Posts

Showing posts with the label Airport

A Fun & Delicious Day in Butler County-Part One

Image
I almost always use this blog for a story representing each day of a trip. The idea is to be able to talk about all the little things I don’t have a chance to put in published stories. Sometimes I need to break with tradition, and this trip was one of those exceptions. We had so many things to do, and I have so many photos, on day two that it deserves two blogs! One of the things I was told about Butler County before I arrived was that they have a Donut Trail. I’ve never been one to shy away from baked goods so this sounded like a scrumptious addition to the weekend. Heather, Teddy, and I got started with the trail first thing Saturday morning at Holtman’s Donuts in West Chester, just a few miles from the Marriott we were staying at. It became instantly apparent that this was going to be a challenge and I wasn’t backing down. The crew at Holtman’s was waiting for us with a box of donuts. I asked them, as I did on all the following stops, what their most unusual and popular donuts were...

TWA Hotel Brings Back Lots of Memories

Image
The first time I was in the TWA Terminal at JFK Airport in New York was when I was 11 years old. After years of taking road trips down south or cross country each year, we were taking our first flight. It was to Florida, and we were leaving out of this modern terminal on a jet plane. It looked just as I remembered when I arrived at the TWA Hotel in the same spot as the old terminal. I had left the Viana Hotel in Westbury to spend   24 hours here before my flight home to Champaign the next day.   From the moment I wheeled in on my scooter, I was transformed back into the 70s, with music from that period playing throughout the building, as well as photographs, memorabilia, and even cars. All was in bright colors, predominantly the TWA red.   Check-in to the TWA hotel was familiar at the counters previously used to check in to your flight. The ones that were not being used for that were spots for quick service food, forming a bit of a food hall with favorite New York c...

Leaving Our Princess Cruise and Back in Seattle

Image
After a week on the Royal Princess, it was time to leave. Sometimes I am anxious to get off a ship—especially in hot weather when my only escape is a too cold ship. This was not the case during our voyage to Alaska. Everything had gone pretty much according to plan and Princess Cruises had treated us very well. We had to get up very early to have breakfast and get the last of our carry-on packed up and ready to be off by about 9:00 am. We had decided, instead of rushing to the airport, we’d take an 11:30 pm flight home and explore more of Seattle. The Hilton Motif had generously agreed to let us spend the day and have dinner before heading to the airport. I had taken advantage of Seattle’s excellent Port Valet program , so we didn’t have to worry about our luggage.   Brittany and I went to the dining room for our final breakfast. The food and service were as good as usual, even though it was clear the staff needed to get everything turned around quickly for the arriving p...

Visiting Seattle Before Going Aboard My First Princess Cruise

Image
Brittany and I had traveled to a lot of places, but we were getting ready for our most exciting adventure ever. We were heading on a cruise to Alaska. This was to be Brittany’s first cruise and my first trip to the 49 th state – which actually was the 50 th state I would be visiting, therefore completing the United States. It was the most planned trip I ever took. I put a lot of time into every detail. The fact that I was traveling in a mobility scooter made it a little more challenging, but everyone I spoke to in advance was very helpful. The cruise we had chosen was roundtrip from Seattle, Washington. I had been to Seattle three times before and it was a city I really loved. I didn’t want to just have it be a jumping point to get on the ship, especially since Brittany had never been there. I worked with the Visit Seattle team to plan out a trip that would have us see a lot, without a lot of transportation, both before and after the cruise. I usually fly out of Champaign, b...