We had a nice breakfast at the Residence Inn in Roanoke, however I was suffering from GF waffle withdraw! Needless to say, the breakfast was fine. Still to find some grits, places serving oatmeal instead, however the eggs, yogurt, fruit and various nut toppings are keeping me happy! We have about a 4 hour drive to Charlotte, our southernmost destination today and where I will be attending a conference, so we were up early and out so that we could at least enjoy one attraction in Roanoke! That was the Virginia Museum of Transportation. It is a fairly small museum in what looks to be an old rail building – they have various gauges of model railroads, old cars, a Greyhound bus display, a section on airline history and then trains, trains and more trains with some older vehicles like fire engines, busses (school and public), police cars and even a tug from the Panama Canal thrown in! Andrew recognized the Panama canal tug, also called a mule, as we have watched the mules in action when taking a cruise through the canal many years ago.
Display of various gauge miniature trainsTrains everywhere! Andrew was in heaven!Here comes the train!Coming round the bend!Trains for the shorter population…Cars and more cars…Patriotic car!Some older models…The Detroit Electric Car from 1913!1949 Crosley Hot ShotEarly Studebaker….1870Newer Studebaker … 1913More modern Studebaker…. 1950!An “Earl” Vehicle – one of 2000 madeAndrew the conductorControl/switch station for trainsGreyhound exhibit to right… no pics!This speaks for itself…Early model by DaVinci for flightJet on displayAreo JetCockpit of Aero JetTrain station officeHUGE static display outside!The trains (and picnic tables)Train cars and a hummer…HUGE locomotive and fire engine!More trains….End of the road for me – now we have gravel!Of course! Covered wagons too!Andrew checking out more trains…The Panama MuleI just liked the symmetry here…Look how large that wheel is!Old School and Public buses
Now, to drive to Charlotte! We did a split of highway driving along I81 South and then got off and joined the Blue Ridge Parkway again and drove through some beautiful countryside and some small towns until we arrived at I85/I77 and then drove into Charlotte to our hotel which is the UNC Marriott. The Gluten Intolerance Conference (GIG) that I am going to is at the Hilton however the prices were pretty steep there and as the Marriott very close (about a 10 minute walk on campus) it seemed like a nice place to stay and use my points. We arrived in good time, about 5pm after about a 4.5 hour drive and were glad to park the car and relax in the lounge! Andrew enjoyed a beer I picked out for him (inside joke as I do not drink beer and have to trust the bartenders and apparently it was a good “local” IPA selection) while we had some snacks and I enjoyed some ginger ale! The ONE peeve that I have with Marriott is that they are a Pepsi loyalist and I cannot drink that soapy stuff – Coke Zero all the way!
You know that expression “Blow my Socks off”? Yup, that happened to me today. We are staying at a Fairfield Inn, which is a basic Marriott hotel. I chose it as it was on the Blue Ridge Parkway and 90 minutes from Dulles and would provide an easy drive for Andrew to get us to our next stop in Roanoke, VA. Also, in reading about the city it seemed to have a pretty cool downtown!
As the Fairfield provides a free breakfast, Andrew and I went down to check it out. Now I have a limited amount of food with me and in hotels like this I normally can have a boiled egg, fruit, yogurt, juice and tea. That is sufficient for me for breakfast and I do have a couple of protein bars with me – having Celiac Disease and being a Diabetic now, I never travel without them. We have stayed at a bunch of Fairfields over the last few years and their breakfasts are almost always the same – I can count on the items above.
You can imagine my surprise when I rounded the corner to the breakfast area and saw this:
Holy smokes! GF Section AND a GF Waffle maker???The result of my luxury!
Yup, there went my socks! They just blew off – they are gone! I have NEVER in all my travels (so 40+ years as a Celiac) been presented with a gluten free waffle machine to make waffles! Holy smokes! To have a “Gluten Free Section” was just down right amazing! The only thing that was kind of amusing to me is the basket of Udi’s muffins and bagels – as I was standing there two ladies came up and one took half of what is in the basket after I took this picture! This brought back memories of last year and the Celiac Tour of Italy where other tour groups were taking our GF Schar goodies! I said to the lady who took all the items, “is it just awesome to have all this gluten free food AND to be able to make your own waffles? You must be so excited like I am!” She looked at me, the items in her hands and said “I do not want these if they are gluten free!” She put them back and left pretty quickly and went back to her table. The other lady who was NCGS (non celiac gluten sensitive) DID share in my excitement! Andrew basically had to peel me off the ceiling so that I ate before the placed closed! I did return to the waffle maker and made another waffle to go (along with an Udi’s bagel and muffin just for safe keeping)!
As I had read about Staunton being a cool town, we went to the Visitors Centre to pick up a couple of brochures – I wanted to see if they had a map of the Blue Ridge Parkway and a map of Virginia. I had my phone with me however having a map does not hurt and that was the map that BCAA was out of. I received both things plus a package of brochures and a bit of a dissertation of all the places we should visit in Staunton. Luckily some new prey entered the Visitor Center and I could make a break for it as Andrew was waiting in the car! So we drove around Staunton and looked at some of the things on the map and then stopped at where I really wanted to go which was the Sun Spots Glass Blowing factory.
