A Slice of Life
Bill Lites
Day 17 (Monday)
I had left a wakeup call, with the motel desk clerk, for 6:00 AM, but was awakened at 5:53 AM by the loud slamming of a door across the hall. I got up and shaved, showered, dressed and had a cup of yogurt, when at 7:05 the phone rang with my wakeup call. Good thing I wasn’t on a tight time schedule!
I finished packing and was ready to leave the motel, for the airport, by 8:15 AM. I had made a test run to the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport the night before, so I wouldn’t fall for one of Greta’s wild goose chases this morning, and possibly miss my flight. The morning traffic wasn’t too bad, and the trip was uneventful. I didn’t want to have to roll my suitcase that long distance from the Thrifty Rental Car return to the main airport lobby, so I stopped on the “Departures” ramp long enough to use the Southwest Airlines curbside check-in (nothing like the mess I had to endure at the Orlando airport on the day I left on this trip).
All went well and I was on my way to return my rental car. Rental car return was a breeze and I even got a courtesy ride from the rental car building to the main airport lobby.
I had checked-in for my flight online the night before, and had printed my boarding pass, so I didn’t have to check in at the Southwest ticket counter. I stopped and had another cup of Yogurt and an apple before going through security. I couldn’t believe how easy and quick the security check was! I arrived at my departure gate at 9:15 AM.
Boarding for my flight to Orlando began at 9:45 AM and we were pushing back from the gate, right on time, at 10:10 AM. The one hour and 20 minute Southwest non-stopped flight, from New Orleans to Orlando, went very quickly and very smoothly until we approached Orlando International Airport, at which time the cloud cover caused considerable turbulence until just before we landed.
DiVoran picked me up and we headed for SR-436 to find a place for lunch. As luck would have it, we spotted a Panera’s Bread restaurant and enjoyed a great lunch while we caught up on what we each had missed during the last 17 days.
It sure was good to get home and have time to take a nap for a change. I missed a lot of those on this trip and will have to get caught up on my rest before I think about considering another trip anytime soon. Hope you enjoyed this trip as much as I did. See you next time for my next road trip adventure.
—–The End—–
Tagged: American Mid-West Travel Series, Travel, Travel Series