It was a harrowing week for us. Snowed in by snowstorms the likes of which we'd never seen, more snow piled on top of snow, and again, and again, no power for days, paralyzed city, canceled hair cut app't, and our plans to drive our car to Sacramento's airport dashed, we made an early escape to son, Matt's home in Fair Oaks, near Sacramento, thanks to our friend who used his 4-wheel drive to get us there; a tumble down a short staircase at Matt's house the morning of our flight (March 6th) with a skinned knee, and at the airport, a discovery that our Rewards rep screwed up our flight reservation, but United fixed it. Next came the text from United as we landed in Miami that a bag didn't make it on our flight, so we had a gut-wrenching 20-30 minute worry over which one, but when we went to baggage claim, both bags were there! Whew. Thanks for nothing. We fretted over our house, with no power, and more staggering snowfall -- knowing in our hearts that this was bad timing for an international trip.
Leaving San Francisco Airport.
Should've brought food with us, 'cause this is all we got on our 5-hour United flight to Miami! A tiny, tiny bag of pretzels, how cheap can airlines get? At my window seat, most of the sky was clouded over, like used bedding.
We overnighted at Embassy Suites by Hilton in Miami (marginal, IMO), but we did enjoy a Cubano sandwich dinner at their restaurant. The full Moon Over Miami was a sight to behold, below.
Tomorrow, the 7th, we return to Miami's airport for our flight to Manaus, Brazil, via Panama City. Manaus is in the heart of the Amazon basin, as you see below, roughly 900 miles from the Atlantic Ocean. Not a small town -- a city of over 2 million, yet pretty much in the middle of nowhere! We won't land till three am on Wednesday, the 8th, in bed for a short sleep, and up and going four hours later ... and shortly after breakfast, we'll board our riverboat for an eight-day explore of the Great Amazon River. So exciting!
Most of the time we had no internet or cell service, out in the Amazonian jungle, so I'm writing this first blog post in Manaus on our way back to the states. I'll keep plugging along. We've had some awesome experiences. And we continue to be concerned for our house. tbc
I really loved that USED BEDDING Line, I will remember that one. And pretzels?? I hate pretzels and who knows why they can't even give us peanuts anymore. Geez. Glad you had a good trip, but of course, I am looking forward to seeing what that means. And yeah...your house. Did your neighbors give you a bit of an update? I can't imagine how frustrating this must be. Hugs to you both.
ReplyDeleteOh. Did you get a chance to read "river of doubt" about Teddy Roosevelt's exploration of that same area??
ReplyDeleteNo, I forgot about reading River of Doubt, but if I can find it when we get home, I'll give it a go. Much of our time on the Amazon was out of cell range, but we heard about more snow and rain and so forth when we came to Manaus again.
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ReplyDeleteTravel is never easy but you guys, seem to hit the jackpot for anxiety level with the starts of your trips. Luckily you always enjoy being at your destinations. I hope your house will be ok with all that snow that dumped on it. I can imagine you've been worried. Nice that you enjoyed an escape for one week. Wishing you a safe and uneventful rest of your journey home. Love and hugs, Anne
You are true travelers; heading to Brazil. Hope you have a great trip! Luv Betty
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