Gloria Hotel to Ben Gurion Airport, Munich, Philadelphia, Atlanta, and Birmingham


January 17, 2019
Gloria Hotel to Ben Gurion Airport, Munich, Philadelphia, Atlanta, and Birmingham

We got up at 12:30 am (went to bed at 8:30 pm) to get ready for our 1:45 am departure from the Hotel Gloria lobby to board the bus for the one hour ride to the Ben Gurion Airport.  When we walked outside we saw that snow had fallen in Jerusalem during the night.  Snow had accumulated on the grassy areas and some on the sidewalks and stairs.  The bus drive drove very slowly for the first 15 minutes as we left Jerusalem and surrounding Judean Hills in a very dense fog.  We arrived at the airport by 3:00 am and did the usual check-in/security procedures for an on-time departure for Munich.  As we flew across southern Germany and toward Munich, we saw beautiful snow-covered mountains.  Arrival in Munich was a few minutes early.  With a 3-hour layover, we had plenty of time to navigate several security areas.  The flight departed at 12:15 pm for Philadelphia.  Our flight took us directly over London.   
Nine hours later we arrived in Philadelphia.  Navigating through Global Entry and security went smoothly.   Our flight to Atlanta was delayed by about an hour as we waited on board for the mechanics to repair the landing light under the wing.  We arrived in Atlanta only 30 minutes late, collected our luggage, and found the pre-Flight parking shuttle, which took us to our car immediately.  The drive to Birmingham went well and we arrived home at 12:00 am to be greeted by a banner -- "Welcome Home Nana and Gramps" -- over the fireplace.   
What a marvelous trip we had, but being back home is great.

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