Summer Trip Day One, Two, Three and Four.. shaky start
DAY ONE
Summer trip of 2015 got off to a shaky start. We were packed with bags at the front door, trunk lid was open and ready for loading. I received a text on my phone that our connecting flight to DC been cancelled... We had no flight out. I called the airline and they had no same day options, Our first day of vacation evaporated just like that. We were supposed to be in Burlington that evening, we were stuck at home. Kat and I went to UCHI that evening, she'd never been.
DAY TWO
The original airline tried to do us a favor, got us tickets the next day on different airline in an attempt to get us to Burlington a bit sooner. We were now routed through Atlanta. Day two had us leave Austin, get within 60 miles of Atlanta only to turn away and land in Memphis. The Atlanta airport was closed. While we sat on the plane in Memphis, I checked our flight out of Atlanta to Burlington. It had been canceled. I called the airline help line, I was told to NOT continue on to Atlanta, or we'd be stuck there for days. So, we got off in Memphis. We had to knock on the gate door to get off... the plane left and we stayed in Memphis. no tickets out...
I spent the next couple hours in the airport, on the phone. Our new problem was that we had initially bought the tickets on a different airline. Our current tickets didn't have the same status as a regular customer. As a party of five, it was proving impossible to find a way out of Memphis together. Customers that had purchased their tickets directly from Delta had priority and all the diversions and cancellations put our group at the end of the line. I managed to secure a hotel room, Kat secured a rental car and we left the airport at nearly 9 PM.
SURPRISE! We needed dinner and there just happened to be a French Restaurant next to our hotel. We arrived ten minutes before closing but it was all good.
This is what he looks like when he needs food.
The food at River Oaks was good! No complaints.
This trip was a sort of birthday celebration for the daughter. She got a Lytro camera.
DAY THREE
The next morning had us all back at the Memphis airport. They were having a hard time getting us tickets out since we never had tickets TO Memphis... Their computer showed we should be stuck in Atlanta, not Memphis. We waited hours...
They assured me we were booked on a flight to Detroit, and then on to Burlington. We had a hard time believing it until we had boarding passes in hand. They were having a really hard time producing boarding passes. Patience was growing thin as each day lost also changed our plans, including prepaid lodging and rental car.
We made it to Detroit! and found our flight to Burlington was delayed... We arrived in Burlington VT just before eleven PM. No time for fun, just go to bed and head out of town early the next day.
DAY FOUR
Once again, we left Burlington wanting for more.
We had a larger rental car this year. The kids greatly appreciated this because they are all larger as well.
I had originally planned (and paid for) a night on North Hero Island, right on the shore of Lake Champlain... but we had to let that one go. We took the back road over the lake anyhow, less than an hour to get to Canada.
Border Agent was friendly.
MONTREAL! The daughter asked, "has anybody noticed the giant translucent golf ball over there?". Thanks to a Mid Century Modern site I follow, I was able to rattle on about the 1967 World Expo and the American exhibit designed by Buckminster Fuller.
Our first stop, Kougin-Amaan.
Second stop, Kat visited the office of some colleagues. They were very gracious to us and gifted us with hockey pucks and maple syrup. Kat gifted them the entire Quiet Company discography.
Then we checked into our hotel and went for a swim.
Yeah, a glass bottom pool.
All caught up and back on schedule, we walked toward some dinner and Jazz.
A sign promising PEI oysters lured us into Notkins for a quick detour. The food and service were really good (we almost went to PEI for summer trip instead of VT/Quebec).
#1 son loves all things tartare, and cold water oysters. Notkins was a real treat for him (and his parents). That was the BEST salmon tartare we've ever had.
Back out on the street, we encountered a brass band...
they had a nice groove so we followed them. They led us into a large courtyard along side a church. Such fun!
GNB Gruv'n Brass
Yes, that sign behind the band does say MACARONS, that fact did not escape us. We pushed on to our chosen dinner destination, Nyks Bistro.
Always a highlight of this trip for these two, French Onion Soup at Nyks.
The crowds were thick and moods were thin. So we retired early. Those beds at the Westin are heavenly.