Trip to Brunswick GA

It looks like I managed to get another big bite of life. My Sweetie and I went to Brunswick, Georgia to visit with my old high school buddy John Wilson. Last time I had visited with John was in 1963-- 40 years ago. As always each of our little travels ends up being an adventure. We left home for the Dulles Airport at 15:35 on Thursday 12 June, arrived at Dulles at 1600, where Tanya met us and took the car to park it. We went directly to the counter got our tickets, and went to the gate to stand by for a 1700 flight. A violent thunderstorm came through and poured rain for 15 minutes. We knew that the flight schedule would be disrupted, but we had no clue how badly it would affect our trip to Jacksonville, Fla. All four flights headed for Jacksonville were overbooked. Our particular aircraft was in Richmond in a thunderstorm, unable to leave the ground and was being delayed more every minute. Other flights were having similar difficulty, and Monika was ready to call it quits and go home. I said several prayers asking for the Lord's will for this trip.

We could see another thunderstorm headed towards the Dulles Airport. The situation did not look bright, but I had faith so we waited. Finally an aircraft arrived at our gate at about 2015. A few moments later a second aircraft arrived at that gate and we were pretty sure one of them would be ours. Just when things were looking up, the gate agent called for all passengers going to College Park. One of the ground crew came in and told her that was not going to happen, that something was wrong with the aircraft and that the flight would be canceled. She verified that with the cockpit crew and then announced " I am sorry but this flight has been cancelled. You will have to make arrangements to spend the night and come back in the morning". People who had been waiting for four hours, and who had tickets in hand, had their hopes dashed on the ground. Tempers flared, and our hopes dimmed as we were standbys and it did not look good even for those with a full fare ticket. Monika and I went to get something to eat, and assess the situation. Another thunderstorm blasted across the airport. Visibility was reduced to about 100 yards in driving rain. After a few minutes I could see the trailing edge of the storm, and we went back to the gate to find out that another aircraft at pulled up to that gate and it looked like things were beginning to move. The gate agent told us that the aircraft for the 1700 departure to Jacksonville had finally come in from Richmond. She informed us that as soon as the aircraft was refreshed there would be ready to leave for Jacksonville. She reminded us that the flight was overbooked and other flights had been canceled meaning there were more people who needed a ride. Finally, at 2035, we began boarding an airplane that had been due to leave at 1700. It was overbooked, the gate agent was overstressed after listening to numerous complaints and outbursts of anger about canceled flights, and she was hungry and tired.

Monika sensed the exact moment to step in and help. I have no idea what she said, but a moment later the gate agent issued Monika two tickets and we got on the plane. The next challenge was to find a cockpit crew. The captain of the plane had been caught in the weather also, and had run out of hours for the month. He could no longer fly and they needed it to find a replacement. So a captain was called and we waited for him to arrive. The announcement made by the flight attendant was, “We need another Capt. and we're sure there is one somewhere in the terminal, so be patient we try to find a new captain for you.

At 5 minutes to nine, a new captain boarded the airplane and settled in. The weather remained uncooperative, so even when he was settled in we waited another 20 minutes for clearance to taxi to the runway.

Finally at 2130, four and one-half hours late, the 1700 flight to Jacksonville departed Dulles, and we were on our way. I had managed a brief telephone call to the Wilson's to let them know we had caught a plane, so they knew we were enroute.

Other than flying through several rain storms, the flight to Jacksonville was uneventful. We arrived at about midnight, picked up a rental car and headed north on Interstate 95. It was a short ride to Brunswick Georgia, and we found the marina where the Wilsons boat is docked. John and Paige Wilson showed up right behind us. Even in the middle of the night, it was good to see Johnny again. He has accomplished a lot in life first as a doctor and genetics researcher, as a professor at Yale, and now he has a successful Dentistry practice in Brunswick GA. To be honest I would never have recognized him on the street even in broad daylight. Nor could I have expected him to recognize me. But there we were in the middle of the night in tropical Georgia old friends bridging a 40 year gap. What a moment!

