Rugged Beauty Part 2 [Tahoe Edition]

**this post is from Saturday afternoon..only getting to post it now…more recent update coming**

I am writing from a plane somewhere between Reno and Chicago… closer to Reno, sadly enough. Our plane which was supposed to leave at 12:50 was canceled due to some mysterious “fuel” issue 30 minutes after we had boarded (conspiracy theories abound). The pilot told us nicely to get our things, go to baggage claim, and then back to the ticket counter. So we did. Then after an hour or so of standing in line at the counter while the 2 (sometimes 3) AA employees talked on the phone and to each other, one finally announced that we’d be boarding another plane and could we all just please re-check our bags, go back through security again, and be ready to board said new plane in about 30 minutes?

You know how when something serious really upsets you (like being potentially a day late seeing your child), sometimes its other little things that about put you over the edge? Well, for me it was the $3 bottle of water I had purchased just before boarding the first time. I purchased it and had barely gotten to drink any of it before they put us through security again. I had taken off my shoes, jacket, sweatshirt, and put this laptop into its own plastic bin and then it hit me…. I had paid $3 for stinking water and now because AA doesn’t know what they’re doing, I am going to have to throw it away. I tried to kindly ask the lady if I could just take it and her only solution was that I hang back and finish it… all 30+ ounces. For a second, I was tempted to pull out my boarding pass and my receipt and show that I had no time to use the liquid for any evil plots since I purchased it. Then I was tempted to demand that AA reimburse me the $3. But I just threw it away and tried to not take out my frustrations on the unsuspecting TSA agent.

So, I played a good news/bad news game with you and you didn’t even know it. But, hey, you got the bad stuff first right? So now we can move on.

Yesterday was awesome. David and I spent some time at the coffee shop, then went back to our room just in time to catch water steadily dripping through the ceiling (promise this is not more bad news). We called the owners and the long and short of it was that we got the honeymoon suite for our final day/night in Tahoe. While the decor was a little ‘iffy’ -(red heart shaped bath tub, red heart shaped vase, more mirrors than anyone needs in a open floor plan bedroom/bathroom- you get the picture)- the room was twice the size of our old room. It was the room David wanted to get when we were booking online, but I said it was “campy”. Oops.

After quickly switching rooms, we went to the heavenly gondola (that’s the name, not my description lest you think I am taking it too far) and hopped right on. I cannot tell you how worth the $30 tickets it was! We went some 8,000 ft in the air and got the most of amazing view of the lake we had yet to see. At the first stop, we took photos from the observation deck and ate our lunch. At the second stop, we went hiking. That mountain air gives you a good perspective on what it really means to be in shape! We hiked to the top of the mountain on the Nevada side. There was a barrier and ropes up to create a boundary, but we slid under them and climbed to the very tippy top of the mountain… unbelievable.

heavenly gondola

view from the highest point we hiked

We made it back just in time to shower and get ready for our dinner cruise. Again- amazing. The food was fantastic, but the views of Emerald Bay were to die for. The sky turned red and pink… a gorgeous backdrop for the mountains that was echoed and mirrored in the still water all around. We saw several eagles nests (no eagles, sadly) and we got to get a much closer view of the castle and the tea house. The Tahoe Queen returned to port around 8p and the California air was cool and crisp.

Emerald Bay

Emerald Bay from the boat

This morning we woke early, packed and got on the road for Reno. My friend Heather has lived in Reno for a little over a year and it was a blast to get to see her. She lives in the coolest apartment on the second floor of an old firehouse. Loved it. We went to breakfast at a place called Peg’s, got to see her new church building downtown, and walked by the river. Heather is one of those people that makes you wish you lived closer to wherever it is that she’s living.

And then we came to the airport… and well, you know how that went. I won’t belabor the point or complain any more about the water I didn’t get to keep, let alone the $3 I lost. Just praying that there is a flight leaving Chicago for Columbus after 8p so I can get home to the my “best” boy. That’s what he told me on the phone this afternoon, “you’re my best, Mom”. American Airlines, I don’t think you want to stand in the way of all that.

Later friends. Photos on facebook have been updated.

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