Capitals, Delays and Nuclear Medicine

I had an opportunity to visit two nation's capitals this last week. Washington DC and Ottawa Canada. I have been to these cities before, but never in the same week.  The bustle of the two cities is very similar as everywhere you turn there is another government building, memorials, constant construction and lots of people from all over the world.

Washington DC

My flight from Sacramento to Washington DC went through Houston and was without incident except for the delay from Houston to BWI (Baltimore). About 30 minutes late.  That would not have been a big deal but I was already getting in at midnight. This caused a cascade of delays that put me at my hotel about 1:30 am. I had about 4 hours of sleep before I had to wake up and make my early morning meeting. The meeting went great and gave me the afternoon before I had to catch another flight to Ottawa. I looked at getting an earlier flight but to no avail. I had to wait until 9pm to catch my flight out of DCA (Reagan National).

So I had the afternoon to take a nap or walk around DC. Since I was tired and it was hot outside (95 degrees with 80% humidity) I was prepared to get a nap, but Paige convinced me to go see the new Spiderman movie. I walked over to the nearest movie theater and for an afternoon matinee I paid $15 to see the movie. At least it was in a nice air-conditioned theater. There were only 5 other people in the movie (it was the middle of the day on a Tuesday). The movie was great, but it was eerie with the theater being so quiet.

Ottawa

After my movie I hustled back to the hotel and drove my car to the airport. With plenty of time I was able to get some work done at the airport. I was also watching as my flight was delayed 10 minutes, then 30, 60 then back to 20. I knew I might get stuck in Washington DC for the night. Luckily I was only delayed 30 minutes and arrived in Ottawa at 11pm. 

Every time I go to Ottawa it is an adventure to get through immigration. They are in the process of changing their process and procedures to make getting through immigration quickly. One of the new changes is putting in self-service kiosks that make it easy to process people. Since these are new they are still working out the kinks in the system. I ended up being red flagged for additional screening. Joy.

After waiting 30 minutes to talk to an immigration officer, I was asked a series of questions about why I am visiting, if I have ever been arrested, who I live with, and what I was doing in Toronto in 1994. Wow, they remembered that I worked in Toronto for a year and that Dallin was born there. I quickly finished all of their questions and headed to the hotel. Another late night with a little bit of sleep for the next day. Luckily I didn't have a meeting first thing in the morning and had a chance to sleep in.

I had  several meetings over the next couple of days but had some time to see parts of Ottawa. Some

of the things that caught my eye was the Changing of the Guard. I had the chance to see this from one of the buildings along the street of the marching path. I had know idea that Canada had a changing of the guard much like what I have seen in England. It reminded my that the US and Canada both had roots from England. Canada embraced more of their roots, while the American Revolutionaries did everything they could to cast off the oppression of the Kind. Funny how much we are the same and different at the same time.

Coming Home

After two days of meetings I was anxious to get home. I went to the airport with time to get through immigration before I got on my airplane. This is a nice perk of leaving from Ottawa. I go through US immigration before I get on the airplane. Luckily no incidents.  When I got through immigration I heard my flight from Ottawa to New Jersey had been delayed. This meant that I was going to miss my connection to Sacramento. I went to the flight counter and they had already booked me on another flight that went through Chicago. I actually got me home 1 hour earlier. I was very happy about that.  I caught my flight after feasting on fries with poutine and bacon. I had to have fatty foods for my HIDA scan the next day. That is my excuse and I am sticking with it. 

Nuclear Medicine

After arriving home, I looked at my original flight from Jersey and saw that it was delayed until 3am in the morning. Boy am I glad I got on a different flight. This actually gave me time to irritate my gall bladder a little bit more. I stopped at In and Out on my way home and picked up a Double-Double at 11pm at night. You got to love that In and Out stays open until 1am.

The next morning Paige took me to the doctor to get my HIDA scan done to figure out what is going on with my gall bladder. The whole week I actually felt pretty good. I was anxious to find out what was really going on with my "gut".  A HIDA scan basically injects a radioactive isotope into your blood stream and then they give you drugs that mimic eating fatty foods filling up your gall bladder and then giving you more drugs to force your gall bladder to empty. They take pictures and movies watching the function of the gall bladder.

Good news is that there is nothing wrong with my gall bladder. Bad news is they don't know where the pain in my gut is coming from. That means more tests. We will have to wait and see. In the meantime I am actually feeling pretty good.

DWP

Ottawa in January

January 8, 2017

7am (35 degree F ) Sacramento

Drove to SMF. (Sacramento International Airport). My car seems to know the way without me
paying attention. I have spent more time on the road than at home lately. I was traveling with my Demo POD which has its own Carnet(Passport). Which flying out of Sacramento is problematic. Even Though SMF is an international airport. It is not “International” on a Sunday morning (No Customs Agent to sign my carnet). I will have to get it signed in Chicago before I hop on my flight to Ottawa.

