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Published: August 24th 2009
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Fri., August 7, 2009 - Departure from LAX to Miami - Overnight Layover The day for Passporters Expedition 2009 in the Dominican Republic, had finally arrived. Passporters In flight, Jave, Explorer and I were very excited about the adventures that awaited us. We were even thrilled about our overnight layover in Miami. Contrary to what I envisioned, this was somewhat of a stressful morning for me since I was still shopping and packing thirty minutes prior to the time I was supposed to meet my ride to the airport! We planned to arrive two hours ahead of time as suggested, but the mall didn't open until 10:30 am and we were due at the airport at 12:30 pm. Nevertheless, we made it to the airport on time thanks to my cousin Lauren who took us. Furthermore, our self check-in process went very smoothly.
Only one order of business was left after getting through the TSA check point and finding our departure terminal. I wanted to change from a window seat to an aisle seat. The attendent advised that she only had middle seats available, so I had her change my ticket to one. We said a group prayer and
then I soon heard over the intercom, "now boarding group 5". Let's G-O. As soon as I entered and got to my section of the airplane, I noticed a little boy in my middle seat. His father vacated his aisle seat to sit next to the window. Thank God, I got my aisle seat afterall! This is going to be a GREAT trip! Next stop Miami!
We landed in Miami right on schedule at 10:40 pm. We took a cab to our hotel, Springhill Suites. The room was very nice with a contemporary feel to it. Everyone freshened up, but we were faced with an unexpected challenge. At LAX, our luggage was checked in to meet us in Santo Domingo, so we couldn't change into the our outfits that we bought specifically for the Mansion Night Club...LOL! Also, our cab driver informed us that Wal-Mart was the only store opened where we could purchase clothes and that it was 20 miles in the opposite direction of our destination. My cousin let me borrow a shirt from his carry on luggage. Other than than that, we had to sport the same clothes from our five hour flight.
Determined to
make the most of our night in Miami, we caught a cab to Miami Beach. The nightlife in Miami is plentiful and vibrant. Clubs don't shut down until 5 am. It was 2 in the morning and we were in search of food. The Fat Burger sign caught our eye like no other. It turned out to be the perfect alternative to Puerto Sagua, the Cuban restaurant that we planned to try, but was closed earlier than expected. After refilling on food, we were energized for the world renowned Mansion Club.
The line at the Mansion was long and it looked like we were in for a lengthy wait to get in, even though we prepaid for our tickets which were waiting for us in Will Call. We only waited ten minutes and then we were in. That's including the time that we had to deal with grief at the door over dress code issues.
Mansion definitely lived up to its name. I was impressed with its grandeur in size and entertainment. Armed with the amazing DJ Irie, go-go dancers, cool bartenders and a packed crowd, it was an action packed night. We returned to our hotel around
5 am, by way of our hilarious taxi cab driver, Pierrot Lherrison, who didn't seem to know his way around the city too well. Meet Mr. Lherisson in
Passporters Expedition 2009 - Lost in Miami (unplugged) Sat., August 8, 2009 - Departure from Miami to Santo Domingo I knew that I shouldn't have "rested my eyes", which is what I like to call what I'm doing when I don't want to admit that I'm exhausted...LOL. We almost overslept and missed our free continental breakfast. I only ate yogurt, a blueberry muffin and drank cranberry juice, since I didn't want to take a chance with greesy foods. The shuttle took us to the Miami International airport and we boarded our plane enroute to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Miami Beach was more fun than I had anticipated! Give me an overnight layover there anytime. 😱
Passporters Expedition 2009 - blog continued in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic....click Next Entry.
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