Approximately six o’clock this morning boarding began for Swoop Airlines in Hamilton at gate 3, leaving for Halifax. It was my first time on this airline, and my first time going to Halifax. Swoop Airline is new, has ultra low fare, and takes you anywhere around Canada. For a one way fare from Hamilton to Halifax, I paid $99. The fine detail is that everything has a price, and you decide what you need. My carry on cost $30, which was still at a reasonable $129. Boarding was on schedule. I took my seat in a somewhat confined space. I had the corner seat, fourth row from the front. I stealthily took my jacket off, trying to avoid hitting the lady sitting in the middle seat in the face, then tucked it under the seat in front next to where my purse was sitting. The flight attendants came with their food tray about an hour later. I didn’t bother asking about the price, as I had my french vanilla from Timmys that I purchased earlier. It was only a two-hour flight, from take off to landing.

For the first time since I’ve been flying, more than 20 years ago, I had a chance to go inside the cockpit to meet William, the pilot and the co-pilot, all thanks to the flight Attendants, Danielle and Nicole. This marked the beginning of an extraordinary day, even if I didn’t know it when I stepped off the plane.

There is a first time for everything.

I stepped into Halifax on a mission. I was going to learn as much as I could about the City. First, I had to pickup my Rental Car from Enterprise. Mark was soft spoken and weaved in personal information about himself as he conducted the business transaction. Without looking up from his computer, he responded to a question I had asked about his wedding band. No, I wasn’t trying to pick Mark up! His wedding band was nothing I had seen before. Like a flower shaped diamond on the top of a thick band. My Dad had given it to me before he passed, and my wife insisted that I wear it. I’ve only seen one other person wearing the same ring. Mark was also wearing a logo of the Chicago Cubs as a cufflink. I didn’t bother inquiring about that. I could see that he had a few sentimental pieces, that he was proud of wearing. After he completed the transaction; my request of a seven day rental, and a free upgrade, he directed me to sit in the waiting area. Kayla would call you when the vehicle is ready, Mark informed me. Kayla marched to the area with her iPad in hand, called me by last name, and walked me into the parking lot. We gave you a free upgrade, it’s sort of like a SUV and it comes with a built in GPS. I don’t care what kinda vehicle it is Kayla. We both laughed. This is it. She pointed to the blue Nissan Rogue Sports vehicle. This is perfect. After the typical routine of walking around the vehicle and checking for damages, I signed my initial on her iPad. Kayla did a quick review of the general car features (upon my request), then sauntered off to the next customers. We’re here if you have any questions. Have a great trip!

I loaded the vehicle with my one luggage, took out my cell phone to view my itinerary on the travefy app: A Tour of Africville museum.