SEA Trip Day 1: Airport Activities

Saturday, January 14: SMF > SFO > SIN

I got up early enough for a Zumba workout before Mr. E and I headed to the airport for our morning flight from Sac to San Francisco as the first leg of our journey to Singapore. Thanks to being in Business Class, we had access to the lovely Polaris Lounge in the International Terminal at SFO. Since we had nearly 3 hours of layover time, we decided to have breakfast in the table-service area of the Lounge, and we both very much enjoyed our open-faced crab, avocado, and egg breakfast sandwiches along with fruit, orange juice, and coffee. I then used one of the small separate computer rooms for my daily yoga practice while Mr. E had second (and third) coffee. 

Our flight to Singapore was scheduled to depart a little after 10am. We arrived at the gate, the boarding process began, and then we were halted in the jet bridge. After a few minutes of waiting, we learned that the plan had to be taken out of service, so we all returned to the gate area and waited for an update about a new plane and new gate. That information was eventually provided, so we all trekked to the new gate and got ready for the boarding process again. Then we waited. And waited. And waited. With no announcement or update from either the gate crew or any online United systems (email, text, app). 

After quite awhile, the gate crew did announce that the delay was due to a lack of cleaning crew. By around 12:30pm (two hours delayed at this point), we still hadn't begun boarding, and the new estimated departure time showing in the app was 1:50pm. So a bunch of us walked back to the Lounge. However, when we arrived, the staff told us that boarding had indeed started and we needed to get back to the gate. We all walked back and lined up and were informed by a member of the ground crew that we needed to board as quickly and efficiently as possible because we were running up against a timing issue. 

The boarding process was completed, the captain made an announcement about why the previous plan couldn't be used (one of two weather monitoring stations was inoperable), and then we heard an announcement for the flight attendants to disarm doors. Umm. Not good. The doors opened again, and we were told that we needed to disembark because the crew had now entered into a legality issue related to the overall time of their workday. The flight itself was scheduled to be 17 hours 25 minutes, and with the 3+ hours delay due to equipment and cleaning issues, the crew could now no longer fly because they had "timed out."

I returned to the lounge to wait for updates and get some food, and Mr. E stayed at the gate to monitor the situation. He learned about the cancellation and re-booking for the next day before that information was reflected in the app. Arrrgh!!! We took advantage of the staff in the lounge to help with our re-booking and hotel voucher for the evening (thank you, Scotty!). Since we were hoping that the evening flight might have some spots available, we decided to just spend the rest of the afternoon in the lounge, chatting with some of our new travel friends who were in the same situation and making good use of the buffet and bar. By about 8pm, we realized that we wouldn't make it to the top of the wait-list, so we finally left the airport and went to the Embassy Suites Burlingame for the rest of the evening. At least we could use a couple more of our United meal vouchers at the hotel shop!

But this was SO frustrating, since we lost an entire day of our planned time in Singapore, cutting our stay there in half. I had to contact the hotel to reschedule our airport pick-up, massage appointments, and dinner reservation to reflect our new schedule. And of course we still had to pay for the first night of the hotel even though we weren't there because we didn't know about the changes in time to modify the reservation to avoid a cancellation penalty. Arrrgh!!! 

Definitely not how we wanted to start out our vacation...

Holiday Travel: Return to Vancouver

Thursday, December 29, 2022-Monday, January 2, 2023: Food, Museums, Massages, Polar Bear Swim

Mr. E and I spent New Year's Eve 2019/20 in Vancouver, B.C., and have been wanting to get back there every since for a return visit. After three years, we finally made it! We headed out on the late afternoon direct flight from Sac to Vancouver on Air Canada. Although we were a bit delayed, we still were able to have dinner at H Tasting Lounge in our hotel, the Westin Bayfront. The bread and oil appetizer with an olive oil candle was both tasty and unique (and yes, it really was a candle!). 

We also enjoyed some oysters, charcuterie and cheese, and a beet salad. Great menu overall, although it was disappointing that we couldn't indulge in the seafood tower because too many of the items were somehow cooked in or with onion or garlic.

We didn't have too many activities already planned, which allowed us to be flexible in how we filled our time. Our memories of and expectations for the breakfast buffet were completely on target, so we started off each morning with that. Our suite on a high floor had amazing views of the bay and the mountains (even on the cloudy days) along with all of the seaplanes that take off and land at a nearby pier.

During our stay, we visited two museums that we hadn't explored before: the Museum of Vancouver and the Vancouver Art Gallery. At MOV, we really enjoyed exploring several of the exhibitions, especially All We Want is More: The Tobias Wong Project, A Seat at the Table: Chinese Immigration and British Columbia, and c̓əsnaʔəm: the city before the city. Each of these exhibitions was so well organized and presented such different perspectives that were both engaging and thought-provoking. At the Vancouver Art Gallery, we were enthralled by the exhibition Uninvited: Canadian Women Artists in the Modern Moment. We also of course enjoyed just walking around downtown Vancouver again and getting reacquainted with the area, including the nearby Whole Foods and Safeway, which are great resources for purchasing snacks and drinks to stock in our suite during our visit.

