down several days before to see an ex:
Lots of things on today’s to-do list, like unearthing the spiral binder in the garage to bind travel guides:
And for the ledgers for the wine shop for 2022 and 2023 – we do custom ones:
This is how I get anything done in the garage – by pulling the car out.
And more work on the sauna – like getting the door to close. Needed to do a little trimming on the bottom – which ended up looking like an angry beaver went at it.
Got some of the inside window trim done:
And only shot one finger with the air-nailer:
A surprise sunny day, though I could do the interior trim in the rain.
The rains are to return tomorrow, let’s see if I make more progress this week.
This trip was planned months ago to see friends after the shutdown. It morphed into something else later.
NO LINE at the border – Canadian’s aren’t allowed over land borders until November 9th.
Made it to the condo a little before three – I’d said I’d be there between 3 and 4, but when I said I was checking in, they said, “Mr. Souder?” – I can’t be the only one checking in, but I appreciated the greeting.
Two-bedroom, hit the lottery as it has a balcony!
Went next door to Relish to enjoy their Happy Hour – pulled pork tacos, and a double highball…
Did grocery shopping on the way in, but just me at the table tonight – probably just as good because I have a mileage run in the morning.
WHY. A Mileage Run on Air Canada. To complete a matching Aeroplan 75K Match (used my top-level Delta Diamond Elite membership). Comes with Lounge Membership – even when I’m travelling domestically in the US (the real reason I jumped through the hoops). And it started with a SkyTrain ride. Bought the Senior Card when my groceries on the way to the condo.
An because I’m a NEXUS member, no line at security…
And I’m into the Maple Leaf Lounge:
But the better menu is online:
The Sweet Pea Arancini:
And soon we are boarding…
And it’s a 737-8 MAX, which I’ve never flown before:
I used eCertificates to upgrade (10 days out they cleared) which were part of the VERY GENEROUS match offer. I’ve met the challenge and spent less than $200USD to hit Air Canada’s top level (unless you are invited to their super-secret-special-probation we will move you between gates in a Porsche level).
In First you get food (and drink):
And scenery coming into Calgary:
Calgary has a nice airport:
But it was a hike to the Maple Leaf Lounge – enough time for pictures:
Back on board more food:
Took SkyTrain back to the condo, found a closer station. And now my card has a negative $1 balance!
Back at the condo, waiting for Solus+ and Tantalus who are bringing dinner – at least I have nibbles!
So much fun that there are no pictures – but it was STUNNING!
The next day, I’m out for lunch at Sushi Maki, a block down the street for a $12.95 Lunch Special:
Life is good in Vancouver!
Suddenly heard tubas and drums out the window (not your usual street busker sounds) and found a small protest march:
Even better for dinner company, which again, was so fun, no time for pictures.
Wow, UM! The menu looks scrumptious—I’ve been craving scallops—and the art is fantastic. I was going to ask who was lounging behind the desk until I saw the larger photo. What flavor was the cotton candy? I bought some once that was coconut flavored. I didn’t know they were allowed to do that. I love the rug/mat that looks like a slice of wood as well as the squiggly design ones. Thanks for this mini-trip.
We planned this trip months ago. The plan was fly to Chicago, spend the night, get on a train, spend the night in Cincinnati, get picked up in Kentucky by The Colonels for a couple of days in Kentucky.
Got to Chicago, oddly, we both had Chicago Transit Authority cards with money on them. Don’t we look great on the train?
We are headed to the world-class Travelodge Chicago in the Loop Neighborhood. TONS of college in the neighborhood, and inexpensive by downtown Chicago standards. They had a room ready for us, which after a long flight.
Not modern, but clean. This is the “deluxe” version of the two-bed. Good view of the city.
We were hungry, so I chose Devil Dawgs, thinking I’d eaten there on a previous trip. I hadn’t.
Chicago dog for Rache, Polish Chicago for me.
It was nap time after!
There was a wonderful feature of the hotel, no longer in use…trash chute. That should tell you the age of the building.
Rache ordered deep dish pizza in from Mainatis, delivery by someone’s grandfather.
WAY too much food for two people! Because of the tomatoes sauce (even with fresh wine-ripened tomatoes, I still had to take three antacids.
Here is where the story diverges from what the “plan” was.
We were planning on travelling this way to Cincinnati – in a private train car in swivel lounge seats:
Our seats were to be the furthest back in this section. I like the intimacy, rather than the seats in the bubble dome which were $120 more each, and you are sitting face-to-face with strangers.