What a great experience that was! I have had the luxury of seeing glass blowing in Hawaii at a couple of different places, in Okinawa, Japan and most recently on the island of Murano, near Venice in Italy. This process always intrigues me – how something so hot can be handled and such beautiful glass items created when the glass cools and melds. The difference from the other glass blowing that I have seen is prior demonstrations were all done in teams of 2 people (mostly men) with one being the designer and the other one being the “assistant” who does the oven work and some of the prep work of the glass. At Sun Spots they do not work in teams for the most part – they work alone – which was fascinating to see done. We saw the glass blower create a heart with a curly Q on the top so it can hang and then a glass which had a mottled glass and a translucent spray embedded in it so it had a silver tone. He had wanted it to have lines going up the side too but that did not happen. The most surprising thing was the prices in the store were VERY reasonable compared to other glass companies stores that I have also visited. Yup, had to buy something very little to commemorate the occasion!
Nice southern house with a porch for sitting and sweating!Downtown street with churchAnother downtown street with churchSunspots Glass Blowing workshopHeating the glassFlattening the glassPinching the glass into a heartGlass on end of pipe ready to come offSmoothing the “join” from the pipe with a spoon and blow torchHeart in its bed for the ovenA curly Q being added with hot glassTo left of board – glass fragments for next projectRolling glass blob to make a drinking glassBlowing into the glass blob to make biggerBack to the furnace!This is where teamwork comes in – attaching another rod to bottom of glassNow working on “other end” making hole bigger to drink from!Example of the translucent spray on another piece.Applying the translucent spray in a safe environmentMain street going back to modern hotel!Passing under rail lines…. nice flowers!
Now back at the hotel, we got on our way to drive to Roanoke. Somehow I could not figure how to get ont the Blue Ridge Parkway (BRP), so we drove a bit on Highway 81 south and then took an exit and what I thought was the BRP, but instead was a country highway one earlier than we were supposed to turn. No issues – it was a beautiful drive and we still ended up where we wanted to – the Natural Bridge! This is a phenomenon that has happened where basically there is a rock bridge where the sandstone below the rock across the top has over time, disappeared. There is a huge amount of stairs to get down to the path to the Natural Bridge, so they let us drive down a one way road to the ticket taker and walk in from there. Access is pretty good in the USA I am finding! Here are the pictures below.
The drive through an arc of treesVarious houses along the wayVarious houses along the wayRolling hillsVarious houses along the wayChurch and graveyardSome ancient fencing too!Various houses along the wayNatural Bridge – how it happenedThe Natural BridgeUnder the Natural BridgeNice walk along the streamMore about the Natural BridgeTerrapin Mountain ViewpointArnold Valley Lookout
I now knew where we were on the BRP, so we easily joined it and drove it down to Roanoke – basically you drive along the ridge of the mountains where there are incredible views! Not as high as the Rockies, however as high as the Coastal Mountains. We stopped at some view points so you can see above what we enjoyed!
We got to Roanoke in good time and settled in for the evening. Part of the Marriott program at my level is you get to choose points (500) or a free items from the pantry when staying at certain lower end hotels. As the points are worth less than $4 I try and find a pantry item that is acceptable to me first, and if not I will take the points. Alas, tonight there was a pepperoni pizza in the freezer perfect for Andrew and greater than $4! I selected that so he could have something to eat for dinner while I chowed down on my waffles, turkey and cheese leftovers that we had transported from Toronto and Staunton on ice packs. It was an early night!
Our drive today – not very straight but we got there…:
Up early! Time to move onwards and that is to fly to Dulles Airport in Virginia, which is the major airport that serves Washington DC. Today we are flying to Dulles and then driving south west to Staunton, VA, our first overnight stop and where we are going to hopefully join the Blue Ridge Mountain drive south to Charlotte, NC via an overnight in Roanoke, VA.
To start, we filled up on yet another awesome buffet by the Westin and were off to Union Station where we would take the UP (that stands for Union station Pearson airport) train back to the airport to fly with Air Canada to the USA. This UP train, like our Canada Line, is a great service! In some ways it is better than the Canada Line as it only makes 2 stops, one at each TTC subway connection point prior to arriving at Union Station. The time takes about the same however it is a bit more expensive with $25 for a return ticket. As I am checking out accessibility when at these different airports, and in Canada the airport is to provide service from the curb (in this case the UP station) to the check-in for the airline, I emailed Air Canada as the website suggested that I do and you would never imagine what happened – no one showed up! It is a bit of a walk from the UP station to the Air Canada check-in for Transborder flights, however we made it! Also traveling with less luggage seems to help! As we are flying Business Class, we went to the Priority Line as I noticed several people already at/in the Special Services desk/area. Now, we are on vacation and so not wearing business attire – I believe, based on the response from the agent when we walked up, that he though we were in the wrong line. Low and behold – do not judge a book by its cover! We were in the right place. After getting checked in, we went through secuirty and up to the Maple Leaf lounge. Our flight was at 1:45pm and they told me at the lounge that I would be picked up in a wheelchair at 12:45pm no later. I thought that was awfully early and asked if I could just walk there and they said no – you are going by wheelchair and be at the desk at 12:45pm. I was able to charge some things and Andrew had his Guiness and cookies and we relaxed for about 2 hours prior to getting assistance getting to the flight. Now I know why they wanted me to take a wheelchair and they needed to leave an hour prior to the flight – that is a LONG walk to the gate! It is about twice the distance from the C gates to the last E gate at YVR. They have the wheelchair service really well set up though with a handoff point and various people able to push and rotate in and out. We got to our gate and then waited…. and waited…. and waited… at 1:30pm they explained that they were waiting on flight attendant for the flight and that it will not be long. Finally at 2:20pm we were able to board and we took off an hour late at 2:45pm. The captain did come on the overhead and welcomed us to the flight and indicated that the flight attendant on the inbound flight had gotten sick so they had to request a new one for this flight. Thus the delay. So off we fly to Washington, DC!
