Fun, Sun & Strong Water Rum...*Yo-Ho*...23 Nights @ Sapphire Falls...A May 2022 TR

[Deb1993]

I have been slightly missing…….but having so much fun!

It is blazingly hot right now, but will cool a little next week I’m told……and there’s always some doom and gloom sayer who wishes rain on us while we’re here……lol……haven’t seen a drop yet so it has been perfect for us. Maybe yesterday was a little too hot…….maybe……but as I’m not allowed to say those immortal words, I declared I was loving this intense and meltingly hot heat with a slight grimace………lol……he knew what I meant.

Parks were busy yesterday, but lines weren’t too bad considering. And it wasn’t too bad in Hogsmeade, just busier than we’re used to……biggest complaint is so many strollers…..huge strollers, pull along cart type strollers, people who can’t drive strollers, strollers parked everywhere with enough “stuff“ to go camping for a week on them…….you get the idea…….it reminded me of the good old days in Disney which was always stroller city.

I will pop back and forward as it gets nearer your trip and let you know what the parks are like, but they’re ok right now……apart from maybe the odd stroller or two…….

Ugh - not the stroller people!!!!!

 

[Deb1993]

My stomach just flopped reading this out of sympathy.

Nothing like an ‘expert’ mansplaining things after a rather traumatic experience to make an unfortunate experience sting worse.

I was musing if it would be even worse if you happened to be dozing when it happened. Can’t imagine being startled out of a nice, restful snooze that way!

Happened to us in 2000 a flight back from Portland to NY. I loved flying, was in a fully reclined seat into a bed, buckled, and was napping. Felt like we fell out of the air. Brought the seat back up and proceeded to bite every nail off.

 

[Worfiedoodles]

Welcome Home, so glad you traveled safe and are catching up on everything!
Long weekend for us means I can finally get back to reading along, can't wait to hear about all the fun you had after we left

 

[Deb1993]

I love reading Schumi's trip reports - can't wait to get my coffee and sit down to another one!!!

 

[schumigirl]

My stomach just flopped reading this out of sympathy.

Nothing like an ‘expert’ mansplaining things after a rather traumatic experience to make an unfortunate experience sting worse.

I was musing if it would be even worse if you happened to be dozing when it happened. Can’t imagine being startled out of a nice, restful snooze that way!

It was fun looking back......

As soon as it happened they told CC to take their seats, think it may have been very unexpected. We always wear our seatbelts when we are sitting or sleeping, but glad I wasn`t on the way to the bathroom or just for a wander. Lights were out too at that point.

I do enjoy sleeping through turbulence I have to say......apparently I`m odd like that.....

 

[schumigirl]

Ugh - not the stroller people!!!!!

They were out in droves!! Never seen so many before.....and as for those wagons......very few with kids actually in them, but all laden with stuff!!

Happened to us in 2000 a flight back from Portland to NY. I loved flying, was in a fully reclined seat into a bed, buckled, and was napping. Felt like we fell out of the air. Brought the seat back up and proceeded to bite every nail off.

lol.....I can imagine. I have to admit I did get straight to sleep after that, turbulence is like being rocked to sleep........

 

[schumigirl]

Welcome Home, so glad you traveled safe and are catching up on everything!
Long weekend for us means I can finally get back to reading along, can't wait to hear about all the fun you had after we left

Thanks Maria......it was a good journey home to be honest.

And yay for your long weekend......hope you have some nice plans ahead for the weekend.

We started uploading the pictures tonight, not as many as before but still enough!!

 

[schumigirl]

I love reading Schumi's trip reports - can't wait to get my coffee and sit down to another one!!!

Thank you so much Deb....that`s kind of you to say....

 

[keishashadow]

I do enjoy sleeping through turbulence I have to say......apparently I`m odd like that.....

we’ll call it your superpower!

 

[schumigirl]

we’ll call it your superpower!

I`ll take that!! Have to have something to brag about......that`ll work

 

[schumigirl]

This may be the last time I check in here before you leave, so have a FABULOUS trip, Carole! I can't wait to read all about it and get many tips for our trip to Universal in November.

We're leaving in 11 days for our long-awaited 30th anniversary/kicked cancer's butt trip to Hawaii!

Cara......I`m finally getting round to catching up with everyone. I hope you had an amazing trip.....looking forward to hearing it was marvellous and you had an absolute blast!!

 

[Cara]

Cara......I`m finally getting round to catching up with everyone. I hope you had an amazing trip.....looking forward to hearing it was marvellous and you had an absolute blast!!

Carole, we had a FABULOUS trip! At the beginning of our trip, we spent five nights at the Westin Moana Surfrider in Waikiki -- highly recommend! It was only a five-hour time difference, but the time change kicked my butt the first few days. I could not sleep well for the first few nights and was awake far earlier than I wanted to be on my vacation! During this time we ate and shopped, played in the ocean, visited Pearl Harbor, toured both the North Shore and the East side lookouts, visited Iolani Palace and snorkeled with turtles. We also had plenty of down time for relaxing and just doing nothing! Had a negative proctored Covid test, which was a huge relief!

Then we boarded the seven-night cruise. We had placed a bid for a penthouse suite on the Norwegian Pride of America (honestly, didn't bid much more than the minimum), and we found out three days before sailing that our bid was accepted! Honestly, this made our trip, with the addition of the specialty dining restaurant for breakfast and lunch, a butler, a concierge and a lovely large balcony!

