Travelers

Here at the southern tip of Africa I sit in a cool room against the heat outside on a hot blue day, and read an email from Vincent who is taking the Adirondack train from Montreal to New York a day early (deeply disappointing a young nephew to whom a zoo visit had been promised), to try and get home ahead of the blizzard that threatens the region. We were alerted to the predicted heavy snowfall - 11"-16" -  by Melanie, our friend in the Bronx who is fetching Dinah, Estorbo's second cat sitter, from the airport on the 27th, ahead of Vince's departure for Cape Town on the 28th.

So it is bad time for traveling in the region and we can only hope that it goes smoothly. A train traveling on clear tracks,  a car on salted and ploughed highways, a plane landing on a cleared runway, another taking off.

Coming cool on the heels of the groundings at Heathrow that prevented friends and bloggers Arcadia and jvdh (and many others)  from being together as planned at Christmas, I realize that what will be, will be, as far as weather is concerned.  I do not believe in Fate, but I do believe in weather.

Update 12-27-10 - From an email from Vincent: 'I made it home! The train wasn't even significantly delayed. Down to 2 hours from New York, it wasn't even snowing. However, below that, all hell broke loose! Full-blown blizzard, the snow flying horizontally, freakin' cold wind and of course, the streets haven't been cleared in most places. As I arrived at Penn, they were cancelling trains right and left. The subway was experiencing heavy delays in all directions. I arrived at Penn at 8:40 PM or so, and was home at about 10:25. It took me close to 30 minutes to walk back from Bergen! Paraglider on my back, couldn't see where I was walking, and so much snow on the ground that I was dragging the small suitcase over it, rather poorly, in the middle of the street...'