Leavin' on a jet plane...

This one's gonna be quick. Am at the Bradley International Airport and oddly enough, for an airport with virtually no amenities (trust me on this), I'm able to get free wireless Internet access. Anyway, this airport in Hartford, Connecticut is pretty rundown and not exactly the best exciting of places. While most airports in the United States tend to be somewhat lacking in facilities prior to checking in, this one's actually worse AFTER checking in - just one stall selling drinks at $2.36 for a 20 oz bottle (compare that with $1.36 in the airport in Washington D.C.!). Gah.

Finally, the beginning of the end of this whirlwind trip around the USA. Middletown, where Wesleyan University is based, is a really typical university town in terms of how the place is set up but it's not quite a university town with activities not necessarily centering around the university residents (unlike UVa, they don't form a 20,000 strong army). It has a charm to it that's slightly European in flavour, a remnant of its New England legacy. On hindsight, this leg of the overall tour might have contributed significantly to the exhaustion (I mean, the flight's in 35 minutes at 6:25am) but it was quite something to catch up with Mark. Here's a chap I've known for about 14 years and in all that time, despite us leading pretty much our own lives, it's fascinating to know how we are still able to communicate with each other - including areas of interests such as financial markets (strange evolutions, ain't it?). Unfortunately, his sense of humour hasn't changed too much...sigh.

The announcer's making noise for us to go get ready for boarding. Photos and further reflections to come, although the marathon trip back to Virginia up ahead is really what's top of my mind. Urgh.