The Orange Bowl

Thanks to a wonderful season by Penn State, we had a reason to go to the Orange Bowl this year. It was great to get away from the -30C temperatures of Novomoskovsk to the +25C temperatures of Miami. The weather in Miami was absolutely wonderful.... sunny, not too humid, slight breeze. The ocean water was a little chilly - so we did not spend too much time in the water :).

We had a great trip from beginning to end... after spending New Year's Eve in Moscow, we departed to Sheremetyevo airport. The flight was pretty full, and Sara and I were about 3 rows from the back of the plane. We settled into our sites, when we saw a couple Delta agents walking towards us. They stopped and the one whispered into my ear "Are you Michael Grier?". I replied I was and he asked to see my boarding card... then he asked for Sara's and told me "we've upgraded you to business class... please get your things". Since the cost of a business class ticket is so expensive, we never buy these on our own... but we gladly take the free upgrades :).

Needless to say - the much more comfortable business class seat + the more fulfilling meal made this a pretty pleasant ride.

When we got to Miami, it was late at night (about 8PM local time, or 4AM our time).... so we did not feel like doing a whole lot. The porter from the hotel dropped off the tailgate supplies that Mom & Dad Grier Fedex'd to us... and we unpacked, grabbed a quick dinner, and went to bed.

The game itself was great! We tailgated next to a very nice couple who was originally from Mechanicsburg (which I lived in for about 2 years), and they live in Florida for the winter. They were very nice... we exchanged stories of our travels and shared a few beers with each other. We had a great tailgate dinner - tequila lime shrimp, steak & cheese sandwiches, and of course, salted snacks. We parked very close to the stadium... and after lots of food and several drinks, we went to the game.

The game itself was great... while neither team looked particularly sharp, Penn State won... and I've never seen so many missed field goals in a game. The energy in the stadium though was impressive. Because of the TV timeouts + missed field goals, the game did not finish until after 1AM... but the amazing thing was... I don't think a single person left early.

We did some additional shopping the day after the game... but we need to return to Russia. We connected in Atlanta on both sides of our trip... but the flight from Miami to Atlanta had a pretty tight connection. Needless to say, when we arrived in Atlanta, we had to move pretty quickly to catch our flight. When we got to the gate for the Moscow flight, the boarding was almost complete... but we figured we would ask to see if we could get emergency exit or bulkhead seats (very unlikely, but worth asking anyways). They said no... but asked our names... and we said "Grier". The one ticket agent looked to the other and said "ah - the Grier's are here... the Grier's are here" and then said "We have something for you." She handed us two new boarding cards - upgraded again! Getting upgraded on an east-bound transatlantic flight is one of the best things that can ever happen to you... while the flight is a bit shorter than coming west... at least you can get some sleep.

We returned to Russia and it was just as we left it... no actually - it was colder. -35C now. Some of the coldest days in the recent history of the country. We felt a little freakish with our newly acquired South Beach, Miami suntans.

Here's looking forward to a great 2006 season for the Nittany Lions!