Trip to the US East Coast

Thanks to "Sex and the City", Ibrahim and I decided to take a week off to visit the east coast of the USA... below is my "report" on the trip :)

August 12, 2005: Leaving Victoria
To save something like $1000, we took slightly complicated route: Victoria, Vancouver, Chicago, Albany, and to avoid complications, all our luggage was carry-on.

The travel agent told us that we need to be at the airport 3 hours before our flight, especially that we are flying to the US. Our flight takes off at 6 a.m., so we were there 3:30 a.m. only to find the airport closed!!!!! We waited for an hour until the counters opened at 4:30. When we got the agent, she told us that our names have been flagged as “high profile” travelers!! Surprise surprise! I wonder why?? Maybe bec we are Muslim Arabs? Anyhow, she had to make a few phone calls before she cleared us. She was really nice, and decided to put us on the 5:25 a.m. flight bec she anticipated that we will run into more trouble in Vancouver.

We bordered the plane, the captain welcomed us all, turned on the engine, and got ready for take off. A few seconds later, he announces that we all have to get off and change planes :) that was hilarious! I felt I am in a bus station not an airport :)

Anyhow, we arrived in Vancouver at 6:00 a.m. Paranoid as they are, the US customs clears passengers out before they bored the plane! They reserved an entire section in the airport and setup their offices on Canadian grounds labeled “welcome to the USA”!!!!!!!! Of course, those holding US and Canadian passports lined up in a separate line than those carrying “other” nationalities. We stood in line for a little over an hour. We noticed that all agents do not even smile! Our agent looked at our papers, asked us the same questions they ask every time, took our photos and fingerprints, then asked us to go into the next room for an interview! Just for the record, we go to the US almost every two months, and this has never happened before!

Anyhow, we went into a room to find other “high profile aliens” from Iran, Iraq and China. People emerging out of the interviewing room looked scared and pale (I am not exaggerating). From the windows we could see the agents laughing, but as soon as anyone enters the room, they put on their arrogant, sarcastic faces! There was even a Canadian young man who lives in Miami, and who was in Vancouver visiting his parents. They made him wait for 3 hours before interviewing him!!! He missed 2 flights! An hour later (by that time it was 7:50 a.m. and our flight to Chicago takes off at 8:30 a.m.), they called Ibrahim in. They asked him the silliest questions, and left him standing with no one attending to him for more than 30 minutes. They were very rude to him. They asked him what he used to do in the middle east, and he told him he sold chocolate, so the agent goes “yeah, you in the middle east are spoilt”!!!!!! among other degrading comments. I had repeatedly asked the agents about what happens if we missed our flight, and they assured me that they will take care of everything.

We were finally released at 8:40 a.m.!!! ten minutes after our flight took off!!! Of course, there was no one to help. No one even tried to help! We ran across the airport looking for an airline agent, and finally found one at the other end of the airport (20 minute run). Initially, he accused us of being late and missing the flight, but finally he understood that we were held up at the US customs from 6 a.m. to 8:40 a.m.!!! He made a few calls, and managed to put us on the next flight leaving at 11:25 a.m.

We were supposed to wait for 3 hour in Chicago airport, but thank God we managed to get seats on a flight leaving to Albany right away, so we arrived in Albany 3 hours ahead of schedule :) that was the highlight of our day!

My cousin, Raghad, and her husband, Asaad, were waiting for us at the airport. We all went out for dinner (our last meal was breakfast!), and finally hit the sack at 2:00 a.m.

Niagara Falls

The Spectacular Falls
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http://www.niagarafallslive.com/photos_of_niagara_falls.htm
We got up at 5:00 a.m., and hit the road at 6 heading to Niagara Falls. The drive was really long (5 hours) and we were all exhausted, so we took turns driving. It was all worth it! The falls are just spectacular. They say it looks better from the Canadian side, but we did not want to risk another day of interviews on the borders! We spent the whole day there: we took the “Maid of the Mist” boat down to the falls, and went down to the “Caves of the Winds” (after lining up for an hour they tell us that the cave was ruined in 1920!!!!!!).

Boston

http://www.cityofboston.gov/
Unfortunately, we did not get to see a lot of this beautiful city because as soon as we set foot in it, it started pouring rain :) so we took the bus tour, had lunch in The Cheesecake Factory, then head back home. We were in bed by 10 :)

Lake George

I drive the boat, while my supporting husband cheers me on :)
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http://www.lakegeorge.com/
Lake George is a really pretty place: a lake surrounded by green mountains! Just great views. We rented a motorboat, and an instructor taught us how to drive it. We spent the next hour surfing around the lake :)

New York City

Time Square at night
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http://www.nyc.com/
We had reserved a room at one of those trendy boutique hotels called The Hudson. Our room (the most economical choice available at the hotel) was very tiny, but extremely nice and functional; very much in line with my previous employer, SYNTAX, slogan “good design works”… I just loved it!

A few minute-walk from the hotel leads to the famous Time Square; a feast to the eyes and the ears :) you know, if you stand there for about 30 minutes, I can safely say that you will see people from every walk of life :) we saw people from all around the globe, and we even heard the music of Hakeem coming from a passing cab! It is truly fascinating :)

Again, we wish we had more time to spend in NYC, sadly, however, we had to settle for the bus tour around downtown Manhattan; we saw the Empire State Building, Greenwich Village, Soho, the Courthouse where Law and Order is filmed, the funeral home that appears in the God Father Trilogy, and tons of other attractions.

Did you think I would go to NYC and not go to a Broadway musical? No way Jose :) Unfortunately, however, the play we attended, “The Producers” was not that great though it is supposed to be a hit… I personally did not like the music nor the acting that much. Of all the musicals I have seen, The Producers is definitely the least impressive.

Of course, we had to go up the Empire State Building, so we stood in line for and hour and a half, until finally, we went up to the observatory. I have to admit it was a beautiful view, really… was it worth the wait? Well, yes and a no: yes because the view is amazing, and your visit to NYC would not count without this experience.. and no because you spend hours in line and not more than 15 minutes up there! If you were short on time, I’d say don’t go there! Still, I enjoyed it!

After that, we took the ferry to the Statue of Liberty. Perhaps 10 years ago, I would have felt that “wow” feeling that people get when they see it, however, with what the USA has been doing to the world in the past few years, it was just a statue that bore no meaning. BUT… the skyline of NYC was definitely a big hit!

NYC Skyline... and us :)
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Washington, DC

Of course, the White House photo!
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http://www.washington.org/
Washington, DC is very clean and organized… you can tell it is a city designed to impress (the area they refer to as “The Mall” in particular); every street, building and monument are sure to make you go “wow”!

The Reflecting Pool
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Again, The Reflecting Pool
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My favorite monuments are: The Reflecting Pool (where one of my favorite scenes from the movie “Forest Gump” was filmed, and WWII monument, which was completed recently. As for my favorite part of town, it is, with no doubt, Georgetown. I just LOVED it, and I am really glad Alia, Senan and Moni took us for a walk in its most vibrant street, I do not it’s name though :) thank you guys :)

The best part of the whole trip, however, was seeing some of my closest friends who I have not seen in ages (Raghad, Dima and Alia), and meeting Moni, who is a source of joy to everyone around her!