I don't know how much you know about Hawaii, but during our two days on Maui we did a halfway to Hana tour with a private guide and visited Haleakala National Park. We also had two nights on the Big Island -- one of the Hilo side and one on the Kona side. During this time, we did a small group tour of Volcanoes National Park and a historic tour of Kona. On our first day on Kauai, we did a cruise ship excursion that was an island tour and a luau. It was overcast, so a couple of the views weren't that great, and it was a BIG group. Still, I think everyone should do a luau at least once, and now I've done it! On our second day in Kauai, we had planned a private Cessna plane tour of the beautiful Na Pali coast, but our plane had engine trouble before we arrived, and we were unable to book a replacement on late notice. We had also arranged a private dinner on our balcony to view the Na Pali coast from the ship, but it was cloudy! So Kauai was a bit of a disappointment, but I can't complain too much when the rest of the cruise was so lovely.

The ship was sailing at 40% capacity, and I think the crew is at somewhere between 30-40% of normal. They're a U.S. flagged ship, and the vast majority of their crew must be U.S. citizens. Like many service industries, they're having a very hard time recruiting and keeping staff. We LOVED the small crowd, and we found our service to be exemplary, but I'm sure that was impacted by the wonderful staff who cared for suite guests. I didn't care one whit that there was little nighttime entertainment, and fewer bars open in the evening, though I've seen my fair share of complaining online. I didn't want to visit most of those places much after dinner anyway! As I was waiting in line at guest services to leave an additional gratuity for our butler and steward, I witnessed another guest simply railing at a poor worker. It made me so uncomfortable, embarrassed and sad for the worker. These folks work 12+ hour days, and I never encountered one person who failed to smile back at me and give me the best service possible. I went in to it with fairly moderate expectations, and those expectations were met and exceeded. I don't know when people get the idea that they can treat people with such disrespect and downright meanness.

After we left the ship, we stayed at Disney Aulani for two nights, during which time we did absolutely nothing except play in the water, lie in the sun, read, rest and eat. We had a good time, and Aulani is beautiful, but I found it to be very, very crowded. Of course, it was the weekend, and I hear it's much busier then. And I arrived home with cold-like symptoms, took a Covid test as a precaution and learned I was POSITIVE. Ugh! Luckily, I have had two vaccines and two boosters, so I had a very mild case.

All in all, it was a trip of a lifetime for us! I found myself smiling the entire time, as I never thought I would make it to Hawaii. My grandfather was a Pearl Harbor survivor, and I grew up hearing all about Hawaii, as my grandparents returned several times for reunions. I would love to return one day, but my bucket list is long, my budget is not unlimited and I am not as young as I used to be.

I'm now planning a short Disneyland trip for later this month as I accompany my husband on a conference trip. And our Disney/Universal trip for November!

I'm so glad to hear you had a great trip, and I can't wait to read all about it! I will be taking notes, as I plan for our Universal days to be much more relaxed than the Disney days we have with our grandson (and his parents!).

 

[margareton27]

Sounds like your Hawaii trip was a hit! Sorry to hear you picked up Covid but glad it seems to be a mild case. Thanks for all of the details - and those move up bids are great right now. Congratulations on getting the penthouse

 

[schumigirl]

Carole, we had a FABULOUS trip! At the beginning of our trip, we spent five nights at the Westin Moana Surfrider in Waikiki -- highly recommend! It was only a five-hour time difference, but the time change kicked my butt the first few days. I could not sleep well for the first few nights and was awake far earlier than I wanted to be on my vacation! During this time we ate and shopped, played in the ocean, visited Pearl Harbor, toured both the North Shore and the East side lookouts, visited Iolani Palace and snorkeled with turtles. We also had plenty of down time for relaxing and just doing nothing! Had a negative proctored Covid test, which was a huge relief!

Then we boarded the seven-night cruise. We had placed a bid for a penthouse suite on the Norwegian Pride of America (honestly, didn't bid much more than the minimum), and we found out three days before sailing that our bid was accepted! Honestly, this made our trip, with the addition of the specialty dining restaurant for breakfast and lunch, a butler, a concierge and a lovely large balcony!

I don't know how much you know about Hawaii, but during our two days on Maui we did a halfway to Hana tour with a private guide and visited Haleakala National Park. We also had two nights on the Big Island -- one of the Hilo side and one on the Kona side. During this time, we did a small group tour of Volcanoes National Park and a historic tour of Kona. On our first day on Kauai, we did a cruise ship excursion that was an island tour and a luau. It was overcast, so a couple of the views weren't that great, and it was a BIG group. Still, I think everyone should do a luau at least once, and now I've done it! On our second day in Kauai, we had planned a private Cessna plane tour of the beautiful Na Pali coast, but our plane had engine trouble before we arrived, and we were unable to book a replacement on late notice. We had also arranged a private dinner on our balcony to view the Na Pali coast from the ship, but it was cloudy! So Kauai was a bit of a disappointment, but I can't complain too much when the rest of the cruise was so lovely.

The ship was sailing at 40% capacity, and I think the crew is at somewhere between 30-40% of normal. They're a U.S. flagged ship, and the vast majority of their crew must be U.S. citizens. Like many service industries, they're having a very hard time recruiting and keeping staff. We LOVED the small crowd, and we found our service to be exemplary, but I'm sure that was impacted by the wonderful staff who cared for suite guests. I didn't care one whit that there was little nighttime entertainment, and fewer bars open in the evening, though I've seen my fair share of complaining online. I didn't want to visit most of those places much after dinner anyway! As I was waiting in line at guest services to leave an additional gratuity for our butler and steward, I witnessed another guest simply railing at a poor worker. It made me so uncomfortable, embarrassed and sad for the worker. These folks work 12+ hour days, and I never encountered one person who failed to smile back at me and give me the best service possible. I went in to it with fairly moderate expectations, and those expectations were met and exceeded. I don't know when people get the idea that they can treat people with such disrespect and downright meanness.