Up train arriving at Union StationGo trains – leaving and arriving!Andrew – Gooiness and cookies = happy!Waiting to get on the planeChecking out planes on way to runwayChecking out planes on way to runwayChecking out planes on way to runwayChecking out planes on way to runwayChecking out planes on way to runwayNew engines on this plane!Taking off from YYZ – view northTaking off from YYZ – view northOver Hamilton/Brampton areaSomewhere over the USA….First sight of Dulles (IAD) airportSouth of IAD – on a LONG final approachView looking to Washington DCSign telling our future destination!
Very nice flight on a CanadaAir Regional Jet down to the DC area. We were also really lucky that Air Canada’s gates are in the main terminal so we did not have to take those lovely “transporters” with the fin on the back to look like a blunt plane, to get to the other terminals. I understand now that there might be tunnels below the tarmac to allow people to walk between the terminals like in Chicago between B and C terminals.
After we got our luggage and I had an enchanting experience with a IAD volunteer who should probably not be volunteering as he gave me incorrect directions, we were off to get our rental car from Avis. It was SO NICE of Avis to “upgrade” us from the small SUV like a Rav4 that I had booked to a humongous black SUV – so large I would have problems getting into it and Andrew refused to drive it. So back to the priority book to downgrade. Now we are in a nice Chevy SUV that works just perfectly and is a breeze to drive. Now, off to Staunton we go! As the flight was late and it was now 5pm we had to miss the activity I had planned for when we arrived which is an aviation museum that is next to Dulles airport and while part of the Smithsonian system of museums, some people say that it is better than the one in downtown Washington DC, which I find hard to believe as I LOVE the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum! The drive to Staunton took us about 90 minutes and we were easily able to avoid the toll roads which is good as Virginia now has tollbooth free (so electronic) toll lanes which car rental companies charge you very dearly to use (toll plus $7.00 EACH TIME) unless you are at a tolling station with a person where you can pay. Google Maps makes it easy to avoid toll roads it seems so we gave it a try and worked on our way to Staunton!
In the country now west of DullesSunset over the passing farmGrain mills and the sunset
The drive we made to Staunton – avoiding tolls the whole way!
What a beautiful day to wake up to! First, to see a beautiful sunrise was awesome however then thinking the small Dash-8 commuter plane was going to crash into the hotel (it was the mirror in the room playing tricks on me) was a little strange! Pictures below.
Today we are off to explore the Toronto Islands which are just off the shore from the Westin hotel that we are staying at. In fact we look down on the people lining up for the 3 different ferry boats that shuttle people (after paying $9 for a round trip ticket) to the islands and back. However before we begin that journey – lets check out the buffet that I talked about yesterday! Here is a tour:
Toronto Island directly across with ferrySunrise in the corner of our room!GF French Toast just for moi!The “hot liquid” breakfast station w/GF oatmeal and miso soup!The cold cut, cheese and juice stationThe “hot” food breakfast station with GF Chicken sausages!I never saw such a good “sausage” sign!The cold salad and fruit station with gluten things at end
Now that we are full, it is off to the ferry line up to go over to the Toronto Islands! First, a map of what we are doing. We took the ferry (most popular one) to Centre Island and then went to the left and walked around Olympic Island, over to Centerville Amusement Park and then towards the beach at the top of Centre Island (Manitou). There we had a snack next to some lovely fountains (the 4 blue squares you can see on either side of the path before turning right and walking towards Gibraltar Point. At this time, the Toronto Airshow was in full operation, with planes flying above us which was pretty cool! Unfortunately though from Gibraltar Point as we walked to Hanlan’s Point, there were fairly tall trees along each side of the paved walking surface to taking pictures of the planes, especially the Snowbirds became a bit of a challenge! Finally at Hanlan’s Point we took the ferry back to where we originated from – basically the back door of the Westin hotel!
Here are some of the pictures that we took along the way – such a beautiful walk on a very nice Labour Day! The ferry over was quite busy (full) and it was a fairly old ferry – while these are smaller ferries, they reminded me of the ones that run in Washington State and in New York – multiple floors and wooden flooring! However no elevators or cars so we were on the lower deck which still provided a great view!