Instead, here were our seats on the way to Cincinnati:
This is why you should always have a stash of miles to use if your travel plans change unexpectedly.
There were some amusing things in the Chicago Airport, like a Cannabis Disposal Bin if you forgot you had pot with you:
And a lounge that we both had access to with our Alaska Lounge membership:
With a VERY nice bathroom!
Hello Cincinnati – and an airport in another state, and now Uber/Lyft drivers – unless you book a Lux and it’s sitting in a lot waiting for you (after finding the lot with seriously BAD signage). I got the feeling that there was a cabal about airport service, but I also didn’t want to rent a car for one day and pay to park it downtown (which turned out to be $39 a night).
We got to our hotel: The 21st C Museum Hotel Cincinnati, now part of the Accor chain. I’ve stayed at the one in Kansas City as well. Not inexpensive, but worth the money.
I’ll post in the next couple of days a review of the hotel, which was STUNNING, as was the meal. I’ll try and update the link to the hotel post HERE.
The Colonels picked us up the next morning for a couple of days in Kentucky at Frog Hollow Farm, their 5-acre estate outside of Richmond. Food is king here:
First night’s dinner:
And then there was the dinner party the next night for neighbors and Rache and I’s mutual friend Barb from Lexington, just up the road a bit:
And because they have cats – which I am allergic to, a couple of cute cat pictures. Cat in a box, cat standing guard over the stairway:
I brought The Colonels a canvas print – I had frames shipped to them because I couldn’t get them at home.
Didn’t realize the Mr. Colonel was a sci-fi fan – I brought this one because it had a frog in it. I’m leaving the other three frames and I’ll ship him more images for them for his unplanned “sci-fi bathroom”.
Friday, they dropped us back at the Cincinnati Airport where we had both an unforgettable and corporate complaint snack before the plane.
Only when I blew up the photo did I see actual evidence of mask violations by the staff – days after I filed a complaint on the server and the bartender. I was surprised at the quick response to my complaint, so I’ll give them that much. And on the food side, the parmesan tots were overcooked to the point that they were all crunch. Race said the wings were mid-range, but he liked the cornmeal breading. The joys of covid-related limited menus and staff issues.
I’ll post the hotel review in the next couple of days.
Couple of weeks ago saw a TV ad for the Seattle Opera production of La Boheme. Years ago, I had season tickets, many, many years ago, my late Microsoft early consulting period.
I loved my seats; side box, two seats in the row, front row, view of the pit as well as 90% of the stage.
Full admission. I was drinking and using the computer. Pulled the trigger when I realized that one of my old seats was open for a Saturday performance – learned much later that it was the open night of the season after 18-months of closure. Happy accident.
Everyone attending had to be vaccinated or have a test within 72 hours:
And it was checked, but it’s a performance, and there are lots of people:
Drinks for us both, snacks for me:
Rache (who I neglected to mention was with me) was in Helene’s seat further up and on the other side of the hall (but with better acoustics). Here are some shots of my seat:
And the view:
Sorry for the fuzzy shot of the pit.
Turns out I was sitting next to one of the principal singer’s husband!
Cocktails at half-time:
And the final curtain.
My comment to my seat mate to pass on to his wife: “Please tell your wife you were sitting next to a blubbering mess of a guy.” His response was priceless: “She’ll love that.”
Seems Rache had the same emotions.
A lovely opera followed by burgers and fries at Dicks.
Another week, another trip. This time with my friend Sue, or, at least on the way there.
Sent her a picture of the lounge entrance so she could find it:
Yep, people are back travelling. Especially me!
Had an hour in the lounge before boarding. Sue used miles, I used upgrades, so I got food on board:
Pulled pork breakfast bowl. Other choice was a cheddar omelet.
Hello Midwest…
On arrival, noticed planes still mothballed on the tarmac…
Hopefully the new Kansas City airport opening in 2023 will have better tarmac view.
Paul and Gail come to pick us up…sadly, not in this old Impala ragtop that brough back memories of Havana:
On the way to the house, be stopped by Axios for a mid-afternoon snack:
Funny that for “dinner” all we did was snack back at their house!
Thursday, we had a BBQ lunch at Char Bar, which actually has a pulled jackfruit sandwich (and great rings):
Across the street – I spied an amusing sign …
MAR-GO-RITA – yep, to go!
Pakistani delivery food for dinner with another old friend – I had the lamb korma. Gail is vegetarian, Paul mostly except for BBQ when it’s just the two of us. Sadly – no pictures of the feast, which, of course, we ordered too much.
