And it begins, slowly (but surely)

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A few chores were left to do before JIA. We cleaned out the office refrigerator (essential!) and said a few goodbyes (our buddies Sharon and Sue!). We said goodbye to the Wilsons, Clay’s dad, our kids and our puppies. Most importantly, we went to lunch with Dad Krueger at KFC (his choice!) and had great a conversation. (See Photos). It is at the Kruegers’ that we adopted our Wilson (see photo with Ann, Dad and Wilson).

Anyway, off to Jacksonville INTERNATIONAL airport, where, ironically, there are no international flights. We needed a Bloody Mary (or 2) and let Wilson know what fun he would be having over the next couple of months.

Arrival at MIA was uneventful, except that Ann, for the first time, realized that her hiking backpack was really heavy! Clay found our hotel shuttle and to Hilton we went. Wilson was tired and took a nap for awhile. (See Photo)

Dinner at the Hilton was comical. The Restaurant, Ocean Blu, looked nice, but was pretty empty. The menu had some unique things such as Thai Spring Rolls, a Caesar salad with panchetta and a NY Strip with Cippolini onions. We ordered all of that to share.

After about 10 minutes, the server returned to our table saying that he had forgotten what we ordered for the last course (steak). Okay, fair enough. But, the Spring Roll course was cold in the middle (gross!). The waiter seemed confused but took it away. The second course was good, but where was the panchetta which was to adorn the top and was the tipping point that made us decide upon the dish? Maybe the server did not know what Pancetta was, and why it was missing was never explained, but the salad was taken away. So far, a small tasting menu, at no cost, but we wanted our food!. The Supervisor came out to talk with us and to ensure us that our last dish would be personally overseen by his own keen eye. With much fanfare, he brought to our table, the largest strip steak we have ever seen. The meat was perfectly cooked and he was beaming with pride as he left our table, with the satisfied swagger of a man who has just redeemed himself. Unfortunately for him, we are sticklers for detail and the dish was described on the menu as being accompanied by roasted cippolini onions. Oops, where were the promised and much anticipated cippolini onions? So, much to our server’s dismay, we recalled him to our table and once again asked for his supervisor. We did assure the server that it was not because of his talents or abilities (although that would have been justified) but because of the kitchen staff. When the Supervisor did return, 7 minutes after we asked for him, he told us that they had not had the onions available on the steak for "some time." We asked why the onions were still on the menu, but his only response was that they have not had them for "some time." Apparently, that is an acceptable answer in South Florida.

In the end, we sent the steak back and ordered a hamburger and cheesecake to go. At this point, we had consumed two bottles of wine and were still not fed. (Not an ideal situation.) So, we paid for our two bottles of wine and started our long trek back to our room. However, the wine made our trip to the room a little more difficult but more entertaining. We missed Wilson at dinner, but he would not have added any character to our complaints. Besides, he gets quite cranky when not fed regularly. (Raisons are like that.) After sharing our hamburger, which was really good, we went to sleep in very comfortable beds. Although the dinner was a farce, we slept well (probably due to the wine), knowing that tomorrow would bring a shower, a flight, and arrival in Guatemala City and the start of our Central American adventure! Woot woot! (Thats for you Lisa!)

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Comments

[Marianna Rader]

Love Mr. Wilson !
Wow, you guys should have gotten the wine free too ! Have some pisco sours for me when you get to Peru !