21st January 2014

We woke to a slightly warmer morning than yesterday. After a couple of coffees, my first task was to go online with my tablet, thank goodness for the very fast, free Wi-Fi in the room, and check in for our flight this evening. Once that was accomplished, I retrieved our passports and essentials from the safe deposit box in reception and finished packing in the room.

With everything neatly stowed away, we decided to make one last trip to Central Park. The earlier blue skies had begun to cloud over, but the temperature remained pleasantly mild for walking. Last night on the news, they warned of a winter storm expected to roll in this evening, with snow accumulation predicted to be measured in feet. Let’s hope we’re long gone before that hits!

On our way to the park, we stopped at a few stores and couldn’t help but marvel at the meat counters. The cuts of meat were absurdly thick compared to UK standards; it’s no wonder the average American is so large! Honestly, you could probably cook one steak and feed an entire family, if they can manage to lift it, that is!

Once in the park, we made a valiant attempt to traverse paths we hadn’t explored before, stopping now and then to chat with the many squirrels scurrying about in the leaf litter, busily hunting for nuts. They are incredibly tame and will pause to give you a curious look if you talk to them, almost as if they’re considering whether your conversation is nut-worthy!

Inspired by these little nut hunters, I succumbed to temptation and bought a couple of bags of warm toffee-coated nuts from the numerous temporary stalls scattered throughout the park. Sue was so impressed with her bag that, once she’d polished it off, she promptly purchased another one. Now, before you get any ideas, we didn’t feed the squirrels; those toffee-coated delights were far too delicious to share!

A little later, we stumbled upon some artists’ stalls, where we couldn’t resist picking up a couple of framed photos of the park. After all, what better way to remember our trip than with a bit of art, though I suspect the squirrels might be more memorable than the pictures!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Returning to the hotel around noon, we checked out of our room and plopped ourselves down in the bar for a leisurely lunch while we waited for our transfer to the airport. It arrived a whole ten minutes early, which is practically a miracle in these times. With seven other passengers crammed into the minibus, it felt like a sauna, but thankfully, the journey wasn’t as long as we’d braced ourselves for. The first flakes of the storm began to fall as we crossed the Hudson.

About half an hour later, despite the heavy midtown traffic that could only be described as chaotic, we were hauling our cases into JFK in blizzard conditions. Having already checked in online, I printed our boarding cards at one of the terminals and then dropped our suitcases off at the Delta Desk. Easy peasy, until we hit the security and passport control queues.

The signage at JFK is possibly the worst we’ve encountered in all our years of airport travel. It turned a simple process into a scavenger hunt, with endless lines of passengers fumbling around like lost sheep. We stood there observing for a while, trying to decipher the procedures while keeping a keen eye on those who were sprinting towards their gates, inadvertently creating more mayhem. Understandably, the airport is a frenzy of activity given the security concerns, but surely you don’t need a PhD from Harvard to put up a few arrows to guide the masses?

And as if that wasn’t enough, much later, we suspected the rather sophisticated body scanner we passed through somehow wiped the electromagnetic data off our return rail tickets in the UK. Great, just what we needed!

Eventually, feeling like we’d just undergone an endurance test, we found a seat at our departure gate and settled in for a couple of hours before our flight. Sue took the opportunity to browse the duty-free shops, while I claimed a comfy spot in a bar with a pint of porter, watching planes take off and land in increasingly difficult conditions.

Boarding the plane was a breeze, and we were surprised to find it only a quarter full. Plenty of room to stretch out! Luckily, we were the last plane to depart that evening, and the airport shut down soon afterwards due to drifting snow.

After dinner, Sue settled in to watch a film, and I sprawled across the centre seats (we had a pair of window seats, of course). I was out like a light until an hour before landing when the cabin crew woke me up for breakfast, which was probably the most pleasant surprise of the journey!

Passage through Heathrow was a breeze. At passport control, I opted for the e-passport facilities while Sue went through the regular line since her passport is a bit on the vintage side. You’ll never guess what, there was no difference in speed! We both exited at the same time. Who would have thought a human being could check the photo on a passport and match it to the person in front of them just as quickly as a machine? Shocking, really!

Once through, we found a relatively empty train waiting on the platform to whisk us off to St. Pancras. As we got closer to the city, more commuters piled on, but thankfully, we English are a refreshingly quiet bunch compared to our American counterparts. Not a word was spoken in our carriage during the three-quarters-of-an-hour journey, even as we squished together towards the end.

With a couple of hours to kill at St. Pancras, we settled into a café for drinks while we waited. Luckily, the station had free and fast WiFi, so I was able to entertain myself while Sue perused the Metro magazine. We had reserved seats on the train, which was direct to Harborough, and it turned out to be a fast but bumpy ride as I attempted to add to this blog entry.

Sarah picked us up from the station, and Nan, being the generous soul she is, offered to take us out for lunch. Naturally, we accepted without a moment’s hesitation; who could say no to a meal out?