Around the Lakes in 80 hours*

Thanksgiving 2006 has come and gone. It was our first Thanksgiving as US residents, and it was a memorable one. It started at 8am on Wednesday when we headed to Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. We had cleverly avoided the Thanksgiving travel rush and went straight to the Airline counter to check-in our luggage. We had already printed out our boarding passes the night before on our home computer, which also sped up the whole process! We also got through the security (after removing jackets, shoes, laptop etc.) in a couple of minutes.

Our plane left on time, with Nathan having his very own seat for the first time. He loved the flight and was perfectly behaved for the duration of the hour long flight. We flew over Lake Erie, Detroit, Grand Rapids, and then Lake Michigan before landing in Milwaukee. At the car rental counter, we were given an option to upgrade our rental to a luxury car at a reduced rate, and of course, I said, "Yes!" Shortly thereafter we navigating our way northwards in the luxury Chrysler 300 Touring missile!

It was wonderful reuniting with the family that we spent Thanksgiving with in 2003! Our time spent in Green Bay was refreshing. The weather was much warmer than average for that time of the year, so we could spend a lot of time outdoors. Nathan made new friends with Liesel's younger cousins, who entertained him for countless hours. And the FOOD!! Delicious meals were prepared every mealtime and there was definitely no shortage of anything!
















The highlight of our trip there was a visit to the Lake Michigan beachfront! The sun was shining, and the waves were hitting the beach with vigour! It was a beautiful setting for us to throw around a football, and a baseball - slowly helping me adapt to the American lifestyle ;-)

It was sad to bid the family farewell as we reluctantly made our way back to Milwaukee. The airport procedures were again amazingly efficient, and we were soon strapped into our seats heading back to Cleveland. Onboard the jet, we were offered my favorite decadence, fresh hot chocolate chip cookies! What a fitting way to end our premiere Thanksgiving episode in the USA as permanent residents!

Go look at my new videos that I have posted at http://mccarthys-videos.blogspot.com/ !!

* the number of hours are only approximate ;-)