View from the hotel in Salt Lake City, UT just after a thunderstorm on Monday, July 16, 2012, with low hanging clouds splitting the view of the mountains.

For the first time since late May I was out of town for business rather than personal reasons. During those weeks I was able to fit in a few personal trips to New York and San Diego, a concept that is difficult to fit in when business travel takes up most of my time. The trip itself was uneventful.  I flew with Southwest, stayed at a Fairfield Inn and rented a Chevy Traverse (via upgrade) from National Car Rental. The only part of the travel experience where I don’t get perks is with the hotel. Being a Southwest A-List member I get to cut lines for baggage check and security. National Car Rental always upgrades me to a full-size car or SUV as an Executive member. Hotels are the one area where I don’t typically stay with the same hotel, usually splitting my time between Marriott, Hilton, and Candlewood Suites, which is part of the Holiday Inn chain.

I’m not sure if it was the time of year or not being used to it from when I lived in the Denver area, but the dryness of Salt Lake City caused my throat to bother me after just one day there. This also caused trouble sleeping during the week, which then resulted in a 10 hour “nap” last night after I returned. It felt so good to be able to sleep in my bed.

The food options were limited to basic chain restaurants, one of which I was happy to eat at multiple times during the week. During my days in the Denver area I became quite fond of Noodles & Co. There are no Noodles & Co. close to where I live, so I’m always excited when I stumble upon one during my travels. And I really did stubble upon this one. During the after work hours I would simply put my sneakers on (and clothes too) and walk to the nearest shopping center, picking something to eat once I got there. Nowhere on my Google Maps page did it show a Noodles & Co. I had already decided to eat at Cafe Rio when I noticed the Noodles & Co. on the way. The change in eating options was easy to make… twice during the week.

My next business trip is scheduled for mid-August in Sacramento, CA.  Until then, hopefully I’ll update the blog a little more often that I have been lately.