End of the Road

I know, I know, I kinda just left everyone hangin when I touched back down on US soil. I sincerely apologize for that, I do. It was a combination of exhaustion, illness, and just needing a break to help me get my life back in order that fueled my month long sabbatical from blogging.

I landed in Los Angeles on April 30, with an overnight layover before a flight to Atlanta and then to Philly on May 1. I flew with Qantas on the way back and this was the single most enjoyable flight I've ever been on. Who knew flying could still be pleasant and comfortable? Qantas should just make a bid to take over every domestic carrier with have here in the US. What made it so good? Lemme tell you! First off, I was in a window seat and as luck has it, the middle seat was open so me and the guy in the aisle seat were VERY happy to have the extra wiggle room, especially since he was on the tall side. I always feel bad for tall people on flights. I mean, where are they supposed to put their legs for X hours? Anyhoo, we take off to begin the 13 hours to LA and soon afterwards, we are given a menu card with the details of our meals and the timeline for service for the duration of the flight. Swanky! After we were in the air for a bit and the captain made all pertinent announcements, dinner service started. I was near the front so I was served relatively quickly. I chose the beef with vegetables and penne pasta with a nice Cabernet to go with it (all booze is free!). I even had a glass to drink from. The food was very good, restaurant quality and the wine relaxed me to a peaceful state. After some chocolate for dessert, the staff came around with small travel bags with socks, eye mask, and water for our comfort. The shoes came off and the socks went on, only adding to my relaxation. Can I add that I am in economy? I can only imagine how good it was for those a-holes in first class. They must get lobster, opium and lap dances the whole way home. Some time later after the entire plane was fed dinner, the staff come around again with a bag with more water and snacks like fruit gummies, raisins, chocolate, and something else I can't remember. It was perfect to go with the in flight entertainment. Instead of having one movie playing that is usually something you would never watch and you have to pay $5 for headphones, every seat has a personal TV screen built into the headrest in front of you and you have a remote control to select your choice. I know that other carriers have this option as well, but what was awesome was the selection of movies, TV shows, and music that was available. Dozens of options, movies that just left theaters, popular TV shows - the main point here is you would want to watch these things! I watched 3 movies and some documentary on Roger Federer before trying to get some ZZZZZZ. I pull the eye mask down, the blanket come up and I rest my head on the fluffy pillow. Bliss! I woke up a short time later for breakfast (ham frittata with spinach and beans) and we land in LA a bit later, on time and not feeling too worse for wear. Qantas, I adore you.

I make my way to get my backpack to check it through security and customs. They have to check my hiking boots for dirt, but it was nothing like the scrutiny your stuff gets in Australia and New Zealand, due to their unique ecosystems. Didn't you ever see the Simpsons where Bart takes a frog into Australia? I finally get through and I make my way out and to ground transportation. A few weeks prior, I made arrangements to stay with my friend Fil while I was in LA. He lives in Dallas, but travels to LA often since he works for Fox Studios so he called a meeting and booked a hotel so I had a nice, comfy place to stay. Yay! I make my way to the Intercontinental Century City hotel and my 'Pretty Woman' moment begins. Dressed in a t-shirt and cargo pants, with a backpack on my back, I do not blend into the hotel surroundings at all. This was one fancy hotel and I was initially overwhelmed. Christ, does Fil run the company? The staff offered to carry my belongings, but I was fine and everyone was very pleasant and helpful. I got to the room, contemplated taking a bath, but instead showered and relaxed a bit before Fil came back. We took the afternoon and went to Venice where I got a bike, he a skateboard and we proceeded to drink up and down the beach and just catch up on life and the details of my travels. Many, many hours later we headed back to the hotel, a little worse for wear (my exhaustion was catching up with me) ordered room service and passed out. The next morning, we were both flying at practically the same time so we got the car, stopped at In & Out Burger (heaven!) and were off to LAX for our flights. After we parted I was really annoyed that I didn't have a direct flight into Philly. I should've spent the extra to get one, but you really aren't worried about the flights home when you are planning your trip. My last two trips to/through Atlanta were horrible, resulting in tears and anger so I didn't have high hopes for this leg. To my surprise, we landed on time and I had just enough time to make it to my connecting flight to Philly. Only two more hours until I'm home!

Finally, the plane lands in Philadelphia. I'm home. Nope, it didn't feel weird. It almost felt like I was coming home from a long weekend somewhere. I go to retrieve my backpack when I notice a strange odor coming from my bag. Uh oh. I had carefully (or so I thought) packed a 6-pack of VB for a friends and it survived the overseas flight, but not the cross country flight it seems. Shit. I take it to the SEPTA platform and open her up. 2 busted bottles, beer all over my clothes and broken glass everywhere, but luckily it spared my papers and brochures I collected along the way. A fitting ending to my world travels. Now I smell like a hobo. I take the R1 back to Market East and then complete my journey by walking the four blocks to my apartment. I'm officially home! I did it!

So what will happen to WW14 now? I'm going to be spending most of my time this summer working to get my bank accounts back to their former glory, but I'm going to do many day trips to the beach, amusement parks, wineries, etc, and comment on them. Nothing too terribly exciting, but I hope you enjoy the 'little' adventures as well.

Cheers!