Days 1 and 2 (November 10-11, 2021):

We are all doing our best to get through this time in history. And everyone is trying to keep their chin up. But sometimes, the strain of working in a completely different model than we have known all our lives can really get to us. Or at least to me. In that vein, I woke up one day in September and said to Pam, “I need to get away for a few days on a beach; do you?”  Well,  you can guess her answer.  So, in keeping with our tradition for most of the last 15 years to escape for a pre-Christmas “pause” around Remembrance Day, we decided to make plans to return to a Caribbean island that is one of our all-time favorites: Turks and Caicos. 

Besides the fact that it is a favourite location, what else pushed us towards T and C?  Honestly, it was the fact that the Centres for Disease Control continues to rank T and C as one of the lowest Covid risks in the Caribbean. Here is the rating scale used by the CDC to evaluate the Covid risk of all countries on earth:

Most Caribbean nations are at level four. But T and C remains at level three. Still not great, but safer than other locations. T and C requires all visitors to be vaccinated and to have a Covid test before entering. So those measures are certainly keeping the pandemic at bay here.

Our flight plans changed a few times since purchasing our tickets in September. One simply has to be willing to go with the flow and to recognize that all flight plans will likely do a few somersaults before you actually fly these days.  At least our outbound flight from Halifax to Kitchener-Waterloo remained intact, and off we left at 6:45PM for Halifax Airport and our first experience on Flair Airlines. 

Upon arriving in “K-W”, we rented a car at the airport and drove it to a hotel near Toronto Pearson Airport for literally three hours of sleep. We left the hotel at 4 AM this morning and headed to Pearson for our American Airlines flight to Charlotte, North Carolina, and then onward to Providenciales, capital of T and C. 

Stepping off the plane onto the tarmac in Providenciales in 29° heat felt good, if not a little like being hit by a 2 x 4.  Along with our own American Airlines plane, four other packed jets bearing the liveries of American Airlines, Delta, JetBlue and United, filled the tarmac and, inside, created a major roadblock for Covid and customs staff. But we eventually made it through, arranged our rental car, and by 3:30 PM, had arrived at our hotel, the Royal West Indies Resort, on beautiful Grace Bay.

After getting settled, we walked the beach, sat on the beach in lounge chairs, taking in the sights, did some swimming, and had a lovely dinner at the hotel restaurant.

It will be a short trip, but even three days of this beautiful place, with its white sand and turquoise waters, will surely feed the soul.

Walking down the jetway to our first ever Flair Airlines flight, not quite sure of what to expect.

We were quite impressed by the newish Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft, of which Flair has already bought a couple. They were 123 passengers on the nonstop flight to Kitchener-Waterloo, with about 40 empty seats. They don’t serve so much as a glass of water, and the seat backs do not recline, but such things are to be expected, given the fare. 

Slipping into our seats, we breathed a huge sigh of relief that the last couple of weeks were finally over.

One of the best things about Flair is that you get to avoid Toronto Pearson Airport!  We flew just to the north of Metropolitan Toronto and enjoyed the expansive city lights from a distance.

Flair departed 10 minutes early but, due to headwinds, arrived five minutes late. Kitchener-Waterloo airport is a disaster zone, with tarmac construction and extensive roadway construction happening at the same time. It is just a shoebox of an airport terminal, but Flair has really found a niche, using it as a key hub for its quickly expanding operations.

We didn’t quite know what to say when the Avis agent told us he only had a Camaro with Texas plates to give us for our drive to Toronto. Yes, it’s sporty. And powerful. But we were like sardines in a can, and we could hardly fit our carry-on bags in the trunk. Not a vehicle we would ever consider purchasing.

American Airlines’ check-in, security, and customs were all a nightmare at the US pre-clearance facility. There are so many documents to show now, including vaccination certificates and Covid test results, that it was like mayhem. And we were flabbergasted at the number of travelers. It took an hour and a half to get through it all, and when we arrived at our gate, boarding had already commenced. Above, you see Pam about to board our American Eagle CRJ900-A jet to Charlotte.  

Dawn and a rain storm were underway as we lifted off from Pearson. The GTA highways were already clogged with commuter traffic at 6:45 AM.

The spectacular terrain of mountain ridges in Virginia’s George Washington and Jefferson National Forest was bathed in early morning light.

There was much evidence that the colours of fall foliage are at their peak in North Carolina right now, a full month after Nova Scotia had its fall foliage peak. 

The central business district of Charlotte, north Carolina.

Charlotte is a major hub for American Airlines and American Eagle. There were easily 100 aircraft sporting the American livery darting to and fro.

One of my fondest memories of our last trip to Turks and Caicos is the overwhelming beauty of the water, sand, lagoons and shoreline upon descent into Providenciales. As it did back in 2014 when we last visited, today’s descent did not disappoint.

Et voila! Despite the packed flight, we left Charlotte a few minutes early and arrived in T and C right on time. Use of both front and rear staircases expedited off-boarding. However, the Covid and customs clearance experience inside the terminal was characterized by anything but expediency!

It took 22 hours from our driveway to our hotel room. But when we walked the beach this afternoon, all that faded into oblivion. And we quickly remembered why nothing else in the Caribbean compares to Turks and Caicos’ beauty.

For a lark, I wrote “Missing you Canada” in the sand. Tongue-in-cheek, of course.

A late afternoon rain storm in the distance provided incredibly dramatic skies, and a section of rainbow.

Here’s a sunset shot of the Royal West Indies Resort, where we are staying.  Featuring manicured gardens and eight low-rise accommodations buildings, it is located next to Club Med, on world-famous Grace Bay.