It rained all night, and as reported, it got heavier as the day progressed. Our driver felt it wise to get out of town before we experienced mud and rock slides on the main road towards town. One good thing about rain is that there was no fog. That could have grounded the planes easily.
Traffic was really light at 3:30am especially on a Saturday. We made great time getting to SFO at 4:45am. There were two slow downs on the downtown freeway with tow trucks already taking the crashed cars away. Bet this continues all day because many folks do not drive safely in this kind of weather.
Check-in was easy without a lot of people there. We were so glad we were not flying Southwest, although they were claiming it was back to business as usual. A restaurant we like to go to in the terminal was opened by 6am, and we enjoyed sharing a hearty breakfast with lots of hot coffee. Our boarding time was close to 8am, but that did not happen as planned. There was a physically-challenged fellow in a permanent wheelchair that needed special assistance. Traveling with family members, the group was there at the terminal about as long as we were. But the staff waited until the last minute to discover his wheelchair did not fit down the aisle of the aircraft. No one could board until he was transferred to an airport chair, which took almost an hour. The United team kept saying the delay was due to cleaning, but we knew that wasn't the case.
The good news was that once we were allowed to board, the pilot was able to make up some of that lost time. Except for a few patches of turbulence, the flight went well. We had more fun trying to figure out how to work the TV screen and watch a movie. They had dozens of choices, mostly old ones, but a few we had not seen. Of course if there was a screen that malfunctions, one of us would get that one. Asking a crew member, they reset the TV and it finally worked. We both watched Cold Mountain and enjoyed it enough it made the time fly. Many good actors in that movie, although it was sad, it reflected the times of the Civil War.
Another good feature of watching movies is that if you turn up the volume, you cannot hear the little kids crying here there and everywhere. Perhaps because it is New Year's Eve, there were many young families traveling today…mostly with little ones.
We landed in Miami around 5:30pm EST. It was warm and partly cloudy, although by the time we got our one piece of checked luggage, it was beginning to get dark outside. Normally, we like to fly directly to Ft. Lauderdale, but there were no straight through flights today. So we joined the line for a taxi, and we were on our way to the Renaissance Marina Hotel within an hour. We assumed that our driver would know the hotel we were staying at by just telling him where it was. Yes, he did know the location, but wanted the exact address. Of course, we had it, but it was buried somewhere in one of the hand carrys. Finally finding it, it was too dark to read it and the driver did not turn on the inside light. I did have a tiny flashlite in my purse, but do you think it could be found? Oh well, something to remember next time. Print the address with dark ink and big letters. The driver put the address into his phone and got exact directions.
There was no activity in the lobby and check-in was swift. Good thing because by now we were getting tired and hungry. We stashed our stuff, and headed to Duffy's for dinner. It's lively sports bar within close walking distance, so with all of the assorted games happening, it was loud, but good. A chicken salad and a plate of chicken tenders was just right.
Back at the hotel, we will enjoy New Year's Eve activities on the TV. It was heck of a long day. Bet we sleep really good tonight.
Bill & Mary Ann