Friday afternoon I’m headed home, but we have one more lunch on the way to the airport – at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art:
Followed by art!
What a lovely way to end a quick trip to Kansas City to pick up BBQ Sauce for the shop’s specialty food section.
At the airport I discovered that “to-go” booze is a thing in Kansas City – even in the airport (though the sign says you can’t take it on board):
Before long I was back in my seat (1C), and dinner was served:
Miso Cod though there wasn’t much of a Miso flavor, sadly.
Another trip under my belt. Next week is Chicago, Cincinnati, and Kentucky.
People ask me how we choose what goes into the wine shop (Madrona Wine Merchants). PP (pre-pandemic), Mondays were filled with trade tastings featuring sometimes a hundred plus wines – these days, there are very occasional tastings, in safer environments.
Today’s tasting was my business partner Jim’s side yard under umbrellas, drizzle, and wind. Safe, not terribly comfortable. That said, having the importer for Greek wines to walk us through them was worth the shivering. There were about 10 wines to sample. Importer is on the right.
Funny side note, the glass above I got at a Zinfandel tasting in San Francisco ten years ago.
And yes, you really need to spit – the tasting was a 11AM in the morning.
I could have taken the bus to the airport for the senior rate of $1.50 direct from Waikiki. I was lazy and took a Lyft for $23.00 – but the driver and I hit it off, he gave me a box of incredible pineapple shortbread cookies, and I made his day tipping him with a $2 bill, which I always travel with a stack. When I got in, he asked, “freeway or scenic”. He gets the same either way. I said, “your choice”, he said, “it’s your ride, which way?” Settled on scenic and I’m showing off my knowledge of long-gone places…that used to be Sam Choy, but now it’s a great bakery with great fried chicken – that was the Kmart – he says, “they closed it when shoplifters would just run out with bags of stuff”. That was Hilo Hattie’s – I had the famous shrimp truck stuff there. It was the best ride-share ride I’ve had in years.
No CLEAR at the Honolulu Airport, but at least TSA-Pre, so though quickly and into the Delta Sky Club since I’m flying them home. It was supposed to be a mid-day flight, but a couple of months ago they changed the schedule to a red eye on the same 757 with a small recline. I rebooked to a connecting flight through Salt Lake City, but on an A330 with the Delta One lay flat suite. Sadly, not with the international food service.
One of the perks of being the Delta Diamond Medallion is that I used one of the Choice Benefits to get Delta Sky Club membership (sadly, guests are $39. Fortunately, HNL has a Sky Club:
Took a break from the lounge where the AC was cranked to the max to explore the gardens that are part of the airport:
Hard to believe that you are behind security it a major airport. Email me if you want to know where the public bathrooms that have bidet toilet seats.
Killed a couple of hours – nice to have unlimited food and booze.
Big seat awaits me!
A nice step up from a 737 (this is an A330), or the Delta B757 that they wanted to stick me on overnight.
Cocktail service, then they brought a box meal – they aren’t back to hot food yet.
Truth be told, that photo is on my dining table. I was so stuffed from lounge food I just threw the box in my carryon. Honest, they did not serve me all those bottles at once – that was two rounds with a lot of Diet Coke, which was what I was drinking because of some “gastrointestinal issues”. I did eat the snack box, but at the wine shop on Saturday. Didn’t end up drinking anything on the almost six-hour flight.
Back to those “gastrointestinal issues”. An hour into the flight, “the bottom fell out”, fortunately with enough time to get to the lavatory. It was a red eye flight so everybody was sleeping and there were two lavs 10 feet away, so no lines – which I would NOT have survived, and all I could think was, well, at least I have shorts in my carryon.
The “evacuation” helped with the pressure, not so much with everything else. An hour later, the “mountain blew”, sadly, into the sink. The sink with VERY SMALL drain holes. It takes a long time for paper towels to soak up that much liquid. And, a lot of paper towels.
In the end (now both flushed out) got the lav cleaned, and wiped down with sanitizing wipes. I was NOT going to leave that for an FA to deal with.
Did manage to get some sleep thanks to the lay flat bed, though I kept it in “Barcalounger” position.
My original flight was a mid-day direct flight. Which is why I booked First Class on Delta out of pocket. Couple of months ago they turned my noon departure into a 9PM departure. A B757 is fine for a daytime flight, but not an overnight. Hence, how I ended up in Salt Lake City at 7AM. Might as well be Atlanta for the size of all the Delta gates, but I found the lounge.
NICE FUCKING LOUNGE!