1pm  (-6 degrees F) Chicago

Glad I brought my heavy winter coat. When I got off the airplane the bitter cold came right into the jet-way. I knew it was going to be cold in Ottawa so I came prepared with heavy coat, gloves etc… Or at least the best that a Californian can get ready for the bitter cold of the great white north.  Short layover with a rush to the Customs office to get my carnet signed for the Demo POD. Made my connection with a couple of minutes to spare.

6pm (-30 degrees F) – Ottawa - You read that right, a 65 degree swing from California to Ottawa.

I forgot how cold anything below 0 degrees F really is. I sure felt it. The jet from Chicago to Ottawa was a small 50 passenger Commuter jet, very similar to the one that Intel has to shuttle people back and forth between major sites. Because the plane was so small, my DemoPOD would not fit in the overhead and I had to plane side check it. This meant I had to wait on the Jet-bridge for my bag. I have not been that cold in a long time. The Jet bridge did not cover the smaller aircraft all the way so it was just as cold in the jet-way as outside. Since it was so cold outside, we had to wait for the ground crew to come out and get the luggage. I guess they don’t make them stand outside and wait for aircraft when it is so cold. Needless to say, there were a number of us that froze on that jet bridge waiting  30 minutes for our luggage.

This is what -25 F looks like

I Retrieved my bag and headed to Customs and Immigration. Carnet and Passport in hand. I spent another hour and a half going through customs and immigration. Next, off to the hotel. It had already been a pretty long day, so I was looking forward to just relaxing before my meetings over the next couple of days.

I normally rent a car when I travel. It tends to save money since I am typically visiting several locations. This time my Ottawa based contact suggested I refrain from driving the wintry roads of Ottawa and get a taxi. That was a wise decision. I guess they figured a California boy did not know how to drive in the snow and ice. They were right. It has been over 20 years since I lived in the ice and snow of Toronto. It was nice to leave the driving to a pro.

This was my second time to Ottawa and my second time staying at the Marriott downtown. It is pretty centrally located and easy to get around Ottawa. Last time I was in Ottawa they gave me the presidential suite. One of the perks of travelling a lot in my career. No such luck this time. But I still got a nice upgraded room. My wife tried to surprise my by having a cheese plate and dessert in my room when I arrived for my birthday. But when I arrived they switched my room. She kept wondering why I didn’t mention something to her when I called. It is always nice to know that you are loved when something like that shows up.

January 9th – 9am – (-10 degrees  F)

A Narwhal in one of the buildings we walked thru

It actually was warmer this morning than the previous night. The weather here is constantly changing, and people know their way around the cold. Most of my meetings were downtown today. We spent our time walking through buildings to stay out of the cold. I remember when I lived in Toronto I could easy walk downtown without going outside. There are tunnels that connect all of the major buildings downtown. This is not the case in Ottawa. So you have periods of bitter cold between buildings. But everyone is doing it. I felt like I was a rat in a maze. I am glad I had someone with me or I would have been lost otherwise.

6pm – (32 degrees and snowing)

Snowy Ottawa

One thing I remember from living in Toronto was when it snowed it warmed up. It really does not snow when it is – 30 degrees. So the warm up was great and then the snow came in sheets. We got about 6 inches in just 3 hours. So walking home after dinner was very quiet. There were no cars or people in the streets at 9pm at night in a busy city. The snow also muffled the typical sounds of a big city. It was eerie and calm.

January 10th – 9 am (38 degrees and melting)

All of the snow from the night before was melting and causing a slippery wet and muddy mess. People were ready for the change in weather. The big heavy coats that I had seen from the days before were gone and just a sweater and light jacket were the fashion of the day.  I also saw some of the most colorful rain boots. People were ready to slosh through the messy streets of Ottawa. I of course, was not prepared for this, but I survived. I got to see an almost 70 degree swing in temperature in the 2 short days I was in Ottawa. Something I know I would not have experienced back in California.

3pm – (38 degrees) Headed home (Ya!!)

Off to the YOW (Ottawa International Airport). For a nation’s capital, Ottawa actually has a pretty small airport. But that makes it easy to get in and out of. They have one terminal and from what I could gather about 20 gates. So about half the size of Sacramento.  I still had a long day traveling home. My layover was in Chicago, which is always risky. I have been delayed out of Chicago too many times in my years of travel. I was concerned about my connection from Chicago to SFO and then on to SMF.

11pm – (42 degrees) SFO

I should have listened to my gut. My flight out of Chicago was delayed for 2 hours, which meant that I would not make my flight from SFO to SMF. I landed in SFO 15 minutes after my flight to SMF left. United gave me the option to stay the night at a local Marriott or drive home. It was already 11pm at night so I took the hotel stay and caught a flight the next morning.

So what did I learn from this trip.

Poutine Canadian Fries

• You have to dress in layers when traveling to Canada (The Great White North).
• There are flannel lined Jeans. Wish I had them on this trip.
• Don’t wear shoes, without treads on the bottom, to Canada in the winter.
• Don’t fly through Chicago (ORD). Even if another flight is longer. It will be shorter.
• Always remember the little things to show someone you love them.
• When in Canada you must try poutine canadian fries!

Safe travels!

DWP