Mendota Heights, MN (USA)

Shifting gears from Inspection Trip to Recurrent Simulator Trip... Had to be at the airport extremely early and left the Courtyard (St. Charles Avenue) by about 0430 (new time for the clock shift).  I made it to the car rental return (Hertz) right as they opened (0510). Didn't take long to get to my gate and had some time to rest before getting on the airplane. This was probably my first flight on Northwest Airlines in 20 years - it could also be my last because they are about to change to Delta. Everything was kind of nostalgic in the gates, on the flights and at the hubs. It really will be something when they are gone... Once again, I got to ride on a DC-9 series aircraft - it is interesting to see the commercial version. Our flight left New Orleans in the dark (0615) and landed in Memphis (0735) just after the sun had risen.  I actually got a couple minutes of sleep on the way (flight wasn't full). Spoke with the pilots afterwards and learned about their limited avionics - their account surprised me. I guess I've been pretty lucky all these years... During my layover, I ate a nice breakfast at the airport and had some time to work on paperwork while I waited for my connection. Eventually, I boarded another Northwest aircraft and, after taking off (1020), we made it to Minneapolis just fine (1240). I was surprised at how big the terminal was at the main airport for the Twin Cities - there was lots of walking! My bag was waiting for me at the claim area (good!) but I had a lot more walking to get my rental car. Fortunately, they were nice at Enterprise desk (1300) and I was on my way towards the hotel in short order. This time, I didn't have GPS in the car but the Google map worked just fine. My office had reserved a room for me at the Residence Inn in Eagan - luckily, it is located very near the training site. After getting checked in (1330), I considered taking a nap (still tired...).  In the end, though, I took care of more work I'd brought. After a few hours of catching up on emails, I decided to drive around the area to see what was close to the hotel. I had never been in this part of Minnesota for longer than about an hour, so driving around near St. Paul (could see the Capitol building) and along the Mississippi and Minnesota Rivers (they meet here) was really interesting. Found lots of little towns/villages along the Minnesota - Mendota, Mendota Heights (etc.) - and the views were nice. Also found the training site where we'll be working all week. At the end of my excursion, just when I thought I wouldn't find one, I stumbled across a Walmart and restaurant district. While there, I shopped a little for supplies [and ate dinner] before heading back to the hotel. The weather was nice all afternoon - not as cold as I'd feared after leaving NOLA.  I spent the rest of the evening in the room and went to bed relatively early.  Training in the morning!