After we left the ship, we stayed at Disney Aulani for two nights, during which time we did absolutely nothing except play in the water, lie in the sun, read, rest and eat. We had a good time, and Aulani is beautiful, but I found it to be very, very crowded. Of course, it was the weekend, and I hear it's much busier then. And I arrived home with cold-like symptoms, took a Covid test as a precaution and learned I was POSITIVE. Ugh! Luckily, I have had two vaccines and two boosters, so I had a very mild case.

All in all, it was a trip of a lifetime for us! I found myself smiling the entire time, as I never thought I would make it to Hawaii. My grandfather was a Pearl Harbor survivor, and I grew up hearing all about Hawaii, as my grandparents returned several times for reunions. I would love to return one day, but my bucket list is long, my budget is not unlimited and I am not as young as I used to be.

I'm now planning a short Disneyland trip for later this month as I accompany my husband on a conference trip. And our Disney/Universal trip for November!

I'm so glad to hear you had a great trip, and I can't wait to read all about it! I will be taking notes, as I plan for our Universal days to be much more relaxed than the Disney days we have with our grandson (and his parents!).

Cara, that is wonderful news!

It sounds completely fabulous and the penthouse suite sounds amazing, and you certainly deserve it. Sounds like the cruise was exceptional and you had some lovely people looking after you. I`m sure they appreciated your kindness in among all those grouchy folks complaining and being awful.....yes, how the staff do it amazes me sometimes when folks are less than kind to them when they work so hard to take care of us and make sure we all have wonderful trips.

I know little of Hawaii except what I`ve heard from friends who all love the place. And of course Pearl Harbour is something we`re all taught in school, it must have been quite emotional to see that with your grandfathers history. How lovely your grandparents were able to return several times.

It does sound like the trip of a lifetime, and I`m so glad it was everything you expected it to be. And returning testing positive with Covid.....well, I`m glad you have had your vaccinations and boosters or it could have been worse. Many who return from a trip with covid are saying the same thing, their experience has been mild thankfully.

Thank you for sharing your trip with us, and after the last couple of years, it sounds like just what the doctor ordered!!!!

And exciting you have your Orlando trip with your grandson to look forward to....and parents too of course.......lol.......

Glad to hear it went so well though

 

[schumigirl]

​

Well.

We`re back and finally over the lousy jetlag......although not a complaint as we are just glad to be travelling as normal again, so we`ll take the jetlag and go with it. So, here goes........I hope anyone reading this one enjoys it!!!





BRIEF EXTRA PRE-TRIP



The lead up to our trip had been a mix of good and some not so good stuff. We had to head up to Scotland on rather short notice for a family member who had taken ill rather suddenly. All worked out well and we did have a good giggle later when we had driven all day up to Scotland, stopped into the hospital for visiting then checked into the hotel only to realise that among the bags we had brought from home.....my mini suitcase with all my clothes in was still sitting back home on the bed!!! Yup.....no spare clothes whatsoever.......well, you have to laugh!!!

So, after we went out for dinner, we stopped off in a large supermarket that sells clothes and stocked up for the next few days with everything I`d need.......you couldn`t make it up, but we managed and had a good old laugh about it.

While we were in Scotland, Kyle got an email from a firm of Financial Advisors asking if he wanted to come in for a chat about a position with them which was very exciting for him. He had been looking to change firms and was over the moon with this opportunity. Kyle actually has a First Class Masters Degree in Chemical Engineering, but had ventured into the world of finance when he left university which many do with that kind of degree. So this would be another wonderful career move for him.

Long story short, we found out in April he had the position with this firm and he worked his months notice and left his old job on the Friday and started the new one on the Monday. He`s into his second week now and is positively loving this new move.

So, although we knew deep down he would get the position with this firm, or certainly hoped, it was still quite nerve wracking until it was confirmed officially......and add that into the worry of testing for the flight, it all added up to a stressful time all round. And all worked out wonderfully I`m happy to say!!

Which leads us to the all important travel day........

SUNDAY MAY 1ST​

No, we didn`t sleep well last night at all. We had enjoyed a lovely bottle of wine while watching the PotC movies which we had done over the last couple of nights.....our little way of supporting Johnny Depp...... and hoped we`d sleep well....but of course excitement kicks in and I think we saw every single hour on the clock, nothing new there of course.

I think we were really stressed about having to do the Antigen tests for travel tomorrow too. This could be a disaster if they didn`t show a good result!! America is one of the few countries that still demand we test before flying into the country, but we do as we are told.

Finally got up at 6 and jumped in the shower, then headed downstairs as I was like the preverbial excited Duracell bunny. It was finally here. Tom got up not long after me and we both said goodbye to Kyle who was heading out with his running club. He had said he`d give it a miss and wait till we left, but no need. I think it`s easier us waving him off, as us leaving while he is home. We`d chat plenty on Skype and he has a lovely social life to keep him busy and of course had his new job to look forward to. Once we waved him off which always brings a small tear to my eye, we finished off last minute packing and tidied up our breakfast things and waited for our car service to come.

She arrived right on time and we set off for the journey up to the airport and we both actually fell asleep in the car on the way there and woke up about 15 minutes from Manchester Airport. Never done that before........

We got into the hotel and went straight to check in although we were far too early and knew the room wouldn`t be ready, but we wanted to hand over our luggage while we went down to the Terminal to do the fit to fly test we had to face. My stress levels at this point were through the roof and thought I was going to be ill a couple of times despite Tom assuring me it would be fine and we`d be ok. I was personally terrified.

