Moving Day: Tampa to San Miguel de Allende
During our second stay in Tampa this winter, we were able to spend time with some of Steve’s sister Sandy and her husband Blair, who had driven down from New Hampshire, and their son Skye and his fiancée Issel, who had flown in from Cologne, Germany.
There was a huge winter storm moving in, predicted to bring snow, ice, and record-low temperatures to most of the United States. So the visitors wisely decided to stay a few extra days in warm, sunny Florida before driving back north. Anyway, it was great to catch up with Sandy and Blair, who have two new grandbabies. It was also great to see Skye and meet Issel, and learn about life in Germany and their wedding plans in Turkey.
We had plans to fly to Mexico on January 24, as the storm was moving from the Great Plains to the Northeast. Despite the weather reports and the offers from the airline to change our flight, we decided to keep our plans in place and hope for the best. After all, one of the benefits of traveling light (carry-on bags only) is having flexibility when plans don’t work out.
Fortunately, our flights were not canceled. But our flight to Houston was delayed, so we had to book a later flight from Houston to Queretaro. This meant a six-hour layover at IAH (Houston International Airport). It was surprisingly uncrowded, perhaps because many flights had been canceled! We didn’t have access to a lounge, but we found the next best thing: an airport restaurant in a quiet corner of the terminal, with plenty of light, space, and power outlets. The menu was pricey, but with vouchers from the airline, the meal was cheaper than a day pass to a lounge. I worked on my laptop a bit and then got some exercise by walking briskly through three of the airport terminals, enjoying the art exhibits. As long layovers go, this one wasn’t bad at all.
Our flight to Mexico went smoothly, and our favorite driver Rafa met us at the Queretaro Airport and drove us to our rented condo in San Miguel de Allende. It was our third visit to SMA, but our first time arriving late at night. We were tired and turned in soon after we arrived. The condo seemed nice already; it would be interesting to see how it looked in the light of day.
