https://cheerful-experimenter-3211.ck.page/dea2dfa94b/index.js%22%3E%3C/script

Thursday, April 12, 2012

An Alarming Start

To update the comments we posted via our wireless, we'd just returned from breakfast (a terrific buffet on the top floor of the Hilton) and were finalizing our packing up when one of those horrible whooping sirens in the hallway caught our attention.

Eventually there were announcements about a situation on the 9th floor. Since we were all on the 20th floor, we finally decided we should start walking down the stairs. Fortunately, we found out just in time that the problem had been resolved and elevators were reset.

Walking down 20 flights of stairs - or whatever the total actually is with the numbering - would not have been a good way to start the day.

At this point, after all the excitement, we caught two cabs to the Amtrak station rather than the bus we'd planned. As a consequence, we had nearly two hours to sit around and admire the architecture of the building, much of which probably looks the same as it did on Brian's first visit in 1954.

It was great fun finally to board the train without a problem, to meet our friendly SCA (Sleeping-Car Attendant) and to graciously accept the mini-bottles of California "champagne."

2 comments:

Dennis Warner said...

That happened to us a couple of years ago in Boston. In our case the fire alarm went off at about 2:00 in the morning!

Kathy and Brian said...

Ours was after breakfast and we were all packed. We still managed to leave our electric toothbrush in the bathroom, so it's manual brushing until we can pick it up back at the Hilton when we return to Seattle.