US and Canada in winter - Ice Pilots NWT Yellowknife geek

[Justinf]

Flight took off on time as we pushed back pretty much right on time.
Amenities kit and PJs handed out, but I had already changed into a pair of running shorts and a T-shirt. I find the PJs a bit too warm plus my 17-year-old daughter LOVES the PJs and uses them in winter, so I saved them for her.



It's a weird time to fly. At 11.30am your body isn't ready for sleep, but at some stage you know you need some.
I decided on watching Blade Runner while I was served a few appetisers.
I had never had cavier before. But I got it on this flight.



Then some spring rolls came out.


By now we were well over ha;f an hour into the flight and I was super happy that the upgrade fairy had worked her magic.
I settled in to watch the movie with some nice chardonnay.

 

[love_the_life]

The FA put the whole bottle there for the pic. I thought it was pretty cute the she she did it.

Your story and you're stickin' to it

 

[zig]

Looking forward to hearing about Yellow Knife. A cousin of mine was a doctor there for many years, but the opportunity to visit always eluded me. He has since retired to slightly warmer climes of Vancouver.

A question about the caviar as I haven't had it on QF - is that how it was served? All on its own? or were the accompaniments not in the photo?

 

[lakeman]

Glad to see a new TR Justin !
I was thinking of your previous trips when I did a solo Canada skiing tripjust recenty.
Love the beer shot prior to boarding

 

[Justinf]

Looking forward to hearing about Yellow Knife. A cousin of mine was a doctor there for many years, but the opportunity to visit always eluded me. He has since retired to slightly warmer climes of Vancouver.

A question about the caviar as I haven't had it on QF - is that how it was served? All on its own? or were the accompaniments not in the photo?

That’s how it was served. It tasted good. I liked it.

 

[Justinf]

There are pros and cons of leaving for a 14-hour flight at 11.15am.
The pros are that if you are flying at the front of the plane, you can enjoy the service and the seat.
The cons are that your body is not wanting to sleep, but you know that at some stage you are going to need some with a 6.30am landing time at your destination.
Given my track record of watching movies on planes that leave during the day time, I knew that the multitude of food and beverage I was about to consume, I knew that paying much attention to the screen was going to be pretty slim.
Still, I'd wanted to see Blade Runner for a while and pressed play.
Meal service started and I opted for some soup to start, paired with a good red, which was quite nice.



For a main I chose the fish, which was a bit tough. Not great at all. Probably should have paired it with a nice white wine or gone the steak and mash instead. or maybe the chicken breast.



I skipped dessert and decided to rest on a cheese platter for a while. Actually I did have dessert, a very nice dessert wine. That counts as dessert to an extent doesn't it?



True to form, I can barely remember anything of the movie. Although I did settle in with a few Bailey's on ice.



Truth be known, I indulged quite heavily in dessert wine and Bailey's. Sleep was now becoming a very attractive option.
So my review of Blade Runner? Wouldn't have a freaking clue. Will have to watch it when it comes to Netflix. Bloody hopeless. It was like static background noise.
Decided to get my bed made up and see if I could grab a few hours' kip.

 

[TomVexille]

It's okay mate, lids allowed to be off for a little while

 

[Justinf]

Managed about four hours sleep, which wasn't bad considering the time of day.
However the dessert wine and Baileys had taken its toll and I felt like I had woken up after a 4am bender, which I never do these days anyway, but can just remember what it was like.
I raided the business class self-serve fridge for a couple of cans of Coke, which was an OK pick-me-up.



By now it was still still around 4 hours from our arrival into LAX and I was feeling peckish, so I ordered a cheese platter and the Coke actually didn't do the trick after all, so a coffee needed to be asked for as well.





Breakfast time eventually arrived and the cheese platter had filled me up. I attempted to devour as much as I could.


The rest of the trip was spent changing back into my normal clothes and just waiting for the impending doom that is LAX customs.
Still I was getting excited at finally arriving into Minneapolis where the temperature was forecast to be minus 14.