Once luggage was dropped off with Bell Services, we were still too early for our appointment, but we wandered down to see if they could take us early, the Terminal is a 5 minute stroll away.....the place was deserted so there were no problems and we both had our samples taken and told we`d get the results within the hour.

Wandered back up and went into the hotel bar that had reopened for lunches, and we both looked at each other and our phones waiting for those all important emails that would decide if we travelled tomorrow or not. We both laughed as we grabbed our phones for each notification, and then we each got the emails with the results we wanted, finally............both negative. We would be flying tomorrow.....

We had only waited about 20 minutes, but it seemed like hours!! First thing I did was let Kyle know and my mum who I knew would be wondering too....Kyle was over the moon as he knew how worried we`d been. Then sent an email to mac, Janet and Maria who had all listened to my worries leading up to and to our friend at the hotel to let him know we`d be ok to travel too.

We ordered a pizza to share, but despite it being many hours since we had eaten breakfast, neither of us were very hungry......I thought we`d be ravenous but we picked at it when it did arrive and we didn`t order our usual bottle of fizz to celebrate the start of the trip!!

For some reason they brought us two portion of fries which we hadn`t asked for, and they were mostly untouched. Our tummies just weren`t settled yet.

We paid and headed to reception to see if a room was available and luckily it was, so we retrieved our luggage and headed up to get settled in.

Rooms are the same as always.......and always immaculately clean which we do appreciate and the bed is a decent size and usually very comfortable.

We hadn`t asked for a runway view this time, we said we`d take the first room available as we were so early, and we had a view of the City in the distance and part of the Skywalk down to T2. We`d have a view of the runway from the lounge, although I do appreciate an airport is not the most scenic of places, we do like it however.

The Executive rooms are all on the top floor with the lounge, it used to have it`s own dedicated check in desk, but staff shortages as they are, you just check in at the regular reception desk downstairs.

We almost immediately headed into the lounge to chill out the rest of the day once we had freshened up.......it is a nice space to spread out a little and I think we needed to calm our nerves that were still not completely settled at this point.

It is usually deserted this time of day, and today there was only one other couple in with us, and they didn`t last too long before they left, so it is very peaceful....

They have prepacked snacks and fruit laid out during the day along with some cookies and the usual teas, coffee, red and white wines, beer and liquor which used to be only available from 5pm, but we noticed on our last trip it is there for folks to help themselves with during the day too.

Yes, not the most scenic of views but we do love airports and although there`s not much flight activity in the pm, we do see some movement and usually the larger Etihad and Emirates planes moving around.

The lady who tends to look after the lounge is lovely, her name is Marta and she has worked there for a long time. There was no bubbly out when we came in so when she came in and asked if we eneded anything we asked if it was still available and she said of course, she just hadn`t brought it out as we were the first guests of the day.........

And as soon as we poured the bubbly.......we did begin to relax a little after one or two of them funnily enough

I don`t think we fully appreciated just how much our nerves had been rattled by the worry of the testing and the relief was palpable now and we could really now begin to start to celebrate and enjoy the build up to the trip!

We passed the afternoon easily, ipads, chatting and there was a lovely couple who were on our flight tomorrow who we got chatting to and enjoyed their company for a while, so time passed very fast in the end.

Just before 5pm, they put out appetisers and snack style food, it`s decent and is replenished frequently. It`s not fancy but it fills a hole. Usually we go down to the restaurant for dinner when we stay here, but tonight we didn`t feel like it, so we`d make do with the snacks.....and we had the bubbly and company up here too which was very nice.

I am completely addicted olives......and these ones were very nice too. The hot options from 5pm till around 7.30 were mini steak and ale pies, mini cottage pies and either veg or chicken samosas. They`re alright, but I do like hot food sizzling hot and they are just barely warm even in the hot plates.

But, the other items included some continental meats, Brie (my favourite) other cheeses, fruit and of course the lovely olives.

So, that along with the bubbly and chatting to the couple who were on our flight tomorrow, we had a lovely relaxing evening sharing stories and worries about testing and flying, we were all in the same boat.

We headed to our room around 8pm and switched on the tv and watched some nonsense and made a cup of tea......I have no clue what we watched but we did a Skype with Kyle before we settled down to hopefully having a good sleep before our long flight day tomorrow. Today`s stresses had completely disappeared now.

Now we just hoped we`d be able to sleep!!!

 

[BroadwayHermione5]

​

Well.

We`re back and finally over the lousy jetlag......although not a complaint as we are just glad to be travelling as normal again, so we`ll take the jetlag and go with it. So, here goes........I hope anyone reading this one enjoys it!!!





BRIEF EXTRA PRE-TRIP



The lead up to our trip had been a mix of good and some not so good stuff. We had to head up to Scotland on rather short notice for a family member who had taken ill rather suddenly. All worked out well and we did have a good giggle later when we had driven all day up to Scotland, stopped into the hospital for visiting then checked into the hotel only to realise that among the bags we had brought from home.....my mini suitcase with all my clothes in was still sitting back home on the bed!!! Yup.....no spare clothes whatsoever.......well, you have to laugh!!!

So, after we went out for dinner, we stopped off in a large supermarket that sells clothes and stocked up for the next few days with everything I`d need.......you couldn`t make it up, but we managed and had a good old laugh about it.

While we were in Scotland, Kyle got an email from a firm of Financial Advisors asking if he wanted to come in for a chat about a position with them which was very exciting for him. He had been looking to change firms and was over the moon with this opportunity. Kyle actually has a First Class Masters Degree in Chemical Engineering, but had ventured into the world of finance when he left university which many do with that kind of degree. So this would be another wonderful career move for him.

Long story short, we found out in April he had the position with this firm and he worked his months notice and left his old job on the Friday and started the new one on the Monday. He`s into his second week now and is positively loving this new move.

