Regina

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Waiting For My Flight

I left the Dragon’s Nest at about nine and decided to make a quick run to Walmart for some litre (quart) sized zip bags for my liquids. I had them packed in a gallon bag and was worried that I wouldn’t get through security even though I really didn’t bring much since I can get what I need at my mother’s. I’m a little finicky about sharing tooth paste, like to carry sanitizer gel on the plane, and recently received a sample size of my favourite hand cream so that’s all I have.

I had to drive around long-term parking for a while until I found empty slots, all near the exit and ‘far’ from the terminal entrance. I made sure to snap a picture of the sign telling me what row I’m parked in. 🙂

Regina Airport is TINY, so it was quiet today and there was no wait at security. I decided to use my iPhone as a boarding pass and am not sure yet that I like that. Even though I left the ‘Passbook’ app open, I still had to swipe a few times to get to the boarding pass. The lady at the first security checkpoint said I did it like a pro and thanked me for being organized.

Security people were nice, but I was there a bit and got felt up. Ladies, no underwire at the airport! 🙂 It was also my first time with a belt and I had to remove it as well as my boots.

I find it interesting that computers get singled out for special screening, but not iPads.

I also find it interesting that I haven’t yet had to produce ID.

There’s not much beyond security, just a Tim’s and a convenience store. I grabbed a coffee and will get a sandwich to go before I board.

Finally, I tried to get my new bag into the rack that lets you check the size. There was some smooshing involved, but it’s definitely okay. I also have a tote with my electronics and I stuffed my purse into the tote! If I have to gate check the big bag, I have everything I need in the tote.

So on to Saskatoon (stay on the plane) and then a short layover in Ottawa. No time to go there for a visit this time, but at least I’ll see my beloved city from the air. I’ll be in Dorval in about seven hours from now.

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A Pleasant Stay

I didn’t sleep very well last night, but that was only because I haven’t had to sleep next to busyish city street in ages. The room was super dark and the bed was comfy. I would stay here again without hesitation, but ask for a room on the other side of the house.

Breakfast this morning was good! Most importantly, the coffee was just like I make it, nice and strong without being bitter. I had a few cups while reading the paper. I think the main breakfast course was eggs and bacon. I had fresh fruit salad, granola, and vanilla Greek yoghurt. It was a much sweeter meal than I normally have, but still better than pastries! I used to eat this all the time, so it was really a nice treat this morning! I also had a slice of buttered toast.

I already have my boarding pass, so I just have to figure out parking at the airport and then get through security. Oh, and find something edible for lunch to take on the plane, which will likely be a Timmie’s sandwich. I have three hours to do that and the airport is five minutes away, so I’m a bit in slow motion. I’ve already settled up and can leave at my leisure.

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Siam Restaurant, Regina

The Dragon’s Nest B&B is located in downtown Regina, so a stone’s throw from just about any cuisine you could want, including tons of sushi. But I’ve been told that DK in Moose Jaw is better than anything Regina has to offer (and less expensive). So I decided to go for something different tonight and within walking distance rather than go to the Applebee’s. I found some well reviewed Thai and Vietnamese restaurants and decided to try out a Thai one, Siam. I took it as a good sign that there were Thai people lined up outside, waiting for the restaurant to open at 5:30!

I won’t pretend to know anything about Thai food since I just about always get Pad Thai. It’s cheap, yummy, and it’s fun to see the variations. Siam’s Pad Thai was really good! It came with a heap of perfectly grilled shrimp (which usually costs a premium, but not at Siam) and chewy bits of tofu. I found the sauce a little sweet, but that could just be my new nearly sugarfree taste buds talking. There was lots of fresh lime to squeeze over top to cut the sweetness. I declined the chili since I don’t much care for spicy things.

Service was not great, unfortunately. I was seated quickly, was not asked if I wanted anything other than water to drink (helping me avoid the temptation of a cold beer!), had my order taken promptly, and was then ignored. The bill finally came and it took a while for me to realise that I was expected to go to the till to settle up.

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B&Bs Are Definitely the Way To Travel

IMG_0182It’s been a rather long day, but I am now settled in at the Dragon’s Nest B&B in Regina, just 4KM from the airport. I have the ‘Wisdom’ room, which shares a bathroon with the ‘Wealth’ room. I was greeted warmly by innkeeper Rick, who showed me all the amenities, including a hot tub… and I have my swimsuit! 🙂

The room is cozy and has a proper desk. Some niceties include a bathrobe and a basket of goodies. I don’t eat potato chips, so I’ll leave those for the next guest, but I’m glad for the nice Cliff bar that will make a good airplane snack tomorrow. 🙂

This older home is beautifully appointed and immaculate. From the website, I can tell that breakfast is a huge affair, but, being allergic to eggs, I said that I would be quite happy with just fruit, granola yoghurt, coffee, etc., which are served as a first course.

The room is just $75 a night. I couldn’t even find a fleabag motel for that price!

I didn’t get any sleep last night worth mention (classic pre-departure night for me!) and I was up early to clean my neighbour’s house so that I could take off not too late. So I’m glad to know that I can have a lie-in in the morning (I asked for an 8:15 breakkie) and then a relaxed trip to the airport. I like to check in and pass security super early and then chill. I’m not regretting my decision to get to Regina a day early.

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Summer Supply Run

I have been long overdue for a supply run because I am finding it increasingly difficult to stock my pantry in Assiniboia. Moreover, I found something on Kijiji that I really wanted, so a trip to Regina ASAP was in order to pick it up. Therefore, I burned the midnight oil all week to get today off.

