Travel to Seattle, Thursday 6/26

My day started out early because my flight was moved up to 8:20 am. I arrived at the airport slightly after 7:00 to check in. My first flight was a direct flight to Denver – this is the first of three times I will take this flight over the next few months. The flight was fine, a little turbulent, but over all a good flight. Unfortunately I was not so great. Something did not sit well with me or I was just over tired from the lack of sleep and I forgot to take some ibuprofen when I first started getting a headache. By the time we landed in Denver, I was not feeling well at all. Thankfully I did not get sick, but it was touch and go for a while. During the layover I drank sprite to try to settle my stomach and thankfully it did. I was not looking forward to getting on another plane in such a state. I was also very thankful to be traveling with my co-worker Jen – she was a great help in watching my stuff as I tried to recover. By the time the second flight took off I was feeling better, but already behind schedule as I planned on working during the lay over. The flight between Denver and Seattle was much smoother, and I was able to sleep for a little while, which I needed.

As we approached Seattle the scenery was amazing. We were on the left side of the plane and had the most amazing view of Mt. Rainer. The snow topped mountain was breath taking, and I made sure to change my seat on my flight out in September to be able to see it again. As we were flying over the city I noticed the bridges over Lake Washington. They looked so low, I could not figure out why they were like that. I later found out that they are not bridges, they are floating highways.

We landed on time, around 1:15 Western time, so it felt like 4:15 EST. The airport was easy to navigate and we quickly made our way to the baggage claim. Thankfully I was feeling fine by the point. The plan was for Jen and I to pick up the rental car and wait for our other co-worker, Ed to arrive. He was supposed to be about 45 min behind us. Thrifty car rental was a fiasco – it took us forever to be waited on. I was not happy. I waited over a half an hour for the clerk to wait on the two people in front of me. Then I needed to make another reservation for Saturday, we needed a mini van to serve as a shuttle on Saturday. The clerk could not help me, so I had to call the reservation number as I stood at the counter. I can not recommend them for future rentals. By the time we got through the rental issues, we found out Ed’s plane had been delayed until after 3:00 pm. So Jen and I sat down in the waiting area and did some work. I can only imagine the sight, with four cell phones and two lap tops between us, we were constantly on a phone or two and checking multiple email accounts. It set the tone for the entire weekend.

Once Ed arrived we picked up the car and decided to go downtown for a bit of fun before the real craziness ensued.