Ferry arriving going to Centre IslandOld ferry with stairs and LOTS of PFD’s!Approaching Centre Island dockWe have arrived!Crowd getting off FULL boatInteresting sign….Wide open park space on this island!Not very deep – ducks love it!Andrew checking out bridge!Now on Olympic Island looking at CityAnother City viewSwan “ride” entering amusement areaToronto’s Splash Down MountainWater Spray areaGiant chairs – check out people in them!Farmyard part of the amusement areaOverhead ridePond on way to beaches areaMore waterways between islandsMore waterways between islandsWaterway out to Lake OntarioBridge to the beaches!Nice water fountain displayNice flower gardens along walkwayRelaxing in shade having lunch by fountainManitou Beach EastManitou Beach West with rock barrierJetty out from Manitou beach areaPeople swimming! It is hot enough!Gibraltar LighthouseCN Tower popping out of tall treesTrail with oat trees on each sideTrail getting a bit more spread out nowBoats can tie up nearer to Hanlan PointFinally found the Snowbirds!Snowbirds in formation flying awayReturning to Toronto on ferryBuilding that reminded me of DubaiThe car ferry from Hanlan PointSide view of ferry to Centre IslandGraffiti on side of buildingMan playing pan flute and recorder
We walked over 9 km today so we now deserved dinner! Why not just go downstairs to the restaurant in the hotel lobby? Marriotts really have never disappointed me with being able to drum up some type of GF offering for me – whether on the menu or not! I was pleasantly surprised that on the menu there was plenty to order – I settled on a No Pep Pizza – basically a cheese pizza (no Pepperoni which is how it got its name) which I added some chicken to. Andrew had a corn beef sandwich! Both were excellent and as usual, when there is a GF desert on the menu, I have to try it! This one was Ontario strawberry Panna Cotta with GF graham crumbs and it was SO delicious after such an exercise filled day! Here are the pics!
No Pep, Pep GF Pizza with chicken (no Pepperoni’s)Luxury in a cup – GF Pana Cotta with strawberries!
Tomorrow is a travel day – off to Washington DC – Dulles Airport to start our journey to Charlotte, North Carolina!
Funny enough, we woke up early despite being in the Eastern Time Zone! As it was a Sunday, the restaurant service breakfast was open until 11am! They had a BEAUTIFUL buffet that was out of this world in terms of gluten free offerings. Of the WHOLE buffet of about 40 items to choose from, the only “off limits” items to me were the cereal and the bread options! There was miso soup, a fresh made omelete, hot options including GF turkey sage sausages, cold cuts, cheese, quinoa salad, various veggies, fruit and yogurt. They also had a toaster in back with GF bread (which Andrew thought was pound cake) from Queen Street bakery!
After a fairly large breakfast to keep us going until dinner, we were off to explore the sites of Toronto, where Andrew has never been and it has been 20 years since I have been to downtown Toronto. First on the list – the CN tower as it is a beautiful day! We walked to the tower and with a electronic ticket which I quickly purchased bypassed a HUGE line of people at the ticket booth. Was interesting to experience the CD tower, which in the 70’s was the tallest tower in the Northern Hemisphere, after less than a year ago being in the current tallest tower in Dubai! Quite a height difference! As it was Labour Day weekend it was pretty busy with people sitting at the windows making access a bit challenging however we found a space finally which looked over the CNE and the Toronto airshow that was going on at the waterfront. We went down one level to where you can stand on the very thick plexiglass and look down (not for me but Andrew checked it out) and then left the tower for our next destination – Hockey Hall of Fame!
Looking down on Union StationLooking at eastern Toronto IslandsLooking at Toronto City AirportLooking west towards OakvilleWhen CN Tower was new….Air Show displayFeature to look down and take picturesLooking North along Yonge StreetFull Circle – back to Union Station!
In front of the CN Tower was a railway display of old cars – both transit and rail cars which was interesting to see and we quickly looked at prior to moving on and walking to the Hall of Fame, which took us past the historic Royal York Hotel! We also were able to get a picture of the CN Tower looking back on it.
Sign for Railway ParkOld Streetcar and EngineOld GO Train carVarious other cars plus train building behind the displayLooking back on CN TowerThe Royal York Hotel
Both Andrew and I, more Andrew than me, like watching hockey and as it is our National Sport, we decided to visit the National Hockey Hall of Fame. What an experience we were in for! I thought it would be like some other Hall of Fame exhibits that I have seen, however that was not so! This display was very well presented, accessible once you figured out how to get to it and thorough! We totally enjoyed our time in this museum/historic display! There is so much to hockey – from the long history in Canada to various tournaments for different leagues to the different teams in the NHL and Internationally – it covered it all. What was the most amazing though was the display of the various cups – including the Stanley Cup – both original and the current one that is taken on the road. It was awe inspiring! Lets take a look!
Hockey Hall of Fame sign on Front St.The Evolution of the Goalie MaskExamples of Goalie MasksVery old goalie masks“Barely there” goalie maskCory Hirsch Canuck goalie maskPicture of the whole mask “room”Trading card wall – very early cards!Kids play area with fake ice – shootingKids play area with fake ice – goaltendingCanucks display (with Vegas)Equipment / protection changes over the years“Original Six” display of seating and other information.“Original Six” display of seating and other information.The beginnings of the NHLAs the NHL developed so did the sticks!Copy of Montreal dressing roomThe “Cup” room!The original Stanley CupThe retired “Rings” of the cupNHL winners rings (finger)The travelling Stanley CupAnother view of the Cup RoomThe hockey net from 2010 Olympics where Golden Goal was scored
We then sauntered back to the hotel (we had already exceeded 10,000 steps which for me is a lot) to take a break prior to dinner. We are going to one of my favourite Gluten Free restaurants – Riz on Yonge! This restaurant is completely gluten and dairy free, except for the beer I found out. I was so excited but exhausted at the same time! My body just did not know what to think! We got organized and called an Uber and off we went to the restaurant! Oh, what a meal we were in for! For those who know just how much I have dined out while traveling, through my employment and then while on vacation, I can hands down say that this was a top 5 meal that I will remember. The owner served us, and was quite proud to tell us about the “once a year” spring rolls with a birds nest type rice paper that was the special for the day, along with GF noodle soup (which you do not find often at mainstream restaurants). We had BOTH along with calamari, gyoza, rice and sweet and sour chicken. The food arrived fast, on their gluten free dishes and was out of this world! To finish, we shared a GF eclair – which it has been decades since I have had one of those! Check out the pictures below!