Lately, I’ve been getting to sleep around midnight and getting up at six. So you can imagine my shock this morning when I woke up and the clock said it was 9:30!!! I was expected in Regina between one and two and wanted to have lunch in Moose Jaw, so I was out of bed as though someone had lit firecrackers under the sheets!

To my dismay, it was pouring rain out and I had stuff to unload from the back of my truck, a chore I had put off all week since I was so busy typing and I’d have the whole of this morning off…

I still managed to get to Assiniboia by 10:15ish and stopped at the bakery for the first time to try their coffee. It turned out to be very expensive dishwater, so I’ll stick to the gas station for coffee emergencies from now on as theirs is tasty.

The drive to Moose Jaw was uneventful until a few klicks from the city where there was construction and we had to detour. This brought me to the wrong end of town to have sushi, but the right end to push on to Regina. I knew that I wasn’t going anywhere near the Regina sushi restaurant, that it’s very expensive, and that there’s no parking, so I decided to stick to my plan and have my sushi lunch in Moose Jaw even if it meant a couple extra crossings of town.

On the way to the restaurant, I stopped in at the Town & Country Mall, where I had my nose pierced in April. I had been told to come back around this date to have the piercing tightened, so I thought I could make an appointment for after lunch or even after Regina. But my piercer was free, so she took me right away. Was I glad to get that done! My nose healed super fast and the loose piercing has been driving me batty!

Lunch at DK Sushi was yummy, as always. The all you can eat is still good value for me, but just barely, as I get less and less each time I go. I added up what I got today and came in at about $20 if I bought à la carte, versus $17 with the all you can eat, plus you get really good chocolate ice cream with that option. 🙂 I asked for a half portion since I wasn’t able to finish a whole one last time (too rich and sweet for my new taste buds).

From lunch, I immediately headed out to Regina since my ETA was now about 1:45. Thankfully, the seller was very conveniently located near the highway and just a few blocks from Cabela’s, which was having a sale I didn’t want to miss.

The items I was picking up were a Japanese-style washer/spin dryer combo and a compact 120V dryer. I’ll do posts about those once I get them out of my truck. I couldn’t talk the seller down from $300 for the set, but I knew that was a crazy good deal, so I paid up. They are the perfect compromise between my current laundry setup (Wonder Wash and a spin dryer that really needs to be returned to its rightful owner) and full size units that would need water hookups and a 220V outlet.

These my appliances (seller photos):

Next stop was Walmart, which was conveniently located next to both a Bulk Barn and Cabela’s. I stocked up on dry goods and then went to the Bulk Barn stock up on nuts. I’m afraid to admit how much I spent on nuts because I went a little well, nuts. 😀

Cabela’s was having a sale on Keen footwear, so I picked up a good pair of sandals with covered toes for the summer (if we ever get one…). I bought a model that is good for light hiking as well as wet activities. It’s been a very, very long time since I shelled out the bucks for high quality sandals and I hope these last me! I also picked up an outback-style hat for the wagon train because I was told that I can’t show up this year without a proper horse wrangler hat and cowboy boots. I’m all set! 🙂 It was raining again by the time I got out of the store, so I wore my new hat, which offered good protection against the rain.

Next on my list was Canadian Tire or Home Depot. Neither was convenient in Regina, so I headed back to Moose Jaw to its Canadian Tire. There, I got a really good deal on an electric lawn mower.

I was going to buy a reel (manual) mower, but this electric mower was much cheaper. I didn’t want a gas mower because I didn’t want to have to deal with maintaining another engine.

To my surprise, a very nice stock clerk took the mower to the till for me, waited for me to pay, pushed it to my truck, and helped me figure out how to load it in when the appliances weren’t leaving much room. I was impressed since it’s normally impossible to get service at Canadian Tire!

I also picked up weed whacker, but failed at getting a ladder and tree limb lopper, so I’ll get those in Assiniboia next week.

My following stop was M&M Meatshop to stock up on chicken breasts. I wish I had had room in the truck to pick up a small deep freeze since the chicken breasts were on sale. I took a chance on four packages fitting in the freezer, what with everything else I had in there already. Spoiler: I ran out of room and decided to pull out the ground chicken to make chicken burgers tomorrow. 🙂

Then, it was time to get groceries. I was pretty beat when I got to the checkout, but I had bought enough to get 10 cents off a litre, so I decided to get fuel before heading home. To my delight, there’s a ‘we serve’ pump at the Safeway gas bar, so I didn’t have to do it myself and my fuel was ‘just’ $1.19.

BTW, fuel was $1.39 in Regina and $1.29 in Moose Jaw and Assiniboia/Willow Bunch today. I’m always surprised that I’m not paying a ‘rural location surcharge’ for my gas out here!

It was close to seven by the time I headed home and I was getting the hunger shakes, so I decided to stop for a meal instead of just snacking on the way home. There was a Boston Pizza right at my last turn before leaving the city and I love their pulled pork sandwich, so it was an easy decision. I had it with a salad rather than fries and I only ate half the bun, so the meal felt quite reasonable and didn’t put me to sleep on the drive home!

It was still raining when I came in, so I just unloaded the food. I now need to get to bed because I have a big typing weekend ahead of me. I wasn’t supposed to have much work so I could clean the yard, but it’s going to rain both days so I might as well type.