Next Stop: Willoughby

Our plans to attend Gina's graduation from Wellesley involved some complex and not yet clear steps in pulling it all off.  The scheme involved me driving to Orlando to meet up with Adele.  Then Adele and I would head north on the Amtrak Auto Train with Lucretia's car.  Our train ride would begin at 4:00 PM from Sanford, Florida, just north of Orlando and end up the following morning at 9:30 AM in Lorton, Virginia, just outside of Washington DC.  This would allow Lucretia and Gina to load up the car with Gina's dorm room possessions after graduation and head back to Florida with stops in NYC to visit the Js and Rs, and a stop in Virginia to visit old family friends.  I was to head to Albany to visit family, and Adele would spend some time in NYC visiting Js and Rs and then spend some time visiting friends in Albany.

Our trip began beautifully!  Pulling into the station, we were greeted at the booth.  After giving the woman our name, she attached a magnetized number on the driver door after writing the number in a booklet which she handed to us.  She told us to pull ahead into one of the lanes near the station entrance.  We did, and were instructed to take the things we wanted to bring with us on the train and leave the key in the ignition.  We then left the car and headed into the station to check in.  The woman at the desk asked us which dinner seating we would like, and since the 7:00 PM was fully booked, and the 9:00 PM was a bit late for our tastes, we selected the 5:00 PM seating.  She told us which car we were assigned to and which seats were ours.  She thanked us (Mr. and Mrs. Gabriel.  Adele thought maybe she thought that Adele was a gold digger!) and said we could go to the platform and board.  This whole process was so quick and efficient, I don't think it took 10 minutes!

We headed to our car, walking along the platform amongst a wide array of people, many (most?) of them elderly and slow . . . (just sayin').  Our seats were on the upper level, to the front of the car.  The car ahead of us was the last car of the ones with the sleeping berths.  There was a sign on the door indicating that only those with berths were allowed past that door.  That meant that there was very little traffic past our seats.  The club car and the dining cars for we coach passengers were to the rear of the passenger cars, so all of the traffic was back that way.  The people with berths had their own dining cars in their section of the train.  We had three restrooms located down the steps on the first level.  There was always availability throughout the entire trip.  It was a very long train.  Someone had said that it was about a mile long!

OK.  So our troubles began shortly after leaving Lorton.  The train stopped dead on the tracks.  Seems this indicator light came on which signaled that there may be a problem with the wheels/axle on one of the empty auto cars (we were pulling two of them).  For safety reasons and by Federal regulations, the axles needed to be inspected, for if allowed to continue they could heat up and disintegrate.  OK, no problem.  We could live with that.  But . . . we soon learned that we had to stop every 100 miles if the indicator light flashed again and another inspection had to be done.  We also learned that because we were traveling on CSX Corporation's tracks, we couldn't drop those two cars in question for later pickup.

Our dinner, breakfast, and snacks throughout the trip (apples, bananas, cookies, coffee) were included in the price of our ticket.  I did get to enjoy my first ever dinner in a dining car.  Adele and I shared our table with the couple who were sitting behind us in our coach.  They were very nice!  Little did we know how close we would become to those sitting around us!

We got to watch the sunset later in the evening, and the sunrise the next morning at breakfast.  The down side:  by breakfast we had not quite reached the half way mark!

So, every 100 miles we got to get a very close look at our scenery.  And, we got to watch the sunset the next day as we were riding through Fredericksburg.  At least we were in Virginia!  We were beginning to feel like we were in an episode of The Twilight Zone, one where this train ride would never end!

We arrived at our destination in Lorton at 9:30 PM, twelve hours after we were scheduled to arrive.  There were a couple tables of cheeses and crackers and cookies and vegetable platters for us in the station.  We also were instructed to check at the checkin desk to get information about compensation being offered by Amtrak.  Fortunately for us, our car was one of the earlier ones to be unloaded!  By 10:00 PM we were pulling out of the station!

Adele and I still had our drive to Boston ahead of us!  Our original plans called for us to pick Lucretia up when her flight came in just before midnight at Logan in Boston.  Fortunately, Gina was able to borrow a car to pick her up and bring her to the motel in Framingham where we were staying.  So Adele and I headed through the most densely populated corridor of the U.S.  The good news:  there wasn't much traffic in the middle of the night!  Kudos to Adele!  She put on her rockin' music and drove the entire way.  Through DC, Baltimore, Delaware, New Jersey, New York City, Connecticut and into Massachusetts.  We were driving across the George Washington Bridge into Manhattan at 3:00 AM.  By 3:17 AM we were exiting the Bronx on the NY Thruway!  We got to witness the sunrise again, soooooo much earlier than in Florida, as we drove through Connecticut.  We pulled into our Red Roof at 6:10 AM!  Talk about Gulliver's Travels!

Some people have asked me if I would ever take the Auto Train again.  My first choice would be to fly.  I mean, my flight back to Florida from Albany was just under three hours.  No contest.  But . . . if I had to take a car with me, I would definitely do the Auto Train again.  Some of our co-travelers said they have taken the train many times and this was a first.  So, yes, if my situation called for a car to accompany me, I would do it again!  And I wouldn't trade the time spent with Adele on this adventure for anything!  It was much nicer sitting in a rail car then sitting in traffic!

Next chapter:  Wellesley 2013 Commencement Events

On The Road

On our way up north for Gina's graduation. When we checked in at the station, the woman called us Mr. and Mrs.  .  .  .  Adele said she probably thinks she is a golddigger.

Relapse

My addiction has returned!  In the midst of watching Season 4 on Netflix.  Using the Arrested Development china (thanks to Mia and Gina) for breakfast snack as I am enjoying the episodes.

Postmortem:  I LOVED IT!  I think the episodes focusing on Lucille and the one on Buster were my favorites.  Although all were good!