So, although we knew deep down he would get the position with this firm, or certainly hoped, it was still quite nerve wracking until it was confirmed officially......and add that into the worry of testing for the flight, it all added up to a stressful time all round. And all worked out wonderfully I`m happy to say!!

Which leads us to the all important travel day........

SUNDAY MAY 1ST​

No, we didn`t sleep well last night at all. We had enjoyed a lovely bottle of wine and hoped we`d sleep well....but of course excitement kicks in and I think we saw every single hour on the clock, nothing new there of course.

I think we were really stressed about having to do the Antigen tests for travel tomorrow too. This could be a disaster if they didn`t show a good result!! America is one of the few countries that still demand we test before flying into the country, but we do as we are told.

Finally got up at 6 and jumped in the shower, then headed downstairs as I was like the preverbial excited Duracell bunny. It was finally here. Tom got up not long after me and we both said goodbye to Kyle who was heading out with his running club. He had said he`d give it a miss and wait till we left, but no need. I think it`s easier us waving him off, as us leaving while he is home. We`d chat plenty on Skype and he has a lovely social life to keep him busy and of course had his new job to look forward to. Once we waved him off which always brings a small tear to my eye, we finished off last minute packing and tidied up our breakfast things and waited for our car service to come.

She arrived right on time and we set off for the journey up to the airport and we both actually fell asleep in the car on the way there and woke up about 15 minutes from Manchester Airport. Never done that before........

We got into the hotel and went straight to check in although we were far too early and knew the room wouldn`t be ready, but we wanted to hand over our luggage while we went down to the Terminal to do the fit to fly test we had to face. My stress levels at this point were through the roof and thought I was going to be ill a couple of times despite Tom assuring me it would be fine and we`d be ok. I was personally terrified.

Once luggage was dropped off with Bell Services, we were still too early for our appointment, but we wandered down to see if they could take us early, the Terminal is a 5 minute stroll away.....the place was deserted so there were no problems and we both had our samples taken and told we`d get the results within the hour.

Wandered back up and went into the hotel bar that had reopened for lunches, and we both looked at each other and our phones waiting for those all important emails that would decide if we travelled tomorrow or not. We both laughed as we grabbed our phones for each notification, and then we each got the emails with the results we wanted, finally............both negative. We would be flying tomorrow.....

We had only waited about 20 minutes, but it seemed like hours!! First thing I did was let Kyle know and my mum who I knew would be wondering too....Kyle was over the moon as he knew how worried we`d been. Then sent an email to mac, Janet and Maria who had all listened to my worries leading up to and to our friend at the hotel to let him know we`d be ok to travel too.

We ordered a pizza to share, but despite it being many hours since we had eaten breakfast, neither of us were very hungry......I thought we`d be ravenous but we picked at it when it did arrive and we didn`t order our usual bottle of fizz to celebrate the start of the trip!!

For some reason they brought us two portion of fries which we hadn`t asked for, and they were mostly untouched. Our tummies just weren`t settled yet.

We paid and headed to reception to see if a room was available and luckily it was, so we retrieved our luggage and headed up to get settled in.

Rooms are the same as always.......and always immaculately clean which we do appreciate and the bed is a decent size and usually very comfortable.

We hadn`t asked for a runway view this time, we said we`d take the first room available as we were so early, and we had a view of the City in the distance and part of the Skywalk down to T2. We`d have a view of the runway from the lounge, although I do appreciate an airport is not the most scenic of places, we do like it however.

The Executive rooms are all on the top floor with the lounge, it used to have it`s own dedicated check in desk, but staff shortages as they are, you just check in at the regular reception desk downstairs.

We almost immediately headed into the lounge to chill out the rest of the day once we had freshened up.......it is a nice space to spread out a little and I think we needed to calm our nerves that were still not completely settled at this point.

It is usually deserted this time of day, and today there was only one other couple in with us, and they didn`t last too long before they left, so it is very peaceful....

They have prepacked snacks and fruit laid out during the day along with some cookies and the usual teas, coffee, red and white wines, beer and liquor which used to be only available from 5pm, but we noticed on our last trip it is there for folks to help themselves with during the day too.

Yes, not the most scenic of views but we do love airports and although there`s not much flight activity in the pm, we do see some movement and usually the larger Etihad and Emirates planes moving around.

The lady who tends to look after the lounge is lovely, her name is Marta and she has worked there for a long time. There was no bubbly out when we came in so when she came in and asked if we eneded anything we asked if it was still available and she said of course, she just hadn`t brought it out as we were the first guests of the day.........

And as soon as we poured the bubbly.......we did begin to relax a little after one or two of them funnily enough

I don`t think we fully appreciated just how much our nerves had been rattled by the worry of the testing and the relief was palpable now and we could really now begin to start to celebrate and enjoy the build up to the trip!

We passed the afternoon easily, ipads, chatting and there was a lovely couple who were on our flight tomorrow who we got chatting to and enjoyed their company for a while, so time passed very fast in the end.

Just before 5pm, they put out appetisers and snack style food, it`s decent and is replenished frequently. It`s not fancy but it fills a hole. Usually we go down to the restaurant for dinner when we stay here, but tonight we didn`t feel like it, so we`d make do with the snacks.....and we had the bubbly and company up here too which was very nice.

I am completely addicted olives......and these ones were very nice too. The hot options from 5pm till around 7.30 were mini steak and ale pies, mini cottage pies and either veg or chicken samosas. They`re alright, but I do like hot food sizzling hot and they are just barely warm even in the hot plates.

But, the other items included some continental meats, Brie (my favourite) other cheeses, fruit and of course the lovely olives.