Full hot breakfast buffet from bacon, sausage, eggs, oatmeal, breads, rolls, the works – and with my now timid digestive system, plain toasted bagels with cream cheese and sparkling water (not that the bar was open in Utah at 7AM):
Quick hour and a half flight back to Seattle:
And the view out the window that I never get tired of.
After a dumping our stuff in the condo, we were off to a 3PM late lunch/early dinner/happy hour at my favorite (happy hour) place in Waikiki, Tommy Bahama’s Grill above their clothing store. Normally the restaurant is pricey, but the happy hour actually has decent food and drink specials.
Dirty vodka martini with blue cheese stuffed olives for me, basil grapefruit martini for Dan.
Compared to the regular menu, the Grapefruit Basil is $16.50 and the Vodka Martini is $17. Appetizers run $15-$17, making the Hour Menu affordable.
Blackened Mahi Tacos on the left, coconut shrimp above, shadow of the fresh breadbasket to the right.
After a bit, we were joined by Boo, a buddy of mine from Tacoma who is on holiday with his boyfriend who was too beat from the day to join us.
Boo had the sliders (and a Lemon Drop).
Happy 65th to me! They even brought me a slice of their macadamia nut cake, which, apparently, I even ate the photo.
Much fun, good conversation, good friends, reasonable bill.
We all headed back to the condo, had another cocktail and Boo left to check in with his boyfriend. As the sun went down, the city came out:
Not a bad view from the balcony.
We had breakfast in the room – from materials I’d collected on the flights and lounges on the way here:
Couple of packs of oatmeal, bagels, cream cheese, granola cookie bakes, mini-frosted wheats (which I figured we could eat without milk). Yep, I’m a low rent kinda guy.
After breakfast, we crossed the canal so I could do a little fabric shopping at Fabric Mart:
Where I picked up a couple of yards of two different patterns, and was surprised Dan did as well:
Mine are on the top, Dan’s the bottom.
Next, we were off to Dan Quijote for supplies and lunch. The Colonels turned me onto this place a decade ago.
We were starving so we woofed some sort of beef and rice bowl standing in front of the store, and headed home for a couple of kinds of poké for the main dish, along with some nigori saké
And found a lovely, overheated car from another century….
Dinner found us in search of a Korean restaurant I’d been to before – Waikiki Gangnam Style Korean BBQ, that wasn’t where I thought it was anymore:
A kind stranger asked the two confused tourists (us) if we needed help – and actually knew that it had moved a couple of blocks and had open air dining:
And the food was as yummy as I remember:
Both were good, but I think Dan’s Kalbi Beef was a little better.
With an early morning checkout, we moved to the pool so Dan could take a family conference call – and I left after a bit to attend a Wyndham Owner Update for 30,000 Wyndham Points – which was the exact amount I’d used to get our room for two nights.
Dan is staying for five more days, and a little after noon we met up to get the keys to his AirBNB place, and have a final drink together with whatever was left:
Soon after, I was off to the airport for the return home.
To get to this moment, there was a huge dallop of stress.
Long raucous dinner party the night before, phone (not mine) left in Uber to the airport. Me boarding with both our bags hoping Dan would make the flight, but so exhausted I’d given up caring.
It was a relief when we were in the air, and cocktails arrived:
Followed by a cold breakfast – but at least they are back to serving them on plates, not boxes:
Short transfer in San Diego – yes, not the quickest way to get from Seattle to Honolulu, but the only way to go cheap in First Class. Had to get wrist bands to get into Hawaii, had a quick drink in the lounge, and back on a plane for more food. I had the chicken with pineapple:
Dan had the risotto of some sort, though, technically, the kale came from my plate, but I know he loves it:
We had great service, and in chatting with our FA – turns out she used to work for Emirates, which I flew a couple of weeks ago!
And yes, I grabbed a couple of the Alaska branded face masks for my buddy who collects airline ephemera.
Great views on landing:
And a lovely shot from the Honolulu Airport – an airport that I really like:
I’d arranged for a private transfer to meet us and get Dan lei’d at the airport. Nice to get right to the condo – the Wyndham Royal Garden. Stayed here before and used points to get a studio:
Those MIGHT be the worst photos I’ve ever taken of a hotel/condo.
I’ll pick it up in the next post with all the fun in Honolulu.
Because of my early flight out of Berlin to London (and back to Seattle), I booked a hotel right at the airport.
When I was at the liquor store earlier in the day, I picked up some sparking German wine to have as a final toast with Horst.
