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Our drive to the airport was expected to be about an hour. We weren't really sure how long it would take to navigate the airport so we had an Uber pick us up at Octant at 6:15 am. He was very conversational and asked where we were from. When I told him I was from Minneapolis, he immediately said “Minnesota Timberwolves aren’t very good this year.” He knew all sports but mainly concerned himself with European soccer. He said he had been driving an Uber for a while as it works well with his kid's schedules. When he told me he had not slept the previous night since he lived in Porto and needed to pick us up at 6:15 am, it was easier for him to stay awake. That made me a little nervous. But honestly, every driver we had in Portugal was excellent. I felt very safe. He also shared with me that the airport is named after a Portuguese politician that died in a plane crash, Francisco Sá Carneiro. It seems somewhat ironic.
Katie was scheduled on the same flight as Nicola and me. We flew together to Paris so we got a little more time together. Unfortunately, Christine was booked on a different flight through Amsterdam where they were having severe weather so her flight was delayed and she therefore was not able to get her connecting flight to Boston. But they routed her through JFK and got her to Boston about 8 hours late. But fortunately, she made it safely home to Albuquerque the following day.
Overall, it was a wonderful trip. I can’t thank my two wonderful daughters enough for making this happen and wanting to travel with me. It was a very special time and meant the world to me. I hope we can all do it again soon!