GF Chicken GyozaGF Calamari and the GF Noodle soupSpecial seafood birds nest wrapped spring rollGF Sweet and sour chickenGF Eclair with golden fork!
After dinner we took another Uber back to the hotel and then as we were exhausted, fell asleep! What a great 1st day of vacation we had!
Off to YVR we go! We are even departing our condo EARLY which is a shock for Andrew! Packed, optimized and all set for our adventure to Toronto, Washington DC, North Carolina, Montreal, Ireland and Iceland to come! Staying positive and we should not run into any issues despite them always following me around!
Quickly got checked in and through security and into the Maple Leaf Lounge-yeah-no line up like I often see when on shift, volunteering at YVR. Had a little problem with our boarding cards which was addressed and then we were able to board the plane – we were in seats 1D and 1F – what an awesome experience on my 2nd favourite plane the Dreamliner! I ought to move it to my favourite plane saying the 747 “Queen of the Skies” is no longer flying however out of respect for the “Queen”, which Lufthansa sometimes still flies into YVR, I have not retired it from my list yet. Just for you plane freaks out there – the Airbus 350 is 3rd on my list…. Was supposed to be on that plane for our flight to Toronto, however they downgraded our plane to something smaller without lay flat Business Class seats, which we had paid for, so we switched to the Dreamliner flight an hour later.
The flight was very smooth, even going into Toronto! Andrew was tickled pink (or blue) that he could watch the Lions football game LIVE on the plane – so he saw the 1st half prior to landing.
As for me, I was tickled purple that my Gluten Free meal arrived and was correct! Nothing to write home about however it is nice when I do not have to dive into my stash of protein bars within 6 hours of leaving home. I watched 2 movies – one in English and the other one in French. It was irritating when watching the French one, that you cannot turn subtitles in English OFF! Even the flight attendant commented on it!
Arriving in Toronto was a bit of a mess. No gate service for me and we had to walk to the baggage carousels. Somehow in their wisdom, Air Canada thinks they only have to take you to the top of the escalator down to the baggage hall and leave you there. WRONG. In Canada, the airline is responsible to the baggage carousel and the airport is responsible to take you to the curb, in this case, the UP train to Union Station in Toronto. We found our way to the UP station ourselves and luckily just made the train – the doors closed behind us! Very nice train service (real train not Skytrain type) that makes 2 stops and then is in Union Station.
The hotel, Westin Harbourfront Castle, where we were staying at had given me some excellent directions of how to get to the hotel from an accessibility stand point. In fact, the Westin Harbourfront actually quite surprised me with their level of service, including e-mailing me in advance to ask questions so that we had a better stay. That is when I asked how to best get to the hotel from Union Station using a mobility device. I also requested a water view room at the same time as I knew that the Toronto Airshow (similar but smaller than Abbotsford’s) was on at the same time we were going to be there.
It was a lovely, STICKY night in Toronto when we got outside of Union Station and walked in front of the lovely Fairmont Royal York Hotel and then turned towards the waterfront to get to the Westin Hotel. I have such good memories of when I worked for CP Hotels and they owned the Royal York and staying there with my parents when visiting Toronto one year.
The waterfront area in Toronto was WAY busier than I had expected it to be – however the next day we found out why. The Westin Hotel is behind the ferry terminal where 3 different ferries to the Toronto Islands. So all the people streaming by were coming home from the islands when we were trying to get into the hotel. I felt like a fish swimming up a river that wanted me to turn around and flow with them instead!
We ended up on the 25th floor in a renovated room, looking out over the Toronto Islands and could see the planes flying past to land at Toronto Island Airport. We could not see the airport due to a building in the way, however it was cool to watch the planes on their final approach. The hotel had sent us a nice fruit plate so we had some fruit and then decided to call it a night!
YVR Accessible Drop off AreaBusiness Class GF AppetizerBusiness Class GF MealFlight Map – North AmericaFlight Map – Including Reykjavik where we fly home from after Ireland!Love the Neon sign on the roof! Hotel Vancouver needs one too!
Well, we have planned, changed, reversed direction, then optimized and finalized our 2024 trip now!
We are soon off to Toronto for a couple of days, then to North Carolina and Washington DC and then back to Montreal where we will fly to Dublin, Ireland! Both Andrew and I are joining the tour for those with Celiac Disease, visiting Ireland this year. Last year when I went to Italy on the celiac trip, Andrew stayed home. This time he is joining me! After the tour ends, we will be navigating the “opposite” side of the road and going on a Guinness and scotch breweries tour along with a yarn quest! Then when we head home, we will be stopping over in Rekivek, Iceland, as Iceland Air has a very nice stop over program that does not cost you any more for a ticket home when connecting through their country.