And Horst was king enough to run down to the bar and get me a “bucket” of ice:
The hotel (like the airport) is only a couple of years old, so the rooms are really fresh and modern:
But the hotel restaurant is NOT cheap – good thing I’ve got Schnitzal!
But I LOVE the inserts in the hallway carpet!!!!!! Very Berlin 1936 Olympics:
Up at 4am, cross the street to the airport at 5am, flight at 7am.
But first, the lounge. Saw this in the Duty-Free Shop – almost bought one for a friend’s dog:
And the Lounge, though it’s run by a third-party vendor – and has COVID protocols in place:
Interesting – baked beans or scrambled eggs in Mason Jars!
And Kombucha!
Sadly, this is not my plane – it’s the TinTin plane from Brussels Airlines:
Sadly, I’m on British Air, with their ridiculously excessive surcharge fees – but I’m up front:
And at Heathrow, ANOTHER FUCKING BUS to the terminal:
But, at least I have access to the First Class Lounge even though I’m only flying in Business – my top-level OneWorld Emerald status gets me in…and a whole lot of other people:
And some of the food – you scanned a QRCode, pulled up the menu and put your location.
And they had some great posters in the bathrooms….
And, finally, a jet bridge!
But onboard, I realized I’ve been SCREWED. They downgauged my plane from a 787-10 to a 787-9. From the modern Club Suite to Piece-of-80’s-Crap-Business-Class-Seat-That-Doesn’t-Even-Go-Completely-Flat.
Look at how bloody cramped and claustrophobic the window seat is!
This is what a Club World Suite looks like:
One is NOT the other. Once again, BA has screwed the pooch. Last time for me to pay excessive fees and get screwed. But I have to get home. They moved me to an aisle seat which was much less claustrophobic, but still not all that comfortable.
At least I had my old seat open to throw my extra crap in.
And then the food and booze started:
An upside is that BA has brought back a traditional British Roast dinner:
Interestingly enough, The Points Guy did a review of this Business Class meal, even through he was in First Class – but they had run out of them (bigger portion, better cut of meat, but the rest sounds the same). Link is here: I flew to London to try British Airways’ roast dinner (thepointsguy.com)
His description is MUCH better than mine.
Panacotta and cheeses for dessert.
The meal brought my anxiety level down, and my exhaustion (and the crappy inflight selection of movies) brought me sleep after watching to Judi Dench movies, Murder On The Orient Express (which I’ve taken the train from the station with the hotel that the book was written in, north of Istanbul) and Blithe Spirit. Both lovely.
With my annoyance level of the flight, I just decided to sleep – which is exactly what BA cabin staff wants you to do. The feed you and expect you to go to sleep so they can chat with their friends in the galley for the rest of the flight. Again, no more BA flights for me.
Was at the gate at 4:20, was through customs/immigration by 4:40pm (shockingly quick – mostly because I didn’t get secondary COVID screening), called the upholstery place that was putting a new top on my convertible to confirm they were still open, and grabbed a Lyft to the shop, paid for the top, and was home by 5:20pm – an hour after I landed.
The advantage of sleeping the rest of the flight was that I was sober enough to pick up the car.
I’ll do a car blog post down the road, still working on some interior stuff.
Back to work for me. Arrive on a Friday, work Saturday, Sunday, then Wednesday-Sunday filling in for Jim
Another beautiful day in Berlin, except for a couple of showers.
Some shots from around Horst’s apartment:
And yet another car – two-tone Miata:
Had lunch at this place down the street from the apartment. I had the steak burger and an Aperol Spritz:
Horst had a massive salad:
Next stop was at the COVID-19 testing center, located in a musty old bar:
Fifteen minutes later, the negative results!
I’ll need this to fly on Friday.
Dinner tonight was at the boy’s favorite Thai restaurant (Suksan) – sadly a long cab ride stuck in traffic:
Definitely slept well that night!
Final lunch in Berlin found us back at Morgenland, a couple of blocks from the apartment. We decided to eat inside because of the bees we had the other day:
I had the Weinerschnitzel:
I couldn’t finish it all, so it will be my dinner at the hotel tonight.
Mid-afternoon found us in a cab headed to the airport.
Wow, UM! The menu looks scrumptious—I’ve been craving scallops—and the art is fantastic. I was going to ask who was lounging behind the desk until I saw the larger photo. What flavor was the cotton candy? I bought some once that was coconut flavored. I didn’t know they were allowed to do that. I love the rug/mat that looks like a slice of wood as well as the squiggly design ones. Thanks for this mini-trip.
It was a truly wonderful space. Probably $170 a night with tax, which isn’t my normal range — but it was worth it.