Feb 4, 2023

I used to think that I was a traveler. I would tell people that my family and I traveled all the time; to every state. But in reality, we went on a few road trips every once in a while around the Midwest and Southeastern states. We would go to Philadelphia for a few hours to get Philly Cheesesteaks or to Ohio to visit Ceder Point and the Great Wolf Lodge. Though I view these experiences in a different light, they were the foundation of my wandering soul. As I age when people ask me if I travel the typical answer is “Only the U.S. and some Canada”. Those trips as a kid don’t seem as grand as they once were and I don’t think they help me with my traveling intuition and situational awareness. Flying alone for the first time felt like a giant step for me, so grand that I constantly felt on edge. I felt like something bad was bound to happen; I would miss my flight, someone would steal from me, or possibly my luggage would get lost. Additionally flying internationally added another layer to my worries and I didn’t know if I would be able to complete the journey smoothly. After all the anticipation of waiting to join my program, I felt like there was bound to be a rug pulled from under me. I was wrong though and carried too much fear. There were a few hiccups, but nothing I couldn’t handle.

Christmas was one month before my program started so I used the opportunity to ask for things I needed while abroad. I received lots of goodies, but I didn’t realize how difficult it was to organize all of my stuff until I started packing a week before my departure date. By the last night, I decided to just add a small checked bag since I had so much stuff that I felt was important to bring. I don’t know yet if this was a bad decision or if it would have been better to just consolidate more. However; we all have flaws and mine is over-packing. I had two carryons and one checked bag included in my flight. Since I couldn’t keep my checked bag below 50 pounds, I added a small bag. American Airlines would have charged me an extra $100 for an oversized bag so I just took the loss and ended up paying an extra $100 for more space. On the bright side, when I arrived at my gate in the Detroit airport they offered to check a carry-on to my final destination for free since the airplane was full. I jumped at the opportunity to get rid of one of my bags and opted in before boarding even began. This saved me a lot of energy as I was already getting tired of carrying my large hiking pack and heavy bookbag 500 feet from the TSA line to my gate. So girl math dictates that I did not lose money, but staying in the airport for my 10-hour layover definitely ate into some of my funds as boredom crept in.

I was meant to arrive in Miami at 9 am and leave at 6 pm, but after arriving in Miami there was a freak weather warning as a tornado started to form in all of 20 minutes. The sky turned from blue to a heavy grey as the cloud of rain fell and the wind speeds increased. Then the entire airport erupted in the chime of a tornado warning as people’s phones went off in unison. Soon though, the sky was clear again but everyone’s flights were delayed 2 or more hours as the airport had a responsibility to ensure the sky was clear. I tried my best to keep my program updated on my travel information and thankfully they were understanding. By the end of the night, I arrived in Quito at 1:20 am and arrived at my hotel at 3 am completely drained from 20 hours of travel.