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We were all ready to go at 6:30am this morning, except for Vicki, who was six minutes late, but according to the clock in the van she was nine minutes late!! The freezing rain, which was promised to us by The Weather Channel, was a no-show, and the drive to the airport was quick and easy. I took my pillow in the van and was able to take a snooze. We arrived at the airport in Portland with plenty of time to spare, and when we were checking in, we saw that our 9:10am flight was on time. TWO minutes later, after we had dropped off our luggage at the screening station, our flight was delayed indefinitely. It was like showing candy to a child, and promptly taking it away! We got to the gate and took up an entire section of benches, where we planted ourselves as comfortably as if we were in our own living room. It was like being in a living room that happens to be next to a much-needed Starbucks.
In a few hours we were on the plane and ready to leave. There were two guys sitting behind Mr. Diaz and me. I am pretty sure it was their first time flying. The guy directly behind me was fidgeting for the whole duration of the flight, kicking my seat, and at one point the flight attendant asked him if he was all right. During take-off, I heard one of them say: “This is it, man, the take-off!” About half of the flight was pleasant, but when we started our descent into Philadelphia, I understood why Air Traffic Control had delayed us. We flew in fog and some rain for about an hour. If I had to choose between flying in heavy turbulence or flying in dense fog, I’d probably choose the turbulence. If I can see where we’re flying, I can sort of put up with the turbulence. This flight wasn’t as bumpy as some of the flights I’ve been on, but it was definitely bumpy enough for me to make a few audible gasps. I was getting really scared, because I could tell that we were close to the ground, but I couldn’t actually see it! I wasn’t able to see the ground until about five seconds before we landed. It was not pleasant…
We were about an hour late getting into Philly. The weather was treacherous! There were torrential rains and strong winds. It felt like we were in a hurricane. While Mr. Diaz and Margo went to get our new rental van, which was purple this time, Joel and I split a cab back to center city, so we could go to our apartments for about an hour before we had to leave for Longwood Gardens. On the road between the airport and center city there is a small tunnel, which happens to be at a low point of the road. The traffic was narrowed down to one lane in that place, because there were about 2 or 3 feet of water in the other lane. If you ignored the dark color and small quantity of the water, it looked like the ocean because of the waves that the wind was creating.
When I was ready to go to school, I went to the place in my apartment where I usually keep my umbrella. It wasn’t there. I was positive I had brought it back from school the last time that I used it, but apparently not…I was going to have to walk in the pouring rain without an umbrella! I had just blow-dried my hair, and I knew I shouldn’t get it wet, so I put on a coat with a big hood, and decided to take a cab. I couldn’t get a cab for about ten minutes, and if I didn’t get to school quickly, I was going to be late for our scheduled meeting time. I ended up walking without an umbrella, half-trying to keep my hood on, so my hair didn’t get wet, half-trying to avoid the large splashes the cars were making from the puddles in the street. I was completely soaked by the time I got to school, and quite cranky. My mood wasn’t much improved by the fact that my umbrella wasn’t at school either. When we got to Longwood Gardens and were ready to sprint inside from the van, it was raining in five-second phases. Margo, Vicki and I were able to walk inside without getting too wet, but Joel got really rained on.
Longwood Gardens were absolutely gorgeous, and I only got to see a small part of them. I was able to walk around just a little bit before we had to do our sound check. Everything in the Gardens was so beautiful, that it would be impossible to actually describe it, but I’ll give it a try. There were many different types of orchids, there were calla lilies, poppies and many more beautifully looking and wonderfully smelling flowers that I don’t know the names of. There were different rooms, some with grass carpets, others with fountains, waterfalls and rocks, all of them surrounded by more flowers and trees than one could imagine. Our stage was decorated with gorgeous white flowers, and there were flower arrangements in our dressing rooms as well. It was such a nice place to visit and perform in; I just wish we could’ve stayed longer there!
One of the many orchids at Longwood Gardens.
A room in Longwood Gardens. The living wall of orchids is in the far back.
The room that has a grass carpet.
The stage was beautifully decorated with, and surrounded by flowers.
During the concert, the stage lights went out. Later they told us that it was somehow related to the storm, but since the process of restarting the spotlights was very noisy, they decided not to do it. It wasn’t actually that dark on stage, and I think that after the initial shock we could all see our music just fine. My first thought when the lights drastically dimmed was: “Wow, we kept going!” I think my violin was cranky because of the humidity, and during the performance it decided to play a game with me called: “Let’s see how many times I can squeak when you don’t use just the right amount of bow pressure.” It’s a game I don’t particularly enjoy…
After the concert, we attended the reception, where the crab cakes were exceptionally good, and so were the desserts. By now everyone was really tired, so we were heading home early. After we’d gotten in the van and were about ready to leave, two dessert carts attacked our van. The wind just blew them our way, and we watched them crash into the van in slow motion. It was pretty funny. We dropped Mr. Diaz at his house, and met his dog, Sami. She is a sweetheart, a yellow lab. After that, Margo dropped us all off, and parked the van for the night.
Today we’ve been in Brunswick, Portland, 29000 feet above ground, Philadelphia, Kennett Square and Philadelphia again. I think we’ve all earned a good night of rest!
Until I loosen my bow again,
Bella
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