Our New Year's Eve dinner reservations were at Showcase Restaurant. We had had an amazing dinner here during our previous visit and were not all at disappointed with our repeat experience and extraordinary service! The five-course meal had plenty of options for a pescatarian, and the kitchen and wait staff were extremely thoughtful in accommodating my allium allergy as well. And the holiday cocktail that I ordered was impressive! It literally arrived in a spherical Christmas tree ornament in the glass.

 

Despite the rainy forecast, we had gorgeous weather most days, including blue skies with puffy clouds and some amazing sunrise views over the water.

One of the events we had stumbled across during our last visit was the New Year's Day Polar Bear Swim. We had agreed that we would have to participate the next time we came to the city for the holiday, and we were lucky enough that the event was hosted in-person this year for the first time since our prior visit! Like many other folks, we decided not to wait for the "official" swim time of 2:30pm but instead took our plunge earlier in the day after we picked up the special towels we had purchased in advance. The weather was perfect -- sunny and clear, with both air and water temperature right around 42 degrees. Yeah, it was chilly and breath-taking, but in a good way! And we were very fortunate that a friendly bystander used Mr. E's phone to video our plunge for documentation. We decided to reward ourselves by purchasing long-sleeved branded shirts as an additional souvenir.

Another reward was our late afternoon massage appointments at Vida Spa in the hotel. And in the evening, we were able to get tickets to the festival of lights at the VanDusen Botanical Garden, another spot we hadn't ever explored in the past. We arrived just in time for the "dancing lights" show at the pond right by the entrance and spent about an hour or so strolling through the grounds and marveling at the millions of lights intertwined throughout the entire area. One of my favorites was the hummingbird hovering in midair and sipping from a couple of candy canes.

Once we got back to downtown, we decided to stroll along Robson Street to find a dinner spot and discovered the small but fabulous Pho 37. Mr. E ordered Spring rolls, egg rolls, and pho, and I had the seafood and veggie crispy chow mein, all of which were exceptional and plentiful. We definitely put this restaurant on our city map for a repeat visit!

Our flight home on Monday was uneventful, and Louis XIV welcomed us home with lots of purring and snuggles and friskiness. We're planning to return sometime this year over a long weekend, either Memorial Day or Labor Day, so that we can enjoy the city during a warmer time of year.

December: Denver + Louis XIV Takes a Trip!

Family Travel (me): Denver

I made a visit to Denver in early December since I hadn't had my traditional Halloween time visit to see A, R, F, and C. The real treat this time was being able to attend the statewide robotics competition, since A's team from Evergreen Country Day had qualified at their regional competition. A, F, and C picked me up at the airport on Friday evening and we had a fun dinner at Sushi-Rama in Aurora on the way to their house. 

A had to be up and out early on Saturday morning to meet up with her team, so I had some great morning time with F and C before R got up for breakfast. We all headed to the competition site, and I spend the rest of the day there with A and her team while R took care of the boys. The really great things was that A's team won second prize for Best Robot Design -- so cool! After the competition wrapped up, I headed out with A and her colleague to celebrate. They enjoyed their well-deserved margaritas and we all had some yummy Mexican food before relaxing at her colleague's nearby apartment and working on a Flashdance puzzle (almost finished by the time we left!). 

On Sunday, we just relaxed at the house, spent time in the park with the puppy, and enjoyed some quiet family time with everyone doing their own thing but still being present together in the same space. Lovely!

Family Travel (Mr. E) + Holiday Travel (with Louis XIV!): Chicago + Austin

Mr. E headed back to Chicago the weekend before Christmas to spend some time with his Mom. He was able to see her safely off at the airport on Friday for her trip to San Jose for the holidays with her sister and brother-in-law, and then he met up with Louis XIV and me in Austin. Yep, Louis XIV was a travelin' cat! He was so chill and appeared to enjoy our time in the Escape Lounge at SMF prior to boarding our flight.

Unfortunately, our direct flight on Southwest was a little delayed taking off and then further delayed by having to sit on the tarmac for 45 minutes waiting for a gate to open up once we reached Austin. And then another 45 minutes to claim my checked bag. Arrgh! I had to check a bag this time around since Louis XIV was a cabin pet. He fit just fine under the seat in front of me, but I pulled out the carrier and held it on my lap most of the time so that he could better see me. This was probably more about me than about him!!!

We stayed at the Residence Inn Austin Southwest, a perfect spot in between my sister's and my Mom's that gave us a great jumping off point for various family activities. Our suite had big windows overlooking the fields and houses behind the hotel rather than the highway in front of the hotel, which provided Louis XIV with some good views from the windowsills. 

When we got to the hotel, Mr. E went out to fetch dinner, drinks, and snacks while I got Louis XIV settled into the room. I had an entire separate packing list for him to make sure I didn't forget anything! Collapsible litter box, bag of litter pellets, litter scoop, poop bags, collapsible food & water bowls, bag of food, kitty bed, tunnel toy, bird on a string toy, and several of his other favorite toys. He was a really good traveler, and it was so delightful to have him with us in the hotel (except for that one night when he turned uber-gremlin for about 90 minutes around 2:00am... yikes!).

