Pre-Cruise Adventures January 15-21
Well, whoever termed the phrase "flying the friendly skies" should have to do that in this day and age. But realistically, it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Our flight to Ft. Lauderdale was scheduled for the zero-dark hour of 6:15 am, which in airport lingo means 04:15 at least. Since we live 2 hrs away from PDX, we decided to stay at an airport hotel the night before to at least get a few hrs of sleep. After a 3 am wake-up, a 4 am shuttle, and not sure of how the TSA process was going to shake out since the shutdown, I was amazed that it went as smoothly as it did. From checking our 3 bags at the counter, and going through security, we were at the gate in half an hour. We did have TSA pre-check which helped, even though Bruce still had to go through the pat-down and scanner since he has so much metal in his knee.
We had an uneventful flight even though we were delayed in Atlanta for 45 minutes, but all in all it was great...and since it was a one-way flight, we treated ourselves to first class and enjoyed every minute. And yes, even though, I still don't like flying......
We landed in Ft Lauderdale, picked up the rental car and stayed at a hotel on the beach. It was about 6 pm and we were exhausted. After a nice dinner and a good nights sleep we were ready to hit the road and head to the gulf. The weather was warm and expected to be sunny for the next 5 days. Manasota key was the destination-about a 4 hr drive from Ft. Lauderdale. The drive was glorious. Sunshine, very little traffic and gator sightings along the way. What more could you ask for? We stopped at the local Cost-co to stock up on a few essentials, and I realized that we were probably the youngest people there....I mean literally. I felt like a spring chicken prancing along the aisles. I don't mean anything bad by this, but it's the truth, and realistically I am not far behind them.
Checked into our 1 bedroom overlooking the ocean and settled in for the next 5 days. Our friend from Arizona was meeting us here for the duration, so we were planning on eating, imbibing with our favorite cocktails, hunting for shark teeth and relaxing. which we did, until the last day. A storm hit during the night. Cold, windy, thunder and lightening, rain, high surf, but worst of all, the Red Tide was stirred-up. That stuff is nasty. We were wondering why we were coughing, sneezing and our throats and nostrils were burning. We could not go outside. Even the employees of the hotel were wearing face masks. Thank goodness it only lasted about 6 hrs and then it calmed down. It's our last night on the gulf before we head to Ft. Lauderdale, drop off the car and spend our last night in the US. We sail on the 22 and I cannot wait! Will update tomorrow....
Well, whoever termed the phrase "flying the friendly skies" should have to do that in this day and age. But realistically, it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Our flight to Ft. Lauderdale was scheduled for the zero-dark hour of 6:15 am, which in airport lingo means 04:15 at least. Since we live 2 hrs away from PDX, we decided to stay at an airport hotel the night before to at least get a few hrs of sleep. After a 3 am wake-up, a 4 am shuttle, and not sure of how the TSA process was going to shake out since the shutdown, I was amazed that it went as smoothly as it did. From checking our 3 bags at the counter, and going through security, we were at the gate in half an hour. We did have TSA pre-check which helped, even though Bruce still had to go through the pat-down and scanner since he has so much metal in his knee.
We had an uneventful flight even though we were delayed in Atlanta for 45 minutes, but all in all it was great...and since it was a one-way flight, we treated ourselves to first class and enjoyed every minute. And yes, even though, I still don't like flying......
We landed in Ft Lauderdale, picked up the rental car and stayed at a hotel on the beach. It was about 6 pm and we were exhausted. After a nice dinner and a good nights sleep we were ready to hit the road and head to the gulf. The weather was warm and expected to be sunny for the next 5 days. Manasota key was the destination-about a 4 hr drive from Ft. Lauderdale. The drive was glorious. Sunshine, very little traffic and gator sightings along the way. What more could you ask for? We stopped at the local Cost-co to stock up on a few essentials, and I realized that we were probably the youngest people there....I mean literally. I felt like a spring chicken prancing along the aisles. I don't mean anything bad by this, but it's the truth, and realistically I am not far behind them.
Checked into our 1 bedroom overlooking the ocean and settled in for the next 5 days. Our friend from Arizona was meeting us here for the duration, so we were planning on eating, imbibing with our favorite cocktails, hunting for shark teeth and relaxing. which we did, until the last day. A storm hit during the night. Cold, windy, thunder and lightening, rain, high surf, but worst of all, the Red Tide was stirred-up. That stuff is nasty. We were wondering why we were coughing, sneezing and our throats and nostrils were burning. We could not go outside. Even the employees of the hotel were wearing face masks. Thank goodness it only lasted about 6 hrs and then it calmed down. It's our last night on the gulf before we head to Ft. Lauderdale, drop off the car and spend our last night in the US. We sail on the 22 and I cannot wait! Will update tomorrow....
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