The Traveling Steve's

Winter in North Dakota

I had another busy work week of travel; this week in Dickinson, North Dakota.  Like last week I was quite busy all week, and between a 2am cutover on Wednesday and the 2 hour Mountain Standard Time, I was a bit mixed up on sleep and time in general.

My week started with a 9am flight on American Airlines from Orlando to Chicago. I got upgraded at the gate which was a nice surprise as the flight showed completely full.  I had breakfast on the two and a half hour flight, IMG_6890and then rested most of the flight.  When in Chicago I walked from the H gate we came into, IMG_9700 to the G gate my connecting flight left from, stopping in between at the Admiral’s Club for a quick cup of coffee.  As I was walking, I saw a huge 777 Japan Airlines plan pushing back and stopped to take a couple photos.  IMG_9695 IMG_9686We are taking a 777 next week on Qatar Airways from Hanoi to Bangkok  as a side trip, pre-cruise/tour vacation on our upcoming vacation to Vietnam and Cambodia.   We leave for the trip on Wednesday, Feb 2, and will be on several different types of planes including a 757, Airbus 380, 777, and 747.  Even as much as I fly, I always like looking at the jumbo jets when traveling thru busy international airports.

After the short layover in Chicago, I had another two hour flight on a regional American Eagle flight to Bismarck.  Although I was in 1A, it was an all coach flight.

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IMG_6900This was actually a good bulkhead seat, although there was no overhead bin at this row as it was directly across from the galley.  The nice thing about this seat is that no one can recline back on you.IMG_6895 IMG_6894

Once I arrived in Bismarck, I quickly remembered what Winter was like! Like last week in New Jersey, it was freezing, but here there was snow on the ground as well. IMG_6899 IMG_6929

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I rented a car at Enterprise at the airport since there was not a National Car Rental at this location.

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I then drove a couple hours west from Bismarck to Dickinson, North Dakota.  The drive is almost a straight shot along the freeway, and fortunately the roads were plowed fairly well.  My work week was busy with no time to sightsee, so my only photos are arriving and departing for the week.

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By Friday, however, the weather had really warmed up to a whopping 40 degrees, and felt like Spring!  The snow had mostly melted and the two hour drive back to Bismarck was easy.

IMG_9725 I had an hour or so before my 3pm flight to Chicago, connecting to my flight back to Orlando, and caught up on some emails in the Bismarck Airport.  They had several business desks equipped with power outlets and wifi, which made it comfortable for the business traveler catching up on work before their flights.

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On my flight to Chicago, I was once again aboard an American Eagle regional jet, and also in the same seat 1A.  The man behind me, as well as the man across from him all were on the same flight (and in the same seats) as the flight I had taken to Bismarck on Monday.  We chatted a bit before the flight, and then flew the two hours on to Chicago.  As we prepared to land, we flew out over Lake Michigan, which offered scenic views of the shoreline high-rises.

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As we landed in Chicago, it was getting dark, and  I took these photos as we were taxiing to the gate.

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I had an hour and a half layover in Chicago, so went to the ORD Admiral’s Club, and called DOS.  He graciously said he would meet me at the Orlando airport when I got in at 10:36pm which was nice, as I had planned on taking a cab home at this late hour on Friday night. Once home, I felt the warmth of the Florida weather, and became more into ‘vacation mode’.   While I’m working from home Monday and Tuesday, we fly to Vietnam on Wednesday for vacation, so we’re both getting anxious about our trip.

So now for the weekend, it’s unpacking from the North Dakota trip, and finish packing for our 3 week trip to Vietnam/Cambodia and Bangkok.  After a busy three weeks of travel for work so far this year, it’s almost time for vacation!  Hopefully we’ll have good internet on the trip, and I’ll try to blog along the way.  Happy Friday, and Welcome Home!

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