My quest for this trip is to take a minimal amount of clothes and thus a smaller suitcase, so that all the yarn I am going to purchase can make it home! Not sure what Andrew’s goal is as he already packs pretty light…all I know is the yarn is going INTO THE SUITCASE so I do not run into “rope” issues again. If you do not know what I am referring to check out this post: What is with wool and Dubai?
Oh did 4am come EARLY! I think I only slept about 3 hour last night! Those darn alarms will not stop ringing! Time for my medication – oops – too early in the morning for it – have to power through so I can nap at the airport instead. Got to the front desk and checked out on time (this is amazing) and got into our hotel van driving us to the airport. Was supposed to be a 20 minute drive and we got there in 12 minutes – no traffic at this time in the morning! Saw the Air Canada sign and he let us off and off we go to check in!
The Air Canada check-in area was a bit of a puzzle to find – it was not yet displayed on the poles listing the airline check in counters that run perpendicular to the entrances to the International Terminal of the BKK airport. Probably because this is only about the 3rd or 4th flight out of BKK for Air Canada now that the route has been resumed. They did not really have a Business Class check in open either – when they saw us waiting for about 20 minutes in the Business Class line they all of a sudden decided to stop helping Coach customers and give us some assistance. All of a sudden there were 3 people helping us as they also realized that I needed wheelchair service. Well, lets straighten that out – I did not ASK for wheelchair service but unknown to me, as it was a stand operation (when the plane does not arrive at a gate and you are boarded on the tarmac) it is a requirement for me to get on the plane when I cannot climb the stairs. I convinced them (no idea why as I was half asleep) that we would walk to the Thai Lounge as we wanted to shop along the way – Andrew was still looking for his Bangkok t-shirt that was not too touristy. So they checked us in, took our luggage, forgot to tag my walker and then pointed us to security and off we went! Okay, after we got through security I had second thoughts about declining the wheelchair service. That was a LONG LONG LONG walk to the lounge! They said 15 minutes – it was about 30 WITHOUT shopping! Got to the lounge – funny enough Andrew and I were in the same lounge (it is the overnight lounge) when we flew to Australia and landed in BKK at about 4am and needed some extra sleep before visiting the city for the day. The large lounge (and massage therapy) were not open yet. Oh well, I needed to nap!
First, what kind of food did they have? Only thing I could find was some juice and Hagen Daz vanilla ice cream (small cup) so that would have to be my breakfast appetizer before nap time. Then I had a nap in the chair we were at and woke up and the lounge was no longer “dark” but light! That is the interesting part about the BKK airport – it has so much glass that when it is dark out the terminal is pretty dark however when it is light out the terminal is actually quite pretty, albeit very metal oriented. I then buzzed the food bar again and finally fruit was out so had some of that (stayed away from the freezer this time) and a can of Coke Zero to get some caffeine in me! Also, it was time for my medication as my body was starting to hurt from the curled up position in the chair which really was not comfortable! At check-in they told us that the wheelchair would arrive at 7:30am for our 8:35am flight. Boarding started at 7:50am. Andrew checked on the wheelchair at 7:25am and they said it was on its way. We checked again and still on the way…. I then went and stood at the door and it arrived at 7:47am so needless to say we had an express ride to the train – the guy had gotten lost and was walking very fast – good thing the gate was not far away!
We got to the gate and as people were being bussed, they do not really use boarding numbers so they were all bunched up trying to get through the gate. The escort was having problems with his language saying “excuse me” and being hear/understood so I took over by either going “beep beep” to get through the crowd or saying “excuse me” politely. I could see the gate agent from the other end also trying to make a path for us as she looked concerned that I had not arrived yet. Sure enough, I was right! The two coach passengers were already on the AmbuLift van and they were waiting on me. So down the elevator we went one by one (another tiny elevator so escort/me and then Andrew/walker) and out onto the tarmac and up into the van. It took us a while to get permission to move (all vehicles within an aerodrome need permission from the tower) and then we drove under the gates and out onto the tarmac and drove past lots of cool planes from many different countries! There was even a plane named Maha! Air Canada was the last in a long line of planes in a stand operation. The van then lifted up (like the catering trucks do) and got permission to load us onto the plane. I know from the various times that this has happened to me that there are certain things that have to be done for this to be enabled – we are the only people that can be entering the plane at the time – all other doors have to be blocked, all catering trucks have to be down and the plane cannot be being serviced in any way – such as gas, water or utilities. Baggage it seems can still be loaded. So we were sandwiched in at 2L between the open baggage door and the right engine! Pretty close to both of them! It is quite a dance that goes on to enable people who cannot climb the huge set of stairs to get onto a plane that I am very thankful for!
I immediately got snuggled into my seat – 2A and said to the flight attendant that my walker had to go into the closet as Air Canada had forgotten to gate tag it for me. They were more than happy to oblige which made me very grateful. I was SO ORGANIZED for this flight – I had everything I needed in my purse and knitting bag (and had my wool and knitting needles with me!) and I did not have to bother Andrew at all! That I think is a first as normally I forget something in my backpack. We were about 90 minutes late leaving BKK – there was an issue with connecting baggage making the plane.
