Wine and Spirits Travel

I have flown through Atlanta more times than I can remember, but it has been about 10 years since I got out of the airport. My niece, Moriah, decided to get her MSN in nursing at Emory and I had another good reason to go. The flights to Atlanta, Georgia, went well. I used frequent flyer miles for this trip. There is a direct flight close to here in Bloomington, Illinois. I did not have enough miles for that roundtrip so I and took American Airlines from Champaign, through Chicago, to Atlanta. It was the first time I was texted a photo of my wheelchair being unloaded from the plane and it was reassuring. I have previously had issues in Chicago with getting wheelchairs and having mine delivered to me in a reasonable time. Before the trip I did what I always do first after booking: I make sure I have transportation to the hotel. It turned out to be more difficult than I expected. There is a train from the airport to downtown, but my flight was getting in right at rush hour, and I wa...

  My second trip to Boston in the 21st Century was for surgery. I wasn’t going to waste a trip to a city I Ioved, so I arrived two days early, and filled the schedule with as much as I could. It was a cross between being dedicated to seeing more of Boston and trying not to worry too much about my upcoming surgery. It was just before the holidays, and the downtown hotels were pretty expensive. I found a deal at a hotel in the Fenway Park area that looked interesting. It turned out to be directly in front of Fenway Park and interesting was an understatement.   I had arranged an accessible ride with Go Airport Shuttle. The driver was waiting for me at Logan Airport when we arrived and took me to The Verb. An attendant greeted us. There were no steps to get in, and I wheeled right into the lobby. Soon after I checked in, I went out to explore. I couldn’t be this close to the iconic Fenway Park and not check it out. I was told the tour was not accessible—but you can get accessi...

  It was the final day in Michigan for my friend, Lynn, and I. It had been a wonderful adventure along the coast of Lake Michigan . We were prepared to spend the day with even more of it. We started with a breakfast meeting with Nick Nerbonne , Media & Digital Director at Pure Michigan . We met at The Coffee Factory for great lattes and breakfast sandwiches, and to talk about the mitten state and accessibility. Nick is interested in making the state as accessible as possible, knowing it has to be done place by place. He’s proud of the beach chair initiative and the continued efforts. He eagerly listened to my suggestions about hotels, transportation, and other accommodations. We went back to the Delta Hotel to pack up and check out. We still had until evening in Muskegon. After leaving our suitcases with the front desk, we walked the three blocks downtown to Hackley Park , where a Polish Festival was going on. Along the way we spotted murals and sculptures throughout the wel...

I had never been to Muskegon and, honestly, it wasn’t on my radar before. I had started hearing more about it and the representatives of Pure Michigan told me it was a lakefront town making strides in the wheelchair-friendly arena. Muskegon has had a big resurgence from the cruise industry which has led to growth in the town. In addition to the ferries that go across Lake Michigan (which we would be taking), three cruise lines are now making stops in Muskegon: Pearl Sea Cruises, Victory Cruise Line, and Ponant Great Lake Cruises. The town was building and improving for the influx of cruise passengers and the feedback on the port stop has been positive. This town would continue to thrive. ' Since we had a late lunch and skipped dinner the night before , we were ready for a big breakfast. Mr. Bs Pancake House was the perfect place. This local favorite has been around over 50 years. The portions were huge and the omelets, pancakes, and hashbrowns we had were delicious. After breakf...

My Southwest Michigan trip with my friend, Lynn, had been going well. We were enjoying the waterfront along Lake Michigan, the Dutch heritage, and lots of tasty food. We were excited to explore even more places in the region, but first we had a couple more things to see and do in Holland. We started with breakfast at Deboer Bakkerij . This popular spot has been a staple in Holland since the original owner came from Nederland in the 1950s. Five generations later, the authentic Dutch recipes are still being made. Everything on the menu sounded delicious. Lynn had an omelet and I, as I typically do, leaned toward something sweeter with the Blueberry Bliss pancakes. It was the perfect choice. I did my best to finish them, but it wasn’t possible since the portion was so big. When we were done, we headed to a spot I was looking forward to while planning the trip. It is a little-known fact that L. Frank Baum, author of the Wizard of Oz, was a frequent vacationer to Holland, Michigan. Rumors h...

  It was my third day in Boston and the most important one, my doctor’s appointment, but that didn’t change my interest in seeing more of this historic city. I started the day at the Hilton Boston Park Plaza with breakfast at Off the Common restaurant. I had the Cinnamon French Toast the previous day , and as good as it was, I was pressed on time. The buffet breakfast looked really good, and I picked a piece of quiche, a muffin, and fruit to have with my latte.   It was impossible to go anywhere in Boston without walking through history (or wheeling, in my case). I took advantage of a beautiful day and went through the Boston Public Garden on my way to the doctor's office. Boston Public Garden was the first public botanical garden opened in the United States. It’s just on the side of Boston Common and was scenic and quiet in the morning, with just a few joggers cutting through (like I was) on their way to work.   My appointment at Tufts went well. I decided that,...