Day 1: Traveling

Traveling took all day. We got in the cab at 7:45 am and didn’t walk through our hotel door until 12:30 am. That we had to fly 1000 miles south before heading east didn’t help, but my “better” half didn’t solicit my input before booking the tickets. Although he has since been sacked from managing any future travel, he still retains his permanent position of being my better half.

We uneventfully board our flight in Portland and land in Phoenix, where it was a wicked 107 degrees. I want to experience what 107 degree "dry" heat is like, but my plan is summarily vetoed by my better half. Instead we wander the airport for a place to eat lunch. My sweetie spots Taberna del Tequila.

Woooo! Tequila!! We beat a hasty path to a table.

It takes him point-seven seconds to order a strawberry margarita, but I flail over my choices (I was apparently "hussy") and end up ordering water. It shows up with a lemon wedge crammed in it. Sigh. I pull it out. Why is this standard practice everywhere but Oregon? Ok...I get why they do it in the Southwest, where water is routinely served with tons of ice and a lemon wedge so it tastes less like s**t and more like cold, refreshing s**t. But I don’t understand why they do it everywhere else. Water with lemon makes me feel like I should be washing my hands in it, not drinking it.

Anyway, I digress.

Sharing a plate of nachos seemed like a safe bet, can’t really screw up nachos. Just throw a bunch of ingredients together and make sure the chips are on the bottom, right? Ah, wrong. There’s a reason Taberna del Tequila has received accolades for concept and design and not won any…say, food-related awards.

The cheese came slightly pre-hardened, the chips were too salty and there wasn’t enough meat. I ended up asking for more salsa (it had yummy cilantro) so I could finish my chips. But it is an airport restaurant after all, we did kill some time and it was better than going hungry during a five-hour flight.

As we’re leaving, a woman at the next table asks if we’re on the flight to Philly. We nod. She says the flight is on two-hour delay due to severe weather. Uuugh. I’m doing the mental calculation…two-hour delay + five-hour flight + three hour time difference = not getting in until waaaay late.

By the time we hit Philly air space, we are pleading for the plane to land, but the storm has caused a stack-up of flights getting into the airport. So in exchange for circling Philly for a while, we get an amazing (or frightening, depending on your viewpoint) lightning show. After some additional delay on the tarmac (I think we made a few laps around the airport) and picking up our baggage, we finally walk outside the airport.

The humidity hits us like a brick. It must have been like, 97 percent humidity out there. It was after midnight and I was starting to sweat. Our shuttle finally arrives to take us to the hotel, where after some initial drama with how to work the AC, we finally get to bed. It's 1 am.

But even when exhausted, I always have trouble falling asleep in new places (staying in four different places would haunt me all week). I eyed the sudoku puzzle in a newspaper we’d picked up during the day. I've never had an interest in them, but out of boredom I start working on it. Just what I suspected – pure evil. After figuring out some different strategies, my brain is totally obsessed. I force my brain to disengage. Oh sudoku. Never ever again.

Tomorrow: Swatties. Balinese Gamelan. Mozart’s Requiem. Wawa’s.