So, that along with the bubbly and chatting to the couple who were on our flight tomorrow, we had a lovely relaxing evening sharing stories and worries about testing and flying, we were all in the same boat.

We headed to our room around 8pm and switched on the tv and watched some nonsense and made a cup of tea......I have no clue what we watched but we did a Skype with Kyle before we settled down to hopefully having a good sleep before our long flight day tomorrow. Today`s stresses had completely disappeared now.

Now we just hoped we`d be able to sleep!!!

IT HAS BEGUN YESSSSSS!

 

[I-4Bound]

Whew! Of course, I knew everything worked out fine, but it’s still stressful to imagine being in that position! Now we can move onto the fun!

We leave for Orlando one week from today! I am really going to miss universal, but we are doing Discovery Cove and a day at Epcot for flower and Garden festival. I told my husband I want to get back to Universal on our very next trip!

 

[Deb1993]

They were out in droves!! Never seen so many before.....and as for those wagons......very few with kids actually in them, but all laden with stuff!!





lol.....I can imagine. I have to admit I did get straight to sleep after that, turbulence is like being rocked to sleep........

​

Well.

We`re back and finally over the lousy jetlag......although not a complaint as we are just glad to be travelling as normal again, so we`ll take the jetlag and go with it. So, here goes........I hope anyone reading this one enjoys it!!!





BRIEF EXTRA PRE-TRIP



The lead up to our trip had been a mix of good and some not so good stuff. We had to head up to Scotland on rather short notice for a family member who had taken ill rather suddenly. All worked out well and we did have a good giggle later when we had driven all day up to Scotland, stopped into the hospital for visiting then checked into the hotel only to realise that among the bags we had brought from home.....my mini suitcase with all my clothes in was still sitting back home on the bed!!! Yup.....no spare clothes whatsoever.......well, you have to laugh!!!

So, after we went out for dinner, we stopped off in a large supermarket that sells clothes and stocked up for the next few days with everything I`d need.......you couldn`t make it up, but we managed and had a good old laugh about it.

While we were in Scotland, Kyle got an email from a firm of Financial Advisors asking if he wanted to come in for a chat about a position with them which was very exciting for him. He had been looking to change firms and was over the moon with this opportunity. Kyle actually has a First Class Masters Degree in Chemical Engineering, but had ventured into the world of finance when he left university which many do with that kind of degree. So this would be another wonderful career move for him.

Long story short, we found out in April he had the position with this firm and he worked his months notice and left his old job on the Friday and started the new one on the Monday. He`s into his second week now and is positively loving this new move.

So, although we knew deep down he would get the position with this firm, or certainly hoped, it was still quite nerve wracking until it was confirmed officially......and add that into the worry of testing for the flight, it all added up to a stressful time all round. And all worked out wonderfully I`m happy to say!!

Which leads us to the all important travel day........

SUNDAY MAY 1ST​

No, we didn`t sleep well last night at all. We had enjoyed a lovely bottle of wine and hoped we`d sleep well....but of course excitement kicks in and I think we saw every single hour on the clock, nothing new there of course.

I think we were really stressed about having to do the Antigen tests for travel tomorrow too. This could be a disaster if they didn`t show a good result!! America is one of the few countries that still demand we test before flying into the country, but we do as we are told.

Finally got up at 6 and jumped in the shower, then headed downstairs as I was like the preverbial excited Duracell bunny. It was finally here. Tom got up not long after me and we both said goodbye to Kyle who was heading out with his running club. He had said he`d give it a miss and wait till we left, but no need. I think it`s easier us waving him off, as us leaving while he is home. We`d chat plenty on Skype and he has a lovely social life to keep him busy and of course had his new job to look forward to. Once we waved him off which always brings a small tear to my eye, we finished off last minute packing and tidied up our breakfast things and waited for our car service to come.

She arrived right on time and we set off for the journey up to the airport and we both actually fell asleep in the car on the way there and woke up about 15 minutes from Manchester Airport. Never done that before........

We got into the hotel and went straight to check in although we were far too early and knew the room wouldn`t be ready, but we wanted to hand over our luggage while we went down to the Terminal to do the fit to fly test we had to face. My stress levels at this point were through the roof and thought I was going to be ill a couple of times despite Tom assuring me it would be fine and we`d be ok. I was personally terrified.

Once luggage was dropped off with Bell Services, we were still too early for our appointment, but we wandered down to see if they could take us early, the Terminal is a 5 minute stroll away.....the place was deserted so there were no problems and we both had our samples taken and told we`d get the results within the hour.

Wandered back up and went into the hotel bar that had reopened for lunches, and we both looked at each other and our phones waiting for those all important emails that would decide if we travelled tomorrow or not. We both laughed as we grabbed our phones for each notification, and then we each got the emails with the results we wanted, finally............both negative. We would be flying tomorrow.....

We had only waited about 20 minutes, but it seemed like hours!! First thing I did was let Kyle know and my mum who I knew would be wondering too....Kyle was over the moon as he knew how worried we`d been. Then sent an email to mac, Janet and Maria who had all listened to my worries leading up to and to our friend at the hotel to let him know we`d be ok to travel too.

We ordered a pizza to share, but despite it being many hours since we had eaten breakfast, neither of us were very hungry......I thought we`d be ravenous but we picked at it when it did arrive and we didn`t order our usual bottle of fizz to celebrate the start of the trip!!

For some reason they brought us two portion of fries which we hadn`t asked for, and they were mostly untouched. Our tummies just weren`t settled yet.

We paid and headed to reception to see if a room was available and luckily it was, so we retrieved our luggage and headed up to get settled in.