My First Visit to Fort Lauderdale

When sometime in the not too distant past, I figured that I was ready to move to Florida, I knew I had some research to do to help me decide where that place would be.  It's an adventurous feeling to be on the threshold of a new chapter in your life and to be able to choose the place where your journey will continue. Having been to the Miami area a while back, and with the picture that I get from the media, I felt that the southeast coast of Florida was a bit too crowded and the pace a bit too fast for my liking.  I wanted a location that was more laid back and calm, but not asleep and isolated.

I had the opportunity to spend a few days in Fort Lauderdale with my friend Steve.  He recently moved to Saint Petersburg from San Francisco (after never having been to anyplace in Florida) and one of those birthdays that end in a zero had crept up on him.  Since he had left his heart friends behind in San Francisco he was looking to do something special with new friends.  Since I am fortunate to have become one of his new friends here, he decided at the last minute to head to Fort Lauderdale to celebrate and to invite me along.

He made reservations at The Grand Resort and Spa.  It's about 2 blocks from the beach.  The accommodations and staff were amazing!  Included were champagne, a massage and a logo terry robe to take home.

For birthday dinner we headed to La Dolce Vita.  A super place.  The food was excellent and the Italian music was a nice mix.  The staff all had Italian accents.  Either they all were from Italy, or have good voice coaches.  :-)

We ate lunch one afternoon at The Green Bar, a vegetarian restaurant.  The food was tasty and the owner or manager kept giving us samples to taste and comment.

I always (mistakenly and ignorantly) thought that Fort Lauderdale was a place I would not like.  Now I see it as a nice vacation spot, still Florida, but a world different from Tampa Bay.  I see many future road trips!

Happy Birthday Adele Belated Celebration

I was in New York City when Adele celebrated her birthday, so we planned a belated celebration together after things settled down.  I headed over to Orlando on Monday to begin the festivities.  I met Adele at her apartment and we headed over to the Ming Court.  The food was excellent and the decor was amazing!

After lunch we headed over to Ikea to get a shelf for Adele's room.  She had done her window shopping online, so it was a matter of tracking it down and putting in on our cart.  What is it about Ikea that makes you want to buy so much?  We headed back to the apartment and assembled it.  It fits perfectly!  We took a walk over to the complex swimming pool and outdoor community area.  I was sold when I saw the hammocks!!!

Then we headed over to Hollywood Studios where Adele had a short shift.  It was fun to hang out and meet some of Adele's friends.  While they headed over to report for the first show, I headed over to the Tower of Terror to pick up a fastpass.  I headed next door to the Rockin' Roller Coaster, but the ride was closed due to some problem so I did a little walking around and shopping.  

I originally was going to attend the 10:30 show of Fantasmic but since the RR roller coaster was shut, I went to the 9:00 show too.  

Other than the warmup show being agonizingly grating (one of the emcees sounded very much like Ruby Rhod from The Fifth Element, that was the high point for me), The show was entertaining as usual.  I think this time my favorite characters were the dancing monkeys on the boats and the Indian canoes and for some reason, Grumpy.  Loved it!  

Between the shows, I checked back at the Rockin' Roller coaster and it was back up and running.  On the down side, the wait was 75 minutes!  So, I decided to do some more walking around. Later I met up with Adele's friend Matt for the 10:30 show.  We had seats right in the center.  Such a great vantage point for photos, but my cell batter was way too low to take any.  :-(

Since it was a late night, we decided that I would sleep on an inflatable mattress on the floor in Adele's apartment.  I'm glad I did!  On Tuesday morning we headed over to My French Cafe, which we discovered, was within walking distance!  And since we had a sweet crepe for our "brunch" we were very reserved and saved any pastries for future visits!

One Month Old Today!

Red . . . one month old today!  Love from G-Pa!  XXX OOO

Third Week G-Pa in NYC

My third and last week in NYC (LIC) was spent as my first two, enjoying being a grandpa.  Ruby was calling be G-Pa and not trying to get away when I hugged her or tried to kiss her.  She is a sweetie and kept me occupied with reading Grandpa and Me over and over again (as well as several other of her faves).  I loved how she would make different gestures or laugh or smile on certain pages.  And I think everytime she first saw me each day, she would give me the sign to start singing "The Itsy Bitsy Spider" and in true grandpa fashion, I obliged, lovingly!

I had one day "off" when I went into Manhattan to do some shopping.  I caught this stone sculpture exhibit in front of 30 Rock.  I went to UniQlo to check it out.  A maze zing!  Naturally, as I usually do, I just got depressed looking at the clothes made for six footers that weighed in at 56 pounds.  But I did manage to bring some things home for Ruby and Red!

Joe and I took Ruby to another playground that had swings.  The area where the swings are at Shady Park is still blocked off due to the damage from Sandy last October.  Ruby loved swinging and I got to hang out with my Nanny sisters.

One day Joe and I and Ruby headed over to the field near Rainbow playground and Ruby had a ball walking up and down the hill over and over and over.  She got lots of exercise!

For my last three nights there, I moved to an apartment (via Airbnb) 2 1/2 blocks away, and had my own private bedroom.  It was nice to be so close!

Late on my last Saturday afternoon there, Mia arrived for her summer internship.  She was worried that Ruby would shy away from her . . . not so!  They started playing around right from the start!  Ruby loves her Auntie Meezies!

 

It was nice to have Mia there to share in the reading and singing!  Mia and Ruby were soon making plans for lunch at Elaine's.  Ruby was hoping to meet Joan Collins.  

On Monday I helped Mia move into her residence.  It was the first time I was able to help her move into housing since she started her post high school education.  Despite the rain drizzle and gray sky, we had fun!  I'm looking forward to my next visit this summer!  Now I have more family in NYC!