Tag Archives: USA

So Tired

29 Jun

I was feeling tired and we were not even halfway when we were in transit at SLC International Airport. I suspect waking up at 6.30am could be the factor.

We boarded our Amsterdam-bound aircraft at 8.15pm mountain time and there was a 20-minute delay before the aircraft departed at 9.20pm. Finally, on the way home.

The cabin lights before take off

Two hours into the flight, dinner was served. I watched a movie and then tried to sleep. It was so difficult. The space was not comfortable – I twisted and turned but could not find a snug position. My Mi Band2 showed four hours of light sleep and zero deep sleep. Yawn…

Before I could try again, the cabin lights were turned on and our next meal was served. Breakfast? Lunch? It’s hard to tell because it’s almost five in the morning Oregon time and almost one in the afternoon Amsterdam time.

The cabin lights before the second meal

By now the body is all confused, the perils of long distance travels. And we have one more 12-hour leg to go!

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Now We Wait

29 Jun

The goodbye was quick and thankfully tear-free. We went through security check with a small glitch – a bottle of water in the bag, so that had to be surrendered but luckily my spanking new Dutch Bros flask cleared because I remembered to empty it out.

The flight to Salt Lake City International Airport was smooth and on time. Upon descending only there was some slight turbulence. SLC Airport is kinda small. We walked the whole terminal where we are transiting and that’s it. Nothing caught our eye.

Mountain range in the background still has snow

Luckily we found a quiet corner with a table and it’s a good spot to rest, have a meal without hurry. Another four hours to go before our flight to Amsterdam as I write this…

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Heavy Heart Again

29 Jun

The inevitable has come. We are leaving today…

Yesterday, it rained on and off the whole day, adding unnecessary gloom. And I was told it hardly rains in Summer! But has it really been Summer? Save for the first couple of days, it has been cold for us throughout our stay.

Our flight departs at one but we left for the airport by eight in anticipation of heavy traffic. And for the first time, the sky was mostly grey. Dull, sad and not a single cloud or blue, a reflection of our feelings?

It stayed grey for the first 45 minutes of the journey to the airport before the sun managed to peek out.

Despite the heavy heart, we leave knowing M1 will be okay. She has started working and undertaking her graduate program studies at the same time. All grown up and doing good, we are really proud and totally in support of her next path in life.

Maybe knowing this fact, I can sleep well on the flight home.

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It’s a Wrap, Folks!

28 Jun

Today is our last day with our first born and the weather this morning reflected the sentiment – dreary and sad. The skies are crying, raining in other words. It is darn cold! Brr…

We wrap up our wonderful two and a half weeks with her (and M2 for the first week) as we prepare ourselves for the separation. There is now less activities, last minute purchases and packing to do.

Tomorrow begins our long, long journey back: 34 and a half hours from PDX to KLIA and not counting the drive to and from the airports. I feel numb just thinking about it.

The additional hours are due to an extra stop and longer transit time unlike when we came, there was only one stop at Amsterdam at a relatively short transit time. Oh well… I hope there’s more movie choices to watch on board as I have done four movies already when we were coming out. As for the transit stops, an opportunity to explore the airports I guess.

We will return with treasured memories and looking forward to our next family gathering.

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Willamette Valley Vineyards

27 Jun

We drove to Willamette Valley Vineyards after having lunch with M1 and joined their 2.00pm daily tour. It was a really small group, just us, our guide and three new employees.

The weather was lovely to be outside too as we toured the grounds. When we were indoors, we saw all the facilities, from the lab, bottling and packaging sections to the cellars.

After our tour, we stayed on for wine tasting. We tried the two choices on their Tasting Flights menu which consisted of the Daily Tasting and the Reserve Tasting. Basically the difference being the former had more whites and the latter, more reds.

Both choices had very nice flavors, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. So much so, we bought two bottles from the list – the 2016 Pinot Blanc and the 2017 Tualatin Estate Semi-Sparkling Muscat; and we will drink them this evening.

Willamette Valley Vineyards is a must-visit if one ever visits Oregon. They get my thumbs up.

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Feeling Sore

27 Jun

I didn’t think two days of golf, using rental sets could result in sore arms and upper torso. Have we both lost our touch playing golf? Or was it the putting woes that caused this? Haha… Then I remembered it was the rock climbing! That must be it.

Since the both of us are feeling sore, we decided not to play a third round of golf which was the intended plan. We will do a vineyard tour after visiting downtown and checking out the stores.

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Mind Boggling Choices

27 Jun

Yesterday I was at the stores and was browsing aisle after aisle. The choices are mind boggling!

Just for bread alone, a stretch on the aisle with so many variations. Gatorade had super sizes that I have never seen on the shelves back home. The other stuff on the shelves too, I could go on. Amazing.

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The Greens are So Tough

26 Jun

We played another round of golf today. But tee-off was 12.24pm as there was a big group already out there when we arrived at ten. So we were advised to tee-off later which we were agreeable. It worked out better because it was chilly again.

But was it better?

The green speed was just so fast! I think it’s at least an 11, and this is a public course. Very well maintained. Although I came back with a slightly better score than yesterday, the putting was just very demoralizing.

Yesterday I three-putted seven holes! Seven holes, so that’s at least an extra seven strokes. Today, I three-putted one hole less. Just can’t handle super fast greens.

Sigh and double sigh… or maybe cry.

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A Day of Activities

25 Jun

We came home for lunch after our golf game. And after a short rest, we didn’t waste time and headed for campus as I wanted to check out the bookstore again.

Then we met M1 for some gung-ho activity, rock climbing!

She wanted us to try it out and we did. It was actually quite fun and tiring. And as if that wasn’t enough, we played some table tennis, enjoying the campus facilities, before walking back.

It was 9.00pm when we reached home and I had registered 16,322 steps on my Mi Band2 by then. No wonder I was tired.

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A Tad Cold for Golf

25 Jun

The golf course, Trysting Tree Golf Club was not too far and we got there within minutes. We rented sets and teed off at ten. As I don’t wear golf gloves to play, I had to sit on my hands several times to keep them warm because the morning was rather chilly. It took a couple of holes to warm up to get used to the weather.

It was quite a challenge to look for each hole as the golf course is not like what we’re used to – trees lining the sides and clear cut buggy paths to indicate and separate. The tee box markers were very obscure and we had to really look to find them. But the condition was superb for a public course, both on the fairways and on the greens.

I couldn’t get the hang of putting because the green speed was so fast, something I don’t get often when playing back home. As a result I had many three-putts.

We even had buggy problems after we crossed over. By the 14th Hole, the buggy was sputtering and dying a slow death. When we reached the 16th Hole, it died and we had to call in for a replacement.

Despite the putting woes and buggy issue, we had an enjoyable outing, so much so, we will play another round tomorrow. As we now know what to expect, I am sure we will fare better tomorrow.

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