“D” for Disembarkation Day

Thursday, 6 July 2017

Stats @ Ship’s Time 6:30a (EDT) … UTC 10:30a (6 July)
Temp: 82F (27.8C)
Position: 25.46.45N / 80.10.69W

Don't cry because it is over, smile because it happened.
~Dr. Seuss ~

We’re currently sitting in the Insignia Lounge, waiting for our Blue 2 tags to be called.  A good time to get today’s blog post started … I’ll be writing incrementally throughout the day.

The RTW is officially over … or will be when we disembark shortly.  I have the certificates to prove it.

Proof is in the pudding certificates they say.

Let me start  by adding the nautical miles from Buoys and Baysides — the segment that started in Montréal and ended today in Miami — to the total sailed on the first seven segments.  And — drum roll, please — we covered 45,094 NM.  That’s a lot of miles no matter which way you slice and dice the world.

We were up at 6:00a.  The sun was just barely adding color to the sky … Insignia was slowly making its way to Terminal J.  We made quick work of an al fresco breakfast, said goodbye to the Terrace Café crew who took care of us so well these past months, collected our carry-on bags from the cabin, and made our way to the Insignia Lounge.  Along the way our steps halted frequently to bid adieu to fellow passengers whom we’ve come to know.  Some farewells were more difficult than others … there were some tears shed … that’s what happens when you make connections and share experiences over an extended period of time.

As Insignia approaches our disembarkation berth, a new day dawns behind us.

I’m not sure when the first tags were supposed to be called, but disembarkation began at 8:30a and seems to be going smoothly.  In fact, Blue 1 just got called.  We’re next.  Time to put the iPad away.  More later …

At the Military Lounge at MIA …

It’s 10:45a.  We’re now at Miami International Airport.  Specifically, we’re ensconced in the Military Hospitality Lounge (MHL) — once known as the USO lounge — located on Concourse E.  The primary purpose of the lounge is to give active duty military members and their families a place to relax.  Retirees like us are welcome on a space-A[vailable] basis.  That’s not a problem today … there are no more than 10 people here at the moment and the lounge is very spacious.  In fact, we got permission to ask the Gelmans to join us here, but Sonia texted that they are already through security.  We’ll meet them for lunch later.

A comfortable lounge to while away a few hours.

Continuing the story from when I turned off the iPad in the Insignia Lounge, let’s get caught up again.  I’m going into a bit more detail than I intended here … for the benefit of future O RTWers.  Some things could change, of course, but the basics would probably remain the same.  After all, why recreate the wheel if you have one that rolls along just fine.

We had an 8:45a disembarkation slot.  It was just five minutes after the designated time that the call went out for Blue 2 tags.  There wasn’t much of a line so we quickly found ourselves at the debarkation station on the Deck 5 promenade.  Concierge Diego, CD Ray, and GM Victor were standing by to see departing guests off the ship.  Hugs and handshakes … then we swiped our blue RTW cards one last time and headed to the terminal.  Eschewing the long line for the elevators, we walked down the stairs and found our bags.  All very well organized … even the porters.  Once we found and set aside our luggage, Mui went to the porter queue.  When his turn came, he got the next guy in line and came back to where I was waiting with the bags.

Next we went through Customs with all of our bags … including those being shipped to Houston with Luggage Free.  There were no Immigration formalities per se since we did that in Charleston three days ago.  We did have to show our passports, but no one asked us any questions or stamped our documents.

Once through Customs, we checked in with the LF agent outside the terminal.  He directed us to their truck to drop off our to-be-shipped bags.  We waited a minute to see that everything was loaded.  Then the porter accompanied us to the MIA airport transfer bus — a service included by O in our cruise fare.  I don’t know how many buses there were, but the driver did not wait for a full load before he rolled out of the port.

One last glimpse of our home for the past six months.

From the transfer drop off point at MIA, we walked to Concourse G where we used the Premier Access line at the United counter to check in.  Sans checked bags, our next stop was the MHL … where we just whiled away two hours.  On that note … time to pack up and go.  We need to go through security before we meet up with the Gelmans for lunch.

In the Air — UA631 from MIA to IAH …

We’re on our way to Houston.  I’ll continue from where I left off to meet up with the Gelmans.

After leaving the lounge, we went through security — easy peasy with TSA Pre✓® — and walked to Concourse H to meet up with Sonia & Boris at Gate H14.  Nearby food options were limited, but none of us wanted to walk to the food court.  So, we ended up at the Budweiser Brew House.  Sorry … can’t recommend the place.  It got food into our tummies … that’s about all I can say about it.

When we returned to our gate for the 2:28p boarding, we ran into CD Ray and a few RTWers who were booked on the same flight with us.  The A-320 that is our ‘air-chariot’ today must have just arrived from IAH as passengers were streaming off in droves.  Boarding commenced on time and we were in our seats in short order … flying first class today thanks to a really inexpensive fare we found on the day bookings opened for this date nearly a year ago.

The aircraft pushed back on time at 3:03p, and was in the air less than 10 minutes later.  I was hoping to catch a glimpse of Insignia berthed at the Port of Miami, but I was on the wrong side of the plane.  Soon after the aircraft leveled off, the cabin attendant came around with meal options — the usual airplane fare … but the cheesecake was exceptional.  This meal will serve as a stand-in for dinner ;-)

Take off scenes from MIA.  Not sure what is making Mui laugh so hard.

Thus I am once again caught up with the journal.  Mui is snoozing next to me.  We are 50 minutes out from IAH — which means we will be arriving early.  I’ll wrap up the day when we get to the hotel.

Despite some thunderheads, we have a smooth and uneventful flight.
Downtown Houston’s highrises mark our arrival at our home base.

From Room 1004 @ Sheraton North Houston …

When one lives in a motorhome and said home on wheels is stored in Houston in the summer, one needs plenty of time to run the A/C to cool it off and make it livable.  Hence our overnight stay at a hotel instead of going directly home.

UA631 was at the jetway by 4:45p — 15 minutes ahead of schedule.  We deplaned quickly enough, waited to say our farewells again to shipmates who were on the same flight, and then went off to get our bags.

The longest part of the whole ‘coming home’ thing was the walk to baggage claim … and the wait for our second bag to show up.  Though both suitcases were tagged priority, one of them took its own sweet time coming down the conveyor belt.  A short walk to the hotel shuttle stop and we were on our way to the Sheraton North Houston soon enough.  By 5:45p, we were in Room 1004 … on the club level.  We opted to pay a little extra to have the club amenities.  We’ll supplement our early dinner on the plane with snacks from the club.  Breakfast there tomorrow morning will be quicker than going to the dining room … and will sustain us through our morning chores.

We turned on the TV a few minutes ago to get the 6:00 o’clock news … it feels funny to have so many channel choices and not be stuck with MSNBC and Fox for US news.  The weather guy just said it is 94F (34C) at IAH and is predicting more of the same for tomorrow.  We definitely need to get out of here early tomorrow and pick up the motorhome before the day turns sweltering.

Now to get some snacks from the club … chill … read for a while … and then get a good night’s sleep!

Our Temporary Lodgings	Comfy Club

WOW!  It just really hit me … hard.  How fast the past six months have gone by.  Our voyage is really, really over.  I’m having a sad moment now … I think I’m allowed ;-)

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