My latest travel took me to Cincinnati, Ohio through Kentucky. I booked my flights with U.S. Airways and it was the most tooth-pulling experience ever! I took an airport shuttle through the Canadian border to Detroit and my flight wasn’t until 5am. Crossing the border was such a pain as I was the only one on the shuttle. The customs officer searched my bag…thoroughly … and after a million questions finally sent me on my way.

I arrived a good 4 hours before my flight, so I had time to kill. My flight wasn’t until 5am and the only ones in the building were the maintenance crew. The chairs were uncomfortable but I managed to entertain myself by tweeting and messing around with social media. I also felt the need to adjust my bra at the most inopportune and gave a nice show for the floor cleaner. omg so embarrassing!

Now, the route of this flight was ridiculous! I had to fly to North Carolina then back to Kentucky, basically a 1-2 hour flight turned into a 4-5 hour flight. I didn’t mind the extra travel if I had more time in North Carolina, but I was boarded right away for Kentucky. Arriving at the airport was a relief! Getting to the baggage claim was a bit of a maze but I enjoyed the adventure.

I booked a hotel room in Cincinnati and what I love about the States is that one can travel from state to state in a heartbeat. In Canada, it feels like forever before you can get out of a province. It cost $2 USD to take a public bus (T.A.N.K.) and it dropped me off about a block away from my hotel. It was a beautiful sunny day when I arrived so that helped a lot since I had been traveling from Canada for over 12 hours! I had a nice breakfast bagel and checked into my hotel.

I stayed at the Garfield Suites Hotel, I booked a 1 bedroom suite and it was HUGE! It was basically a 1 bedroom apartment complete with a walk-in closet and full kitchen converted into a hotel room and I thought it was genius! I truly felt like I had moved into a new apartment..hey a gal can dream lol…The hotel staff were phenomenal, very professional and with excellent customer service. The hotel is centrally located among the attractions and many of the restaurants. I did have a nice room, however there was construction happening in the building across from me, so I had to remind myself about that little detail when getting out from the bathroom after a shower.

Although Cincinnati filled my vacation with some heavy rain, I did have some moments of sunshine where I got a chance to visit the Fountain Square and window shop at the local boutiques that lined the downtown streets. There were cafes and outdoor restaurants that were all within walking distance from my hotel.

After 4 days, Cincinnati felt like home..however my adventure was not over..AT ALL!  I will miss this place and the Skyline coneys!!

I tried to get a flight out of Kentucky and with so many hurdles and phone calls back home…I thought I would have been stranded in the airport! My flight back home wasn’t until 10am the next morning, so I had to decide whether to stay at the airport overnight or find some kind of lodging for the night. With the airport wifi and my trusty gadgets I managed to find a very inexpensive hotel that was only about a 5-10 minute distance from the hotel. I booked a room at the Red Roof Inn and they even sent a car to pick me up for a flat fee of $10USD. I was mentally drained when I checked in, but the front staff were so sweet and they made me feel very at ease after a very stressful few hours. The room was clean and comfortable, although the wifi was a bit tricky, it worked and I was able to let everyone know I was safe. I had an ok sleep because my neighbours were so obnoxiously loud with their kids yelling in the hotel room and down the hall…I did manage to wake them up nice and early with my Hip Hop music complete with full volume 🙂

This time my flight took me to Chicago then to Detroit which shaved off a good couple hours, however the flights were both delayed and the customer service of U.S. Airways was terrible. The changed the gates where the Detroit plane was flying out from and when I wanted to confirm I stood in front of this huge beastly man for about 5 minutes before he even acknowledged I was there.. In a nutshell, I will NEVER fly with U.S. Airways again!

Here’s my last meal before leaving U.S. soil:

After another full day of travel, I was exhausted, a little shell shocked and ready to see my babies. They all greeted me with excitement and stories…even my dogs seemed like they had so much to tell me! hahahaha

Despite the mishaps and weather, I must say this was an adventure filled vacation and I have no regrets…

Now…where to travel next…?

SS 😉