Our hotel room was the Wilson’s yacht, a 49 ft. power yacht with all the trappings and appointments. They showed us to our “hotel Room” and pointed out some of the amenities. I had to walk back to the car to collect a few things, said good night to the Wilson’s. As I was walking back to the boat alone, it was very dark and stormy. There were clouds, lightning on the horizon and distant thunder all round us. The atmosphere was thick with tropical moisture, the moon glimmered through breaks in the clouds, and as I was walking, suddenly I heard the gentle whoosh, whoosh, whoosh of wings. A large dark bird flew past only a few inches away from my head. I could feel the wind from its wings on my face. Startling! I didn’t know birds flew around at night except for owls. As I continued to walk across the marina to the Wilson’s yacht I heard a splashing sound as some fish breached the water and splashed back in. Sort of spooky. The air-conditioning and the fans in the yacht combined with how tired we were after such a long day. It was a recipe for instant sleep. As I lay down, the boat gently rocked me a couple of times and I was out. Both of us slept very well. Waking up on the yacht was also a very special. The gentle rocking of the boat and the nearly constant breeze were very peaceful. I got up at about 0515, turned on the coffee, and took a peek outside. It was very tropical but nice and cool. I shaved and got a cup of coffee, took it outside and stood on the dock next to the boat. As I was looking towards the setting moon, something large and dark jumped out of the water a few feet away from me. I almost lost my coffee! A few moments later another similar event occurred and I could see it was a dolphin.

I got another cup of coffee and went up on the bridge. It was really nice to sit on the bridge of the boat in the early morning breeze with a cup of coffee. I watched the egrets, sea gulls, Fisher's, and the pelicans soaring around the boats. Another treat was the dolphin playing among the boats in the marina. Eventually it was time to start the day. I got Monika up and we went to have some breakfast. It was Friday, and my friend John Wilson had to work, so we drove around the island of St. Simon for a couple hours exploring on our own. It is a very scenic place. The beaches seemed rather flat. The waves were almost nonexistent to the point where finally asked if I was actually looking at the Atlantic Ocean or simply an estuary or river. It was, of course, the Atlantic, however it is so shallow for several miles out, that large waves rarely form. We looked at some of the real-estate, some Beach condominiums and apartments, and some of the local houses. It is clear that real estate is the expensive in that area. The idea of owning a boat and paying for a slip it is very attractive. It might cost much less to own a boat and pay for a slip. At about noon on Friday we drove over to the Wilson’s House and visited with Paige for a while. She is very nice and both Monica and I took a liking to her right away. We went back to the marina, went swimming in the pool, and got ready to go to dinner. John's daughter Heather came down for the weekend to visit. The five of us went to dinner at a very nice restaurant on St. Simon's Island. After dinner we walked around the pier and talked for an hour. Saturday was going to be the big day, and we were planning an outing. So at 10:00 p.m. we all called it quits for the day.

The Wilson’s Yacht

Walking across the marina at night to our floating hotel, I was struck again by the peacefulness of that location. The air-conditioning of the boat felt very nice, and once again I slept like a baby. Saturday morning I woke up before sunrise ( 04:48 I believe) and walked out on to the docks of the marina. The air was tropical and it was probably 82 degrees, but the gentle breeze made it delightful. I started a pot of coffee and went up on the bridge to absorb the atmosphere the sites sounds and smells of someplace really new.

Smiles caused by sleeping on a Yacht

At 05:15 I decided to have a shower and shave, so I walked over to the marina building and had a very nice hot shower. I walked back to the boat, poured myself a second cup of coffee, and checked on my sweetie. She appeared to be asleep, so I went back up on the bridge. Moments later, with just a hint of sunrise, Monika was there and we had a chance to talk. It was the start of a very nice day. I watched as the sun came up and a number of people took their boats out for the day. I thought to myself that this was something I might be willing to try for a longer period of time. At 0800 John and his daughter Heather joined us on the dock. We suggested that we take the boat out that day instead of our planned trip to Fernandina (?) Island. John quickly agreed and tried to re-plan the day, however the weather would not cooperate. We went to breakfast at a very nice restaurant, and then we went back to the marina to swim and packed for potential departure that night. The Sunday flights were full or overbooked while Saturday looked like a better day to fly. Monica and I were packed quickly. I absorbed a little bit of sunshine, and when the Wilsons returned John and I had a great conversation for about an hour. Then we had to leave. At that moment the suitcases seemed very heavy. I was really enjoying this stay. We drove to the island in two cars to give John and myself a chance to talk while Monica and Paige had time together. It was actually one of the best part of the vacation. We're arrived at the beach town on Fernandina Island were we had a late lunch, watched the Dolphins playing near the docks, saw the tourists hugging a great white shark hanging from a giant hoist. Then it was time to go. We made it to the airport in a few minutes, the connections were flawless, and we were home by 8:00 p.m.. The only glitch all day was the security system on the Lexus. Tanya had parked the Lexus and locked it with my key. Now we had Monika's key instead of mine, and the car would not start with her key. So the smart anti theft system prevented the car from starting. We had to have the car towed to the Lexus dealership near our home.

Sunday was Father's Day, and I got a new grille.

I got my car key back from Tanya and it started the Lexus right up.

A good weekend by all accounts.