Rooms are the same as always.......and always immaculately clean which we do appreciate and the bed is a decent size and usually very comfortable.

We hadn`t asked for a runway view this time, we said we`d take the first room available as we were so early, and we had a view of the City in the distance and part of the Skywalk down to T2. We`d have a view of the runway from the lounge, although I do appreciate an airport is not the most scenic of places, we do like it however.

The Executive rooms are all on the top floor with the lounge, it used to have it`s own dedicated check in desk, but staff shortages as they are, you just check in at the regular reception desk downstairs.

We almost immediately headed into the lounge to chill out the rest of the day once we had freshened up.......it is a nice space to spread out a little and I think we needed to calm our nerves that were still not completely settled at this point.

It is usually deserted this time of day, and today there was only one other couple in with us, and they didn`t last too long before they left, so it is very peaceful....

They have prepacked snacks and fruit laid out during the day along with some cookies and the usual teas, coffee, red and white wines, beer and liquor which used to be only available from 5pm, but we noticed on our last trip it is there for folks to help themselves with during the day too.

Yes, not the most scenic of views but we do love airports and although there`s not much flight activity in the pm, we do see some movement and usually the larger Etihad and Emirates planes moving around.

The lady who tends to look after the lounge is lovely, her name is Marta and she has worked there for a long time. There was no bubbly out when we came in so when she came in and asked if we eneded anything we asked if it was still available and she said of course, she just hadn`t brought it out as we were the first guests of the day.........

And as soon as we poured the bubbly.......we did begin to relax a little after one or two of them funnily enough

I don`t think we fully appreciated just how much our nerves had been rattled by the worry of the testing and the relief was palpable now and we could really now begin to start to celebrate and enjoy the build up to the trip!

We passed the afternoon easily, ipads, chatting and there was a lovely couple who were on our flight tomorrow who we got chatting to and enjoyed their company for a while, so time passed very fast in the end.

Just before 5pm, they put out appetisers and snack style food, it`s decent and is replenished frequently. It`s not fancy but it fills a hole. Usually we go down to the restaurant for dinner when we stay here, but tonight we didn`t feel like it, so we`d make do with the snacks.....and we had the bubbly and company up here too which was very nice.

I am completely addicted olives......and these ones were very nice too. The hot options from 5pm till around 7.30 were mini steak and ale pies, mini cottage pies and either veg or chicken samosas. They`re alright, but I do like hot food sizzling hot and they are just barely warm even in the hot plates.

But, the other items included some continental meats, Brie (my favourite) other cheeses, fruit and of course the lovely olives.

So, that along with the bubbly and chatting to the couple who were on our flight tomorrow, we had a lovely relaxing evening sharing stories and worries about testing and flying, we were all in the same boat.

We headed to our room around 8pm and switched on the tv and watched some nonsense and made a cup of tea......I have no clue what we watched but we did a Skype with Kyle before we settled down to hopefully having a good sleep before our long flight day tomorrow. Today`s stresses had completely disappeared now.

Now we just hoped we`d be able to sleep!!!

So excited for this report! Congratulations to your lovely Kyle on his new appointment!!!!! How wonderful for him. Ugh, the waiting on test results is truly sickening but so thankful you got the go ahead! Can't wait to read more!

 

[Worfiedoodles]

​

Well.

We`re back and finally over the lousy jetlag......although not a complaint as we are just glad to be travelling as normal again, so we`ll take the jetlag and go with it. So, here goes........I hope anyone reading this one enjoys it!!!





BRIEF EXTRA PRE-TRIP



The lead up to our trip had been a mix of good and some not so good stuff. We had to head up to Scotland on rather short notice for a family member who had taken ill rather suddenly. All worked out well and we did have a good giggle later when we had driven all day up to Scotland, stopped into the hospital for visiting then checked into the hotel only to realise that among the bags we had brought from home.....my mini suitcase with all my clothes in was still sitting back home on the bed!!! Yup.....no spare clothes whatsoever.......well, you have to laugh!!!

So, after we went out for dinner, we stopped off in a large supermarket that sells clothes and stocked up for the next few days with everything I`d need.......you couldn`t make it up, but we managed and had a good old laugh about it.

While we were in Scotland, Kyle got an email from a firm of Financial Advisors asking if he wanted to come in for a chat about a position with them which was very exciting for him. He had been looking to change firms and was over the moon with this opportunity. Kyle actually has a First Class Masters Degree in Chemical Engineering, but had ventured into the world of finance when he left university which many do with that kind of degree. So this would be another wonderful career move for him.

Long story short, we found out in April he had the position with this firm and he worked his months notice and left his old job on the Friday and started the new one on the Monday. He`s into his second week now and is positively loving this new move.

So, although we knew deep down he would get the position with this firm, or certainly hoped, it was still quite nerve wracking until it was confirmed officially......and add that into the worry of testing for the flight, it all added up to a stressful time all round. And all worked out wonderfully I`m happy to say!!

Which leads us to the all important travel day........

SUNDAY MAY 1ST​

No, we didn`t sleep well last night at all. We had enjoyed a lovely bottle of wine and hoped we`d sleep well....but of course excitement kicks in and I think we saw every single hour on the clock, nothing new there of course.

I think we were really stressed about having to do the Antigen tests for travel tomorrow too. This could be a disaster if they didn`t show a good result!! America is one of the few countries that still demand we test before flying into the country, but we do as we are told.

Finally got up at 6 and jumped in the shower, then headed downstairs as I was like the preverbial excited Duracell bunny. It was finally here. Tom got up not long after me and we both said goodbye to Kyle who was heading out with his running club. He had said he`d give it a miss and wait till we left, but no need. I think it`s easier us waving him off, as us leaving while he is home. We`d chat plenty on Skype and he has a lovely social life to keep him busy and of course had his new job to look forward to. Once we waved him off which always brings a small tear to my eye, we finished off last minute packing and tidied up our breakfast things and waited for our car service to come.

