Oueg

GOING BACK TO MIAMI

Aaaaaaaaaand we're off!

 

FULL DISCLOSURE: I was born in Miami Beach, and grew up in Hollywood, FL. Normally, I would have flown in the day before; in this case; literally everyone I would want to visit with was unavailable or out of town the night before, so I decided to fly in the morning of the cruise. This would be fine with me... except, Mark is not a morning person. Knowing that he'd have a 4:30a wake up with no chance for breakfast, I decided to splurge on First Class tickets so he could eat a breakfast-like substance (and I might be able to catch a nap). I booked the outbound tickets through Flights by Celebrity, and opted for the airport transfer. IMHO, a good decision! (more to come)

 

We left for the airport a few minutes to 5, and got to The Parking Spot by 5:30. PRO TIP FOR HOUSTON: If you have to drive anywhere in Houston, 5a is the best time to leave to avoid traffic. Even if you're going out to dinner, leave at 5a. :D We loaded everything into the parking shuttle (with everything that Mark had forgot plus my bag and carry ons, we were up to 7 bags), and were at the terminal in no time. EDITORIAL COMMENT: Houston, IAH is a major airport hub. There were lots of people flying out early. Why not see if you can get some skycaps there before 6a? They'd definitely have some business... I would have much preferred doing a curbside check-in, then parked. Oh well...

 

Check-in was painless, and off to the security line we went. Mark and I have had TSA Pre-Check almost since it came out, and love the faster screening. EDITORIAL COMMENT: TSA, I love keeping my shoes on... but what's the point of keeping my belt on if you always ask me to remove it after I set off the magnetometer and try again? I've gotten to the point where I just take the belt off anyway. So, through the magnetometer I go, trying to hold up my shorts to prevent an episode of public nudity. In the meantime, Mark is in line for the body scanner - he has a bunch of metal in his leg plus his suspenders with metal clips, and we've found the scanner to be easier for him.

 

So I round the corner from the magnetometer, tell the TSA agent that he's mentally disabled and have to wait for him (and they are always polite and understanding about this), and turn around to find our carry on bags and... no belt. Really? RANT: I wear a size 42 belt. Did you honestly think that was your belt? Did you need one that badly? I would have chipped in a couple of bucks!

 

Fortunately, I had a spare belt... lovingly packed away in my luggage. So, I am now cursed with walking through IAH to the United Club (about 27 miles) holding my shorts up with one hand while carrying a bag with the other. Do they have stores that sell belts at IAH? Of course! Are they open at 6am? Not so much. After 40 minutes in the club, we left for the gate (another 13 miles). On the way, I stopped at every open store looking for a luggage strap, piece of rope, bungee cord... with no joy.

 

Our flight left on time, and it was great! I got us bulkhead seats, which gave Mark a little more legroom. The flight attendant showed up at the appropriate time with something that resembled an omelet like substance, which I immediately handed to Mark (he's a growing boy). I enjoyed my 4 grapes, 5 cantaloupe cubes, and two slices of orange... and before we knew it, we were on final approach.

 

Ahhhhh, Miami International. Like I said, I'm from Miami. I love Miami and South Florida. That being said, there is only one airport in the world that I hate more than MIA. La Guardia can't help it - it's the best airport that the 1960's has to offer - but it continues to amaze me that MIA can provide LGA levels of service despite having gone through multiple $billion in renovations. Again, if I could have I would have flown in the day before - and that would have been to Ft. Lauderdale. But, time was limited and we had First Class tickets so we could get our luggage quickly... except we were at MIA, and nothing happens quickly if there's a good opportunity to delay it.

 

So, we're down in Baggage Claim waiting for our bags. I see people with Carnival, Norwegian, MSC, Royal Caribbean signs... but no Celebrity rep as reassured by the friendly reservations agent on the phone. Not that big of a deal... unless you're travelling with a mentally disabled brother. You could see the waves of anxiety radiating from his body as he asked every 30 seconds what we would do if nobody from Celebrity showed up. It's a little hard to be reassuring while you're trying to manage three carry on bags while trying to keep my shorts from dropping to my ankles... but wonder of wonders, when our bags arrived there was a person standing about 15 feet away with a Celebrity sign and looking somewhat befuddled.

 

I did a quick dive into my mad - and of course, I couldn't find my belt - then it was time to follow our friendly Celebrity rep ("I was expecting a lot more people on your flight?"). She took us to a set of chairs about 50 feet from a very poorly identified Royal Caribbean transfer desk. There, we sat - and waited. And waited. And waited some more. Finally - by a remarkable coincidence - when they had enough people to fill a bus, a bus magically appeared. I pulled my shorts up and walked another 12 miles to our bus. RANT: C'mon, Celebrity, you can do better than that! Are you really saving that much on bus runs? And there was no bus staging area closer? I saw buses stopping literally at the next set of doors...

 

So, we leave MIA - and fortunately, traffic was pretty good! A little congestion on the Dolphin Expressway due to some construction, and then we pass by Miami's latest malignant growth (not my photo):

 

Yep, it was Marlins Stadium. This was the first time that I had seen it in person. RANT: This is what you tore down the Orange Bowl for?

 

But enough about that. I can't let this get me down, because we're almost at...

Let me say I am loving your touching story. I can relate well as I currently live in Hollywood (Pembroke Pines) but also!....am about to cruise for first time ever - and on Equinox). I Am quite enjoying all of these local references as I agreee fully!

Yes I fly out of FLL whenever possible and YES I am still sour they tore down the O.B. (Very) prematurely for the subject of your lovely photo! Hehe. But good for you in all of your caring efforts I must mention! So nice! 🙂