My travel day began early when Jim dropped me at the Cedar Rapids airport at 5 AM. The flight left on time. I sat next to a young Hispanic man. We looked at each other and smiled when the middle seat remained empty. I realized he was traveling with a group of five or six others, likely for a work trip. Unfortunately, the ride was turbulent, so the flight attendants didn't serve any coffee.

Arriving in Atlanta on schedule, I knew I had a tight 35-minute connection. I consulted the "Guide to next flight" link in the Delta App, noting I needed to use the underground shuttle to reach the next terminal. I made a quick bathroom stop near the gate, then boarded immediately.

This second, very short 35-minute flight to Asheville was full. I was in a row of three, and I mistakenly claimed the aisle seat; another woman was also claiming it, so she kindly took the window. I regretted my error later, as the views flying into Asheville over the mountains were stunning. Again, no coffee service was offered!

The Asheville airport was small and easy to navigate. Finding the baggage claim required walking past the car rental desks, which seemed odd, but I noted the location for my return. My bag, thankfully, arrived quickly. I headed back to Hertz but had to wait for my reserved vehicle because I was early. (Still no coffee!)

When I finally got my car, a pretty green Hyundai Kona, my single goal was breakfast and coffee. I hooked up my phone map and searched for a spot in Asheville, settling on All Day Darling in the Montford neighborhood. The place, which looked like a refurbished old garage, was packed—a long line of people clearly enjoying the Sunday brunch crowd at noon. The wait was worth it: the food was great, and the coffee was fantastic!

The trip to Montreat started smoothly. I set my Maps program and drove the interstate with the goal of getting to the conference session ahead of schedule. Though the weather was dreary—cloudy with light rain—the drive was uneventful until I exited at Black Mountain. There, I made an unplanned stop at Starbucks, using a gift card from Caroline Hilk to grab a much-needed second coffee. Then I made my way to the conference center, arriving at 2 PM.

Check-in wasn't until 3 PM, so I waited. The initial room I received was disappointing: smelly and overlooking the heating system. I promptly returned to the desk and requested a change. Although the attendant initially claimed they were full, I insisted, explaining the room was uninhabitable and untouched. She located a much better room for me. I later learned that many in my group had similar complaints about the basic, odoriferous nature of the rooms. I discovered all the rooms were very simple. 

Registration materials were available at 4 pm. We were given our schedule for the week and instructions on how to get our meals in the dining hall. The first dinner meal was served from 5:30 to 6:30 pm. There were 4 different sessions being held at Montreat this week. The Yoga session that I was enrolled in along with

• Agatha Christie, Classic Film Mysteries & Sherlock Holmes’ Legacy
• The Legacy of the Scots-Irish: Historical Migration to Cultural Inspiration
• Pickleball at Montreat

Each of the four groups had designated tables to eat at so we could get to know and socialize with our fellow session participants. 

The Opening gathering at Montreat was held at 7 pm in the Convocation Hall. We were given a history of the conference center, information on how housekeeping works as no housekeeping was available. Clean towels were at the end of the hall if needed and instructions on how the week would unfold. 

It was a long day so I went to bed by 9 pm.