 

[Justinf]

Landed on time at LAX at around 6.30am and the perks of being in F is that you first off the plane.
Fortunately I breezed through customs and immigration with minimal questions and fuss.
I was excited for my trip to really begin, but we all know the trip begins the moment you step into the lounge preflight, right?
I quickly inserted my US SIM card into my mobile that allowed unlimited data while in the US and 5MG in Canada. Unlimited texts back home and unlimited landline calls, but no calls to mobiles. SIM Corner was my choice and it was good. No problems whatsoever. Recommend it. I think it was AUS$130 for a month.
I quickly got airside at TBIT and found the smokers area to be the best place just to sit. I am a nonsmoker, but at least I could get my bearings and check my messages.

A message from Delta saying my 11.45am flight to Minneapolis had been delayed until 1.50pm. Bummer.
I had originally booked the 1.45pm flight but it had been changed to 11.45am and now after being US$30 poorer I found that the 1.45pm flight would have been OK.
The joys of travel, hey?
I checked in at Delta at Terminal 3 and asked if there was any chance of an earlier flight, but the 11.45am flight was now fully booked and there was nothing earlier. Oh well. The joys of air travel.
Security took a little while but not too bad and I was inside terminal 3 by 7.30am, which would have been 4 hours before my flight but was now 6 hours.
What was I do to?
LAX terminal 3 is horrible. I know they have 'improved' it but it really was a coughhole.
I decided to try and access the Delta Sky Club even though I was not entitled to and had no luck whatsoever.

 

[Justinf]

To cut a long story short, my Delta flight to MSP eventually got delayed to 4.45pm. Just horrible if you have come off a 14-hour flight no matter what class you had been travelling in.
Considering I had got to terminal 3 just after 7.30am, that meant a nine-hour wait.
The only good thing to come out of it, was that the flight had been changed to terminal 2.
No need to go back through security. A quick shuttle bus runs you between terminals 2 and 3 at regular intervals.
I can safely say that terminal 2 is MUCH better than terminal 3. It's bigger and there are more facilities.
Terminal 3 sucks.

Once again I tried my luck at the Delta Sky CLub in terminal 2 and explained my situation but no such luck. I wasn't angry. They have rules and guielines to stick to. I just thought I would try my luck.
That left me to have a nap on the floor, which was needed as I was totally spent by now.
As you see I look 120 years old by this stage.



I managed a 90-minute nap just using my carry on as a pillow.
Still so much time left and so little to do.
It also meant my arrival time into Minneapolis was significantly delayed, but I had the instructions on how to access my Air B&B, no real stress there...or so I thought.

 

[I love to travel]

Please stop leaving us with teasers in the last sentence of your post its causing anxiety

 

[Justinf]

Please stop leaving us with teasers in the last sentence of your post its causing anxiety

Isn't that what good writers (of which I am not) do?

 

[NoName]

I feel for you with the long delay. Last time I was transiting LAX my 11:30ish AA flight to LAS was delayed, delayed, delayed again, cancelled until eventually departing approx 7:30pm. I did have the sanctity of the QF F lounge though I suppose.

 

[Justinf]

So after a good nap on a dirty floor, it was around 2pm and I decided to head to the bar.
Given that a 4.45pm departure time would get me into Minneapolis quite late and that I was flying 'first' with Delta, I thought it wasn't too risky.
Grabbed a seat at the bar and immediately started talking to two women who were both fantastic, but both separate travellers.
The one thing I wanted to avoid on my trip was that if anyone asked my opinion on Trump. I just didn't want to get involved.
Immediately (well almost) I was asked my opinion on the US president.
My stock standard answer "I'm a guest in your country and I would prefer not to comment on political issues" was met with "You can talk about anything with us".
I guess the weird thing for me in this situation was that both women were in their late 40s and one loved Trump and one hated him.
I generally just sat back and listened to their points of view, which to be honest, they argued fairly and without any hostility or degradation/
It was actually quite fascinating.

