From the Cold to the Warm

Yesterday morning I awoke to find that the temperature in Ohio had dropped from the unseasonably mild weather that we had been having, and that there was a dusting of snow on the ground.  

After reading about TSA employees that were calling in sick or even quitting their jobs because of the government shutdown, I did not know what to expect at the airport.  I arrived three hours early to be on the safe side.  As it turned out, the lines through security were not any longer than usual, and Cleveland airport was tranquil.

It was snowing lightly when we pulled away from the gate.  

Even though we had to go through the process of de-icing, we left only a few minutes later than scheduled, and arrived in Houston early.  In Houston the weather was sunny and in the upper 60s.

The flight for Mérida didn´t leave until early evening, and I had a long layover in Houston.  My former student Meredith and her husband Chuck had an even longer layover, and, after arriving in Houston from Wisconsin, actually left the airport to go have lunch at a Texas BBQ restaurant.  They met me at the gate, and we had time to sit and talk.  I had not seen Meredith since she graduated from high school in... well, I will be a gentleman and not reveal how many years ago.  She is still the sweet and intelligent young woman that I remember from my teaching days.  I had never met her husband, but Chuck seems like a really nice guy.  I think that we are going to make great travel companions!

Our flight to Mérida went smoothly.  However the lines in immigration and customs were exceptionally long.  After we got through that, my friend Alejandro was there waiting for us.  He flew in from Mexico City, and is going to join us for our four days here in the beautiful capital of the state of Yucatán.

It was 9:30 P.M. before we finally arrived at our hotel, and after freshening up a bit, we headed out to a sidewalk restaurant on the little plaza near to our hotel.  The weather could not have been more delightful... shirt-sleeve weather!  The light supper we were going to have turned out to be quite a table-full of Mexican food.  

So, here are Meredith and Chuck enjoying their first meal in Mérida.

I think that they are already falling in love with this place!  I know that I certainly felt as if I were in heaven!