There were no sightseeing opportunities today because we were travelling to Toronto for the last leg of our trip. We checked out of the Elk & Avenue Hotel and I was expecting there to be a phone charge on the bill because I'd had to re-confirm some reservations with Brewster Travel. However, the hotel had no record of the phone call - so it seemed to be a toll-free number I had been told to use - excellent!
The coach picked us up on time and after a trip around Banff at other hotel pickup locations and a short stop at Brewster's main office, we headed off to Calgary. There were fabulous views of the Rockies to begin with but after a while the terrain changed to endless plains and freeways. It was sunny to begin with but then the weather deteriorated and it began to snow. However, by the time we reached Calgary Airport the sun was shining again.
Check-in was trouble-free and this time the self-service check-in machine printed our boarding passes and luggage tags as expected (no delays queueing again to see someone) and we sailed through security as well. The flight was uneventful apart from some turbulence. We'd bought some lunch at the airport (our tickets said snacks only on the flight) so we were a bit surprised when a steward arrived telling us he had meals for us. Needless to say we didn't bother as we were already full.
At baggage reclaim I was irritated to find the side handle of my suitcase was broken. Normally I would be thinking of putting in a compensation claim. But as I've had the case for at least 20years, I figured it doesn't owe me anything and has seen better days anyway - so I'll treat myself to some new luggage before our next trip.
Our taxi from the airport to the hotel was quick and efficient. A bit too quick if I'm honest as the driver was obviously in a hurry to get the journey over and done with and get his next passengers. The fare was $56 and I handed him $60 and started to look for a few more dollars to give him a bit more of a tip. I was obviously too slow for him - after a few seconds he gave up waiting, jumped into his car and sped off without a word.
Our first impressions of Toronto were not good. Lots of homeless people on street corners and hanging around - I even saw one man taking a dump on the pavement - yuk! Once we'd put our luggage in the room we went for a meal at the hotel bistro then headed back to the room to shower, charge everything and get ready for the following day.
No comments:
Post a Comment