Before too long it was time for boarding on a Boeing 757 to Minneapolis.
I took my seat at 1B and was happy to finally be on my way after a massive wait at LAX.

 

[Justinf]

I'd never flown on a 757 before.
I was beyond tired and didn't really care although this flight too just less then three hours from wheels up to wheels down
The best thing thing about this flight was my seat partner.
The wonderful Emily who is a TV reporter for Minneapolis TV. We hit it off immediately and despite me sleeping for an hour or so, we had a blast. She was a wonderful companion to spend three hours with. I cannot emphasise enough how delightful she was.
The meal was OK, but not wonderful, but hit the spot.



The gorgeous Emily and the not so gorgeous me.



Before long the Mini-apple was in sight.

I collected my bag from the carousel and hopped into a cab, hoping for a quick ride to my Air B&B not far from downtown.
The air crisp and fresh at -11 degrees and I immediately felt excited at what lay ahead.
Oh how I love the cold weather for a change.

 

[JohnM]

Late aboard. BP says 1A. Emily will have to sit on my lap .

 

[Justinf]

I will say one good thing about Delta, and that's the priority luggage was always first out on the carousel. This happened the entire trip, so kudos, despite their shortcomings in other ways which I will touch on as they arise.
I jumped into a cab into the crisp night air headed to my Air B&B, which was a studio just a few blocks from downtown.
Finally I got there and followed the instructions.
The front door to the apartment complex was already open so I let myself in and tried to code for the apartment room itself.
It didn't work.
I tried all sort of different things but to no avail.
I tried texting, messaging and phoning the owner but no answer.
I sat outside for a little while in minus 14 degrees.
Thank goodness the front door was open when it shouldn't have been otherwise I would have stuck outside in the cold for over an hour.




After repeating calls to the owner to no avail, I was actually starting to get a bit worried. It was almost midnight on Sunday and I honestly didn't know what I was going to do.
Finally the owner called me after an hour of being there trying to get in. Fortunately he lived next door and was able to let me in. He'd gotten the initial code wrong so it wasn't my fault after all.
I let myself in, and pretty much went straight to sleep with it being past midnight.
This would be my home for the next three nights.

 

[Justinf]

I knew when my head hit the pillow that I could sleep for 12 hours but I didn't think it was possible almost literally.
Woke around 10am feeling jetlagged as hell and wondering just how I was even going to make it to the shower let along go outside.
The great thing about this Air B&B was that the host left a fridge full of complimentary bottled water, soft drinks and even ice cream in the freezer. Oh ice cream...you complete me.
They even left museli bars and packets of chips. All no charge.
I knew from the moment I booked, that they were terrific hosts and instantly forgave the check-in fiasco.
Still with a forecast top of -11 celcius I was keen to get out and explore this city that had only a week before hosted the Superbowl.
One of the reasons for visiting Minneapolis was that it was easy gateway into Canada and that I had pretty much ticked off every other major city on the West Coast. I realise Minneapolis not on the West Coast but it was close enough.
I ventured outside into the chilly air.


I imagine Minneapolis would be a nice place in summer. Unfortunately I will call it as I see it and it was downright boring in winter.




One of the cool things is there is a walkways that pretty much connects the whole of downtown without ever having to sniff the cold of winter. I tried it out, but I ididn't come halfway across the globe to spend it in 22 degrees.

 

[I love to travel]

Went to Mineapollis last summer still boring but the lakes area was beautiful abot 20 mins outside the CBD. Saint Paul was lovely though

 

[Justinf]

Went to Mineapollis last summer still boring but the lakes area was beautiful abot 20 mins outside the CBD. Saint Paul was lovely though

Was told to go to St Paul. would have been easy on the rail system.




SORRY: some pics have been doubled up. Still working this new thing out.