I wasn't able to swim in the lovely outdoor infinity pool because it wasn't heated and the weather in Austin had plummeted just a few days before we arrived. But we did take advantage of the buffet breakfast each day, including one day when J brought C over in the morning to eat with us and meet Louis XIV. And we had Mom over for lunch one day so that she could meet our new kitty as well.

One new thing we discovered about our boy is that he likes some screen time! He was particularly fascinated by the dog agility competition, and we also found some fun YouTube cat videos to keep him company when we were away.

He definitely made himself right at home in the hotel room, even snuggling into a pillow fort on the bed with some stuffed friends.

We enjoyed all of our holiday festivities with my family. Mr. E and I did our now-traditional Christmas Eve dinner preparation while everyone else went to church. 

He also repeated his Christmas Day breakfast special of biscuits and gravy, with C's assistance as sous-chef, using some of the rib roast leftovers to provide the protein. The weather was warmer at this point, so we were able to spend quite a bit of time outdoors at the Amenity Center, playing Frisbee and soccer and letting the dogs roam around in the new dog run.

Our short visit intended for just the few days of the Christmas weekend ended up getting extended due to disrupted travel on both United (Mr. E) and Southwest (me)! We were all scheduled to return to Sac on Monday 12/26, but... Mr. E and Louis XIV made it home the night of Tuesday 12/27, and I finally managed to join them by late afternoon on Wednesday 12/28. Good thing, too, since we had to catch a flight to Vancouver for New Year's Eve mid-afternoon on Thursday 12/29!

November News: Family & Football

Our November travel and activities were all focused on family. 

I spent the week of Veteran's Day in Austin, working from my sister's and taking a couple of days off for "Mom stuff." 

Mr. E had multiple trips to Chicago to visit his family, since his father's health was failing. His dad spent time in the hospital and then entered into in-home hospice care before transferring to a hospice facility. The Friday before Thanksgiving, just after Mr. E had returned to Sac for the weekend, his dad died. 

Mr. E returned to Chicago that Sunday to help support his mom and sister, and I joined them on Wednesday so that we could be together with family for the holiday. Mr. E's aunt and uncle from San Jose flew out earlier in the week, so they were very helpful for Mr. E's mom as well. Unfortunately, his sister and brother-in-law couldn't join us because M was undergoing treatments for throat cancer and needed to minimize his social interactions.

We were able to keep our plans to attend another UW-Madison football game on Saturday, which was a nice respite especially since we had been invited to sit in one of the special club areas. No need to worry about cold weather! We could also enjoy plentiful food and beverages throughout the game.

We came back to Sac briefly and then returned to Chicago the week after the holiday to join a small gathering of family and close friends for the heartfelt and poignant military funeral for his dad, who was an Air Force veteran. At some point, a larger celebration of life will be organized as well, most likely sometime this year.

An emotional and challenging month for all.

Overdue October Updates: Football & Conference Travel

Mr. E and I began the season of college football travel over the first weekend in October. We headed to Chicago on Thursday, September 29 and then drove to Madison. We worked from our hotel, the Madison Marriott West, on Friday so that we could go to the women's volleyball game that evening. Go lady Badgers! They rock!

The football game was late morning on Saturday, October 1, and we got the special treat of being down on the sidelines during the 3rd quarter for all of the action as well as the famous Jump Around post-quarter festivities. So cool! Then back in the car for the return drive to Chicago and overnight at the Sheraton Suites Chicago O'Hare since our flight home was on Sunday morning.

In October, I also got to resume work travel for conferences for the first time in more than two years! 

Tuesday, October 4-Friday, October 7: The first event was in Garden Grove, CA, for the 2022 Strengthening Student Success Conference. I was a co-presenter with several colleagues for a session about one of the scholarship programs I support at FoundationCCC. The session focused on "Integrating Student Supports with Financial Aid: Lessons Learned in Finish Line Scholars Program Implementation." 

Meeting my colleagues in person was wonderful, since we've been working together since October 2020 to support this new program. And Getting reacquainted with the in-person conference experience was quite interesting, as I had to remember how to network and chit-chat with three-dimensional people rather than just a head and shoulders two-dimensional image in a Zoom box! :-) I particularly enjoyed having dinner with my co-presenters, including an amazing cocktail that was literally set on fire when it was served.

Tuesday, October 18-Thursday, October 20: The second event was the National Scholarship Providers Association annual conference, which was hosted in Chicago this year. I really enjoyed the sessions I attended and am planning to submit a proposal to present for the next conference, based on what I learned and experience this time around. The conference was at the Hilton hotel, which not only has a great lap pool but also a fabulous view of the Lake.

Mr. E and I originally had plans to spend some time with his family, since it was his dad's birthday, and also to spend the weekend in Madison for Homecoming. However, we modified our travel schedule because Calypso was really struggling at this point. Mr. E was still able to be with his family and enjoy the weekend with friends, although he arrived a day later (on Thursday) so that he could spend longer with Caly. And I changed my plans on Thursday morning to return later that evening in order to care for Caly and be with her during her final time with us.

I'm hoping for more work travel again this year!