Tuesday Travel Day

I lay down to rest rather than really going to bed. I would only sleep for a few hours on Monday-Tuesday night/morning. I woke before my alarm, as usual, before 2:45, and then, with the alarm going off (after I had nodded off for a few minutes). I then made coffee with the machine in the room for Deborah and me. I bring her a cup, a little ritual we have, and then I make one for myself. The room machine made espresso-like coffee, which I served in small cups provided with the machine.

(Saying goodbye to the hotel)

It was slow going as we were careful to assemble everything into our bags, carry-ons, and dress in layers. We identified that we had our passports within easy reach, and my gym bag was maxed out and heavy. Deborah was using a backpack and hoisted her items on her back.

The sun did not really set, we are too north for that, and we were in the bright light of a long-running morning. It looked like it was going to be a lovely, sunny day in Iceland. The morning was terrific, even at 4.

(A candid shot of me looking at the time on the way to the airport)

We collected everything back together for travel, rolled out bags, and checked out of our excellent hotel. They had a packed breakfast ready for us. We walked the two blocks to Bus Stop 1 and waited. There we ate some of the sandwiches and waited. There was a woman who was also waiting for the Flybus and told us they are often a few minutes late. A bus arrived, and soon we were at the BSI bus center, where we changed to the airport shuttle, another bus. By 5:50, we were at the international airport. It was packed with people. We found that Delta was not open yet (we were within the three hours of our flight); it was hard not to be frustrated.

Deborah and I got our bags checked and then headed to security. A cheerful agent stamped our passports. Both of us received special attention from the first checks. We found the gate, and it was not ready for us. We took a seat in a food area, got Americanos, and relaxed as we waited for the gate to be prepared. We watched the display of flights to see the status change.

(A mural just as you enter the gate area in the airport)

While there was a line at the gate when we saw the time came for us to move to the gate (though I never saw ‘Go To Gate’ status), we found a nearby seat and did not join the long line until the boarding started. We encountered additional security checks after entering the gate, and we were briefly separated from each other. Ugh! Finally, Deborah and I got on one more bus (the third one for the morning) to our plane. We walked up a set of stairs with our remaining bags (my gym bag and Deborah’s backpack) to get to the plane. Finally, we found our seats.

The last person to board, a gentleman, took the window seat. We had hoped it would remain empty. I had the middle and Deborah had the aisle seat. The gentleman, whose name I never learned, later told us that he resided in California but was originally from Iceland, where he had gone for his mother’s funeral. He had planes to catch in Detroit, and we last saw him walking towards the customs area.

Once the plane left Iceland, Deborah and I watched the same movie, trying to keep our separate entertainment systems, built into the seats before us, in sync. We first watched Bohemian Rhapsody, the biopic about Freddie Mercury, and loved it (I had seen it in theaters once before). We had more than 5 and a half hours to travel. We received a complimentary small snack on the flight and later enjoyed some coffee. I had the cheese board (which was quite nice and a lot of cheese), and Deborah had the turkey sandwich, which was also good. We then watched The Taste of Things, a poignant film with endless cooking scenes, all in French. I had seen it once before. Deborah enjoyed it (there were tears), and when it was done, there were only about forty minutes left to the trip. We soon repacked the few items we had taken out (Deborah was enjoying the book she had gotten in Iceland, Miss Iceland).

No more frustration with security checks, but the walk from the plane was long in plain hallways that had signage, the only thing that said you were headed the right way. My gym bag was heavy, and Deborah commented that I was a bit winded when the long corridors finally ended. A few pictures were taken with a friendly agent, grabbed our bags, and we were out of customs.

After a miscue on our location and a backed-up queue for pickup, we were picked up by Donovan, Deborah’s son. I napped in the backseat while Deborah chatted with her son. I did wake up to fill in a few details when asked.

We arrived at Deborah’s house and realized how tired we were. Deborah shared her gifts for her sons, and I petted the dogs, who were happy to see me and ecstatic to have Deborah return. Next, Deborah and I headed to Kruse and Muer for lunch. I had Michigan Pasta with chicken in a light white sauce, featuring walnuts and dried cherries, and fresh green beans. Deborah had a salad with a chicken breast. It was excellent. We were both tempted by a walleye dish, but we decided to stick to chicken, something simple, since we were so tired.

Deborah and I collected my belongings and some clothing we had washed for me on my second day of the visit (Dear Reader, you may recall that I came to Michigan two days before the flight to Reykjavik). It was a short drive to the Holiday Inn Express, and soon I was checked in. Deborah and I agreed to connect later (but later we decided to skip dinner and sleep more). I was on the first floor because the elevator was out of order, and they offered an accessible room (what was left on the first floor). I welcome extra handholds in the bathroom!

I unpacked and cleaned up. I tried to read after a relaxing shower and soon woke up hours later.

I dressed and spoke with Leta, and then my sister, Linda, and Mom, Wild. Deborah and I will travel to Lansing on Wednesday to see Leta (at noon for lunch) and then Mom Wild in the early afternoon (2ish). I then wrote this blog. That takes me to now.

Thanks for reading!

Back to Oregon on Saturday.