As I left the house at 6:55 am, it was snowing lightly. Although I drove at about 30 mph until I reached the Mass Pike, I arrived at Bradley Airport (KBDL) with plenty of time to check in and pass through security. My flight departed at 9:50, with a stop in Baltimore. Here I am sitting at a window seat, looking out at our wing and another Southwest aircraft parked at the adjacent gate.

We changed planes at Houston Hobby (KHOU), then I arrived in Harlingen around 5 pm. It’s lot warmer in South Texas! Yes, I’m in the Lone Star State, where on average, regular gas sells for about 20 cents per gallon less than in Massachusetts.

It was dark at 6 pm, so you know I took this photo the following day.

When my sister arrived from California, we picked up our rental car and headed for the motel. On our way, unexpectedly, we came across the Iwo Jima memorial, which is about a block from Valley International Airport. The monument is lit up at night and is worth seeing. My sister took this photo (notice how much bigger than life-size it is):