Half the adventure is getting there

Yesterday (Wednesday) was the day I finally set out for Cameroon! My itenerary for the trip was: Chicago to Philadelphia to Belgium to Cameroon. Since my flight was out of Chicago, I had to leave Indy around 8am to get there with plenty of time to spare (thanks to my mom for driving me!). I had planned on giving my mom my phone to take home with her because why would I need my phone in Africa, right? But I decided to keep it in case my mother couldn't find her way back to her car because parking in the airport is a little confusing, so I could help her back if she got lost. This last minute decision to keep my phone was crucial! So after passing through security and arriving at my gate, I made a few goodbye calls and waited to board. Turns out our plane had a problem with the brakes and it was going to be delayed. Let me first mention that my layovers for this trip were a little on the short side. Just over an hour in Philadelphia and about two and a half hours in Belgium. My 1:50pm flight out of Chicago was going to be delayed three hours, so I was obviously going to miss my connection in Belgium. I was directed back to the US Airway ticket desk to figure out a new route to Belgium. I should also mention that my checked bag was ten pounds overweight, so I had to transfer that weight to my carry on, which was already heavy. I had a backpack with a couple of things in it, but my carry on was extremely heavy, and since I am not up to par with the 21st century, my carry on didn't have wheels.
After going back to the front of the airport, US Air decided to put me on a United flight directly to Belgium so I would catch my connecting flight! However, I had to get my 52.5 pound checked bag from baggage claim and walk to United to check in. I walked outside to United which took about 15 minutes with all of my bags only to find that the counter I needed was at the other end of the building. Apparently many people fly United because the lines to check in were about 30minutes long, but I needed the break to catch my breath! I went back through security and walked to my new terminal, which was another 15 minutes away. Needless to say, I used the moving walkway to transport me there. I waited at my new gate for a couple of hours and then they switched our gate, so I made the hike with my overweight bags to the  next one. I can't stress how sore my shoulders were from carrying my backpack and my carry on. Luckily I had my phone with me so I was able to update my family on what was happening! After saying another round of goodbyes and getting ready to board at the new gate, our plane (which was supposed to leave at 6:07pm) was delayed due to mechanical problems. I was thinking surely this was a joke, or a sign from God that I wasn't supposed to travel! But, as someone once told me, getting there is part of the adventure. Or, as someone else told me, maybe God is just preparing me for what is to come in the next six months! After waiting another couple of hours, the time had come that I was going to miss my connection in Belgium. The United representative printed me off a new itenerary, which would have me leaving Thursday at 6:07pm.
While I was talking with the United agent, I was starting to think about who I could stay with in Chicago since I clearly was not going back to Indy for the night, when the United agent printed me off a voucher to stay at the Hilton resort! She also gave me cab vouchers and food vouchers to use at the airport. Unfortunately, my cell phone was dying and I didn't have a charger since I didn't plan on using it for more than a couple of hours yesterday. On top of that, I had put my phone on seasonal standby as of midnight today, so it was going to be shut off anyway but I was going to be without a phone all day today at the airport (tragic, I know...a huge American problem). But in my defense, there were people that I needed to update on what was happening and that wouldn't have been possible without a phone. At 11:30pm Indianapolis time, I remembered this, so I quickly called Sprint and asked for another day to use my phone until they put it on standby so I could use it today. So, after waiting in the airport all day and going nowhere, I arrived at my hotel at about 10:30pm Chicago time last night. The front desk had a charger for me to use which was a great ending to a crazy day. I slept like a queen in my queen bed and woke up sore but well rested, ready for round two! So, if God is preparing me for what is to come in the next six months, I am excited for what is to come!

Two weeks till take off!

Alrighty! Ladies and gentlemen, I created this blog to stay in touch with all of my friends and family while I am away in Africa. I have no idea how often I will have internet access while I'm over there, so I thought blogging would be the easiest way to keep in touch with everyone. I have officially passed my nursing boards (thank the Lord!) and I am preparing to leave for Africa in a couple of weeks. I'll post more information before I leave but I just wanted to give those whole blogging thing a test run!