Then we were off to taxi! We sure had a LONG taxi at the airport to get to the runway however the captain (of which there were 2 – 4 stripers on the flight deck and 1 – 3 striper) said we would be off the ground fairly quickly. Great tour of the airport, the fire station and we came around the corner and WOW – that is one LONG line of airplanes waiting to take off! We continued past them thinking we were going to line up (that line would take an hour to get through based on experiences in Chicago) behind them but we continued to a different runway and immediately took off! That was SO COOL!
Great views of BKK airport and of Thailand as we flew past. Lunch service started almost immediately and my food was pretty good this trip – a little overdone I think due to the extra time on the ground. During the meal time I got some shots of the shore of Vietnam as we passed over on our way over to Hong Kong, then Japan (where it became dark again) and over the Pacific to Vancouver and home! It was a pretty good flight until the middle of the Pacific where we did get some light to medium turbulence – such a lovely thing to happen when people are sound asleep! I was on my laptop and watching a movie when it happened and had to put my laptop away as it was flying everywhere while I was trying to hold it open in my hands. After about 15 LONG minutes the turbulence dissipated and the fairly smooth flight to Vancouver continued.
We arrived at YVR and I am not going to bore you with the stupid Canadian assistance that is given at the airport that is bound by the Transportation Act. Around the world they have their act together on how to assist people with Disabilities and in Canada we do a very poor job. ‘Nuff said. We breezed through customs and outside of customs I ran into a young lady who was lost – trying to get from her Air India flight (which landed at the same time) to a WestJet flight and like me, was pretty tired. So, alterative idea in place, I offered to show here where the security entrance was for WestJet flights which is in the Domestic part of the airport (and for those of you who know, basically a walk from one end of the public area of the airport to the other end – before security. But I had my reasons as I said… then I ran into a lady from Australia who was having problems with her credit card trying to use a Green Coat phone where the position was vacant and pointed her to the lady at the exchange and THEN I put my action plan into place! We went to the Domestic taxi pick up area where there was basically no one in line and got a cab home. With 5 planes into International (3 from Asia and 2 from Australia) I KNOW that the taxi line in International can be VERY nasty at this time of the day so why not go where it is better and help people out along the way? Also, this woke me up – I had my Green Coat party to go to at 11:30am!
It was a VERY interesting vacation – I did not know (well we) really did not know what to expect going to these two countries and sure enjoyed the experience – except the wool one of course!
Thai Orchid Lounge after sunriseBKK Airport hallGoing out to the AmbuLiftThe AmbuLiftOman AirThai AirLuggage compartment under AC planeVarious stand operation equipmentBKK Airport signYup, that close to the plane!Waiting for the front lift door to openPlane door!*Frost on window* bus to planeMy seat 🙂The captain’s office…Cargo operationsStairs are gone! We are going!Control towerMy favourite plane – 380Fire engines!Down the road we go…Look at that line of planes!But we are taking off!Airport and still a line of planes…BKK from the skyMore stand operationsBangkok suburbsHeading out over ThailandBeautiful greens!Getting some smog now…This is Vietnam!Lunch appetizerLunch main meal…
Well, it is our last day of vacation and we are on the search for a couple of things to bring home with us! We have been looking at the ICONSIAM mall for the last 5 days across the river from the hotel – perhaps being tormented by its noise at night – it is time to check it out! Unfortunately the hotel’s ferry boat is out for maintenance for the week so we need to take the public ferry which I think from an accessibility standpoint is a much better situation for me! The public dock is right below the hotel – however the “lane” you need to walk down to get there leaves a bit to be desired – you would think that the hotel would keep it a bit cleaner! There was dumped garbage bags (which in the heat did not smell lovely) and various other things along the side of the path.
The cost of the boat? 6 baht per person, each direction. Yup, about 3 cents each per direction! Very quickly we were across the river and at the dock on the other side! We walked near the still set up and still going on at night, Mulay KickBoxing area and into the mall which had quite the beautiful entrance! Inside it was still very exquisite – the ground floor an indoor “souk” type area and the upper floors a mall with stores. We were doing some power shopping here and once we found the elevators we were in business and found the places that we needed to go to and purchase the items that we needed to find! Now it was time to go back to the hotel to complete packing and get ready for our scheduled ride to the Le Meridien Hotel which is near the Bangkok airport, making our very early morning a bit easier! For those who have not been there, the Bangkok Airport is about 45 minutes from downtown Bangkok when the traffic is behaving!
The Le Meridien Hotel is very elegant – it is a hotel surrounding by a golf course. I did not really care what kind of room that we got here – other than the kind we booked – they were pretty upset that they could not upgrade me though! As I said to the desk clerk – for a half a night stay – please do not worry! I got a huge Thai smile from her for that comment – I guess this is one of the hotels where people’s expectations are pretty high for upgrades. As we were not going to be at the hotel for breakfast, I had the option of having 1000 Marriott points or a handmade elephant. The elephants are made by people with various disabilities so of course that was what I selected! Our room was beautiful and I would loved to spend more time there however the hotel is in the middle of nowhere! There is a nice lounge bed on the lanai and it looked over the golf course. We saw a beautiful sunset that evening – our last sunset in Thailand!