She arrived right on time and we set off for the journey up to the airport and we both actually fell asleep in the car on the way there and woke up about 15 minutes from Manchester Airport. Never done that before........

We got into the hotel and went straight to check in although we were far too early and knew the room wouldn`t be ready, but we wanted to hand over our luggage while we went down to the Terminal to do the fit to fly test we had to face. My stress levels at this point were through the roof and thought I was going to be ill a couple of times despite Tom assuring me it would be fine and we`d be ok. I was personally terrified.

Once luggage was dropped off with Bell Services, we were still too early for our appointment, but we wandered down to see if they could take us early, the Terminal is a 5 minute stroll away.....the place was deserted so there were no problems and we both had our samples taken and told we`d get the results within the hour.

Wandered back up and went into the hotel bar that had reopened for lunches, and we both looked at each other and our phones waiting for those all important emails that would decide if we travelled tomorrow or not. We both laughed as we grabbed our phones for each notification, and then we each got the emails with the results we wanted, finally............both negative. We would be flying tomorrow.....

We had only waited about 20 minutes, but it seemed like hours!! First thing I did was let Kyle know and my mum who I knew would be wondering too....Kyle was over the moon as he knew how worried we`d been. Then sent an email to mac, Janet and Maria who had all listened to my worries leading up to and to our friend at the hotel to let him know we`d be ok to travel too.

We ordered a pizza to share, but despite it being many hours since we had eaten breakfast, neither of us were very hungry......I thought we`d be ravenous but we picked at it when it did arrive and we didn`t order our usual bottle of fizz to celebrate the start of the trip!!

For some reason they brought us two portion of fries which we hadn`t asked for, and they were mostly untouched. Our tummies just weren`t settled yet.

We paid and headed to reception to see if a room was available and luckily it was, so we retrieved our luggage and headed up to get settled in.

Rooms are the same as always.......and always immaculately clean which we do appreciate and the bed is a decent size and usually very comfortable.

We hadn`t asked for a runway view this time, we said we`d take the first room available as we were so early, and we had a view of the City in the distance and part of the Skywalk down to T2. We`d have a view of the runway from the lounge, although I do appreciate an airport is not the most scenic of places, we do like it however.

The Executive rooms are all on the top floor with the lounge, it used to have it`s own dedicated check in desk, but staff shortages as they are, you just check in at the regular reception desk downstairs.

We almost immediately headed into the lounge to chill out the rest of the day once we had freshened up.......it is a nice space to spread out a little and I think we needed to calm our nerves that were still not completely settled at this point.

It is usually deserted this time of day, and today there was only one other couple in with us, and they didn`t last too long before they left, so it is very peaceful....

They have prepacked snacks and fruit laid out during the day along with some cookies and the usual teas, coffee, red and white wines, beer and liquor which used to be only available from 5pm, but we noticed on our last trip it is there for folks to help themselves with during the day too.

Yes, not the most scenic of views but we do love airports and although there`s not much flight activity in the pm, we do see some movement and usually the larger Etihad and Emirates planes moving around.

The lady who tends to look after the lounge is lovely, her name is Marta and she has worked there for a long time. There was no bubbly out when we came in so when she came in and asked if we eneded anything we asked if it was still available and she said of course, she just hadn`t brought it out as we were the first guests of the day.........

And as soon as we poured the bubbly.......we did begin to relax a little after one or two of them funnily enough

I don`t think we fully appreciated just how much our nerves had been rattled by the worry of the testing and the relief was palpable now and we could really now begin to start to celebrate and enjoy the build up to the trip!

We passed the afternoon easily, ipads, chatting and there was a lovely couple who were on our flight tomorrow who we got chatting to and enjoyed their company for a while, so time passed very fast in the end.

Just before 5pm, they put out appetisers and snack style food, it`s decent and is replenished frequently. It`s not fancy but it fills a hole. Usually we go down to the restaurant for dinner when we stay here, but tonight we didn`t feel like it, so we`d make do with the snacks.....and we had the bubbly and company up here too which was very nice.

I am completely addicted olives......and these ones were very nice too. The hot options from 5pm till around 7.30 were mini steak and ale pies, mini cottage pies and either veg or chicken samosas. They`re alright, but I do like hot food sizzling hot and they are just barely warm even in the hot plates.

But, the other items included some continental meats, Brie (my favourite) other cheeses, fruit and of course the lovely olives.

So, that along with the bubbly and chatting to the couple who were on our flight tomorrow, we had a lovely relaxing evening sharing stories and worries about testing and flying, we were all in the same boat.

We headed to our room around 8pm and switched on the tv and watched some nonsense and made a cup of tea......I have no clue what we watched but we did a Skype with Kyle before we settled down to hopefully having a good sleep before our long flight day tomorrow. Today`s stresses had completely disappeared now.

Now we just hoped we`d be able to sleep!!!

Let's Get It Started! Whee, so glad to be along for the ride! And I did say a little prayer of relief when you both tested negative. It would have just been too cruel if you couldn't come. I didn't realize we also share a love of olives! Mr. Worfie hates them so I get any that come his way as well

I absolutely understand not feeling like eating a meal after all that anxiety. I'm glad you were able to while away the time and start to get excited. There's nothing better than all that anticipation when you know it's happening so soon, and all you have to do is sleep first!

 

[schumigirl]

IT HAS BEGUN YESSSSSS!

lol......hope you enjoy it BH!!