The trip back to Vancouver was uneventful, and I really like the service by Qantus. A smooth take-off and landing by a 747, in-seat entertainment (I saw Borat — first half going down, second half coming back), and even on a 1 hour and 50 minute flight, a hot meal. It’s a pity that this affordable and comfortable flight is only offered during Australia’s summer months, but I’ll certainly take it again if the opportunity arises. The arrival at Vancouver airport was smooth and had no problems. The Immigration officer asked about my permanent residency ID card, but when he saw the date of my paperwork, he waved me through with no further questions.
I arrived home from sunny San Francisco (and average days of 15–18° C) to temperatures well below freezing. We’ve finally turned on our gas fire as well as the electric baseboard heater in our bedroom. We don’t need much heat here (it’s a small place and only one set of windows), but it’s definitely needed this week. The small pond out back where our Koi swim has pretty much frozen over again, and I hope they survive another bout of ice over their heads.
I hear from family and friends back East that their winter has continued to be freakishly warm. I’ve always known that our temperature falls when the skies clear, and aside from a bit of snow and rain on Monday or Tuesday, it looks like we’ll be clear and cold for the rest of the week, with highs in the lower single digits.
Responding to the cold weather, I’m making ‘comfort food’ tonight: meatloaf and mushroom sauce, along with cauliflower au gratin (really, puréed cauliflower mixed with a little butter, cream, salt and pepper and topped with shredded Parmesan cheese and run under the broiler for a few minutes).
It’s fun to go to Macworld, but it’s also nice to return home, even if it’s a little colder than I’d like (and oddly enough, Cambridge would have been warmer to return to this year).
G’day David,
All my arrivals in Vancouver have been pretty good too. (That’s one out of one, so far.)
Just by the way, it’s spelt QANTAS. It stands for Queensland And Northern Territory Aerial Service. (Another common misspelling is to put a “U” after the “Q”.)
I don’t mind flying the red kangaroo myself. In fact, I’ll be doing it to New York in April, then visiting Washington, Toronto and Montreal in May. Unfortunately not Vancouver, this time. That will be next year.
Mmmm…meatloaf! *Homer Simpson-esque drool/gargle sound*
I was so intent on leaving out the first ‘U’ that one crept in by the end! Thanks for explanation of the acronym. Hopefully that will remind me how to spell it in the future.
The meatloaf turned out well. I usually do it with a ketchup, brown sugar and vinegar sauce, but this time decided that a mushroom Salisbury Steak style might do better. It hit the spot. Perhaps I should post the recipe (which is in one of the ‘Cooks Illustrated’ cookbooks…)