Like at the Royal Orchid – the Le Meridien provided an evening light buffet in their bar which was gratis for people high up in the Bonvoy program. Andrew had no issues eating from the small buffet but me – that was a different story! It was fairly gluten loaded. So they said they would bring me a gluten free box! And sure enough one arrived – quite cute! Andrew got the bacon skewers in the top right corner – the rest of the box was very delicious and just the amount that was needed for me this evening! We walked around the hotel a bit – it was a very nice hotel with ramps everywhere which was nice to see, and then went back to the room early so we (I) could optimize our luggage for check in tomorrow! As we were flying Business Class home, I wanted to check in one of my knapsacks as luggage so we (Andrew) had less to carry and worry about. Then it was to bed – we had a 4:30am departure for the airport scheduled!
On ferry boat to ICONSIAM mallICONSIAM dockSign for the event and entrance“Ring” for flights and stage behindThe “souk” in the mallMore of the “souk” areaView of mall extravagance! Andrew on ferry returningShangri-la HotelHotels across from SheratonRoyal Orchid SheratonAnother boat at the dock!Examples of GF on in room menuExamples of GF on in room menuExamples of GF on in room menuLe Meridien bedroomLe Meridien open bed/open bathroomLe Meridien bathroomLe Meridien lanaiView of golf course in distanceOnly way to travel on a golf course!View of green below our roomSunset is starting!Andrew taking sunset pictureSunset from our lanaiSunset from our lanaiSunset from our lanaiSunset from our lanaiHotel gifts – elephant made by PWDFairly large hotel!Seating area at bottom of courtyardInterior passageways open to elements!Interior courtyard areaReflecting pondSculptures along the hallway!My appetizer box – GF!Private residences and golf centreDancing fountain at entranceGolf centre building with reflecting poolConvention centre pavilionEntrance to hotel with rampsWalk to the poolHotel pool with infinity edgeEnd of pool displayKids pool areaStairs to the spaStairs/ramp to conference centreNight golf being played
This morning as Andrew slept in, I spent some time watching the different boat traffic on the Chao Phraya River. There sure is a lot of different traffic that goes up and down with different types of cargo!
After that, it was time to get some silk – I cannot leave Thailand without more silk! A store had been recommended to me and was also recommended quite a bit on the internet called Queen Silk – so we decided to go check it out! Well, me more than Andrew but he came along for the ride of course! It was about 3pm when we set out and the taxi driver knew exactly where we were going! I am still surprised how cheap the taxis are in Bangkok. The taxi cost is 300 baht which is about $12 Cdn for a 40 minute ride in medium (Bangkok standards – heavy Vancouver standards) to the small mall where the store was. I noticed that it was next to a Hyatt Hotel – note for future if we return – that Hyatt Hotel is a dangerous location for me! So into the mall we went and there was the store – a nice medium sized silk store and wow – the prices WERE reasonable! I could get high end 100% Thai Silk for 1500 baht per metre (which is about $37.50 Cdn). Silk like this either cannot be found in Vancouver or I have seen it in Seattle for about $75 Usd a yard. So I was getting a pretty good deal! I did buy some but it all fit into my shopping bag so I was pleased – that was my measurement of how much room was left in the suitcase! Andrew of course sat there and let me shop without much interference. He probably had fun listening to the shop lady and I chat in broken English and me so excited with all the colours (read purple)!
Then we went to the Hyatt to get a taxi back to the Sheraton. Oh boy what an unpleasant taxi ride. As Bangkok does have one way streets and some long busy roads where you can only U turn in certain areas I do understand that driving might be challenging at times but how a 40 minute ride on surface streets to get to the silk store could end up being almost 90 minutes getting home and involve a highway was beyond me. It was noisy and at times frustrating and with no working seatbelts in the cab, made me a bit anxious. When we arrived at the Royal Orchid Sheraton, they had removed the cut elephant and table from the lobby and were putting up a HUGE Christmas tree!
We decided to go up to the lounge to unwind for drinks – with me going up there immediately for some juice as my sugar was low, and Andrew following for his beer at 5pm (when they start service alcohol). So to cheer Andrew up an unusually stressed Andrew from the shopping/taxi adventure, I cancelled my GF dinner for the buffet and decided to spend our last dinner in Bangkok at the very well recommended Thai Restaurant in the hotel. I asked the lounge concierge to arrange for us to have dinner at 7pm. So we had our drinks in the lounge and I told Andrew (before he hit the buffet at 6pm) that we were going out for dinner! He was surprised and as we both needed to change, we went downstairs to our room to do that and then down to the restaurant on the 1st floor for our 7pm reservation – which really was not needed for a Monday night but you never know!
At first, they sat us in the regular restaurant – however it was not that comfortable as there was not a back on the seat (they were tables sunk into the ground) for me and there was a loud party in there. So we moved outside instead to eat in the “fresh” Bangkok river air! It really was a nice place to eat as a nice breeze blew by. We had Chicken Messman Curry, Shrimp Fried Rice and of course Pad Thai! The food was SO delicious! We were just finishing dinner and I was about to take a picture of the river when BANG! AGAIN fireworks started! This was the closest we had been to the now 4 fireworks displays we had seen in the last 9 days! These ones were simply beautiful! A great end to our night at the restaurant and our time in Bangkok!
Oil tanker – Thai styleCoast GuardFerry boatHilton Hotel Ferry BoatSpeeding long tail boatChristmas tree!Entrance to Thara Thong Thai RestaurantInside of restaurantPad Thai!Chicken Messman CurryShrimp Fried RiceNice tourist boat at HiltonLet the show begin!The end!
