Mini BB Trip, Day 1 Oakland to Dallas to Philadelphia to SFO

 

Day 1: LB and THB are on an early flight to Dallas. Very early. Uber to the hotel, rest up, and head to the ballpark, a very short walk away. 

You might be asking yourself, where are all those great pics of the hotel, the pics of baseballs on the walls, the new-ish stadium above the headboard, the drinks we enjoyed at the game, pics of the roof, a great shot of the AT&T Stadium (home of the Cowboys) from THB's room. Where are those pics?

They have gone to pic heaven. THB's software has once again failed. Not 100%! Here is the surviving pic of Day 1: 

The Rangers tie up the Rays in the 9th, Rays put up 3 in the 10th to take the win, 6-3. THB's 52nd major league park is just okay, nothing too special, food very mediocre, decent draft brewski, Bock. Fortunately there is a roof, a nice 72 degrees inside while for this night game it is 94 outside. 

Day 2: LB and THB make a slight detour for our delayed flight to Philadelphia, taking an UBBER ride to the Dallas Love Field airport instead of DFW airport. No problema, just a short stop and for an additional $35 the driver drops us off at DFW.  

did this $34 cable purchased in DFW fix the problem? 

How late was the flight? Just exactly 3 hours. 

Philly airport art

great rooms at Element by Westin downtown

LB is staying for 5 nights, THB for just two

dinner Sunday night: Israeli deli mezze

Day 3: 1:05 game, Philly's vs Braves. Pleasant, low 80s, and a breeze.

it's a THB pictorial joke: no baseball pics on these hallways

THB visits the fitness center (and actually attempts to get fit)

dog pic in Philly, Dallas failed

The game is a thriller!! A 2 hit complete shutout by Philly's Jesus Luzardo, a former Athletics pitcher having a great year. Game is over in a THB all-time record: ONE HOUR FIFTY ONE MINUTES!

Day 4: THB makes it from hotel to gate in around 35 minutes, all on his own....yep, on his own, all by himself, with no help from the ground staff. 

You might ask yourself, well, how did THB get the pics for days 2, 3 and 4 on to the blog? The answer is blwoin' in the wind, my friends.

did this $34 cable purchased in DFW fix the problem? NOPE! (actually, the cable worked, nothing else did)

Thus THB waited until he got back to E-ville and downloaded the pics from his camera to the desktop where all the software, cables, and pic karma still work.

This was the last rodeo...no more fighting the pic software while on the road!

miscellanii

 

THB are off to Dallas and Philadelphia on a short baseball trip. Leave Saturday, THB returns Tuesday morning.

Tired of non-stop DJT, want to try and recover from the predicted hot weather (by scientists over 75 years ago), want to get that Hollywood finish and uplift your spirits, give another read/listen to TMFTF!!

Book Review

The Ministry For The Future, Kim Stanley Robinson (read by many, pub'd 2020): How the earth can be reclaimed from total human destruction. THB is ready to spend his summers in Zurich.

those "splashes" are from 3 guys in wetsuits swimming the length of the beach and back again (2+ miles)

your pick of which type of owl in the 2 pics: Short-eared, barn, or great horned (hint, seen from above: large, yellow wings) 

recovered treasures from the Ireland pottery excursion: can you figure out which one is a THB masterpiece?

Another local sculpture soon to be in the front courtyard of a MDC unit

Chang ad Halliday (clearly not fans of Mao)

Mao, the Untold Story, Jung Chang and Jon Halliday (married couple, pub 2006, read by Robertson Dean): This well-told story shows Mao was a horrible, self-centered killer (70 million Chinese, not including those killed during war with Nationalists) who wanted to be the ruler of the world. The equal (or worse) of Stalin, Putin, Hitler,  and DJT. Highly Recommended

The Waves, Virginia Woolf (pub’d 1931, read by Frances Jeater): a story of 6 friends told by each of them at various times (though Jeater never changes her voice). It isn’t easy to tell which one is speaking (except maybe the last chapter…and the chapter numbers aren’t spoken!). THB heard it as a long poem, a very effective way to tell a non-rhyming story. More melancholy than uplifting. Highly Recommended

Ireland Observations and last full day pics

 Observations

Sam in the passenger seat next to Pat the coachman

Tauck guide

Overall, Sam was excellent. Great singing voice, entertainment on coach was well timed, good knowledge of the history of Ireland, and not afraid to debrief on the more controversial issues. 

Local guides

Also excellent, and Sam left us in good hands on the "excursions

Excursions

Well organized and perfect for eight year-olds (there was one other on the trip). Usually two a day and form most part interactive. Not so much for the older kids. 

Meals 

Not even decent, you don't want to visit Ireland and expect to eat well. And, in the hotels, we had a number of dinners where the noise level was too much for THB (especially in the hotels). Also, several dinners started late (after 7pm) and the service was very slow. Since we were traveling en masse we rarely have the option to skip dining with the  larger group (though when given the chance, we did use room service or brought food in).

The tour group (for those that like gossip)

21 total

THB and DB and Martin 4

One family of 10, celebrating grandpa 80th. All 3 of grandpa and grandma's adult children, one spouse and 4 grandchildren. For most part, the group of 10 stuck together though twins and other 8 yr old bonded. 

One group of 3: a very upbeat, cheerful woman with her two adopted children; adopted from Russia when they were 2 years old and now are in their early 30s. 

One grandma and granddaughter just graduated from high school

Girls: 8, 16, 2 18, one 20, 4 were cousins. 

No boys!

THB would have liked more mixing; the one night that we were split up at dinner by age was the night the Irish band backed Jasmine's singing. Soooooo loud that THB went outside and sat on the patio in the shade to eat his hot dogs (best hotel food on the trip). 

Activities

Very much geared at young kids and older adults. most of the teenage girls looked bored most of the time, though they were always cheerful.

Our Last Full Day: much time on the bus to get to the cliffs and in the afternoon to be close to the Dublin airport as we are all flying out tomorrow

twins sharing one phone and two earbuds

another ruin left over from Oliver Cromwell's war against the monastery's and abbeys

tickets to the Cliffs of Moher

massive crowds on Sunday morning 

Wait a minute, THB. Who threw in this counterfeit cliff scene?

the reward for making it to the top of the cliffs

our lunch spot...inedible

too salty

best part of the meal, by far

wedding celebration

nap time

last hotel of trip: lovely

view from room

Martins have co-joined rooms around the corner

dessert on the return flight

good view of the Loft

our Loft charger conked out just before we left for Ireland. Quickly replaced thanks to EW&JW, LB, and Salvador