PC Peru21: Airplane Ride

We were supposed to leave at 7:30 a.m. this morning from the hotel to the airport, but by the time that everyone’s luggage was loaded, it was after 8:00. I was so worried that I packed too much (2 large suitcases, one carry-on, and my laptop case crammed full), but there were several people with bags exceeding the 50lb limit. All females, of course. Several guys only had a carry-on and one suitcase. The PC people gave one guy in the group our passports and said good-bye at the hotel. A little frightening, but we are all big boys and girls.

When we got to the airport, we spent over an hour trying to get checked in, and it was another 30 minutes going through security. So, by the time that we ate some breakfast, we were boarding in 20 minutes. Now I understand why we had to leave the hotel 4 hours before our flight left. We got to board the plane as “Military,” so we were the first folks on the plane. I tried to sleep the 3-hour ride to Houston, but people were talking. It was all good because I know how excited we all are, but at this point, my body was exhausted. As soon as we got off the plane in Houston our next gate was immediately to our left, so that was super easy. Some people ate, but I didn’t because I knew we were getting fed on the 6-hour plane ride we were fixing to endure. We had an hour in Houston, but by the time I called Mom, it was time to board again. This plane was extremely comfortable. We were seated by last name, so I sat next to the same girl as the flight to Houston. She was able to sleep during the entire flight to Houston. Her eyes were shut while we were on the runway. LOL. I was so jealous. There were little screens on the back of the seat in front of us with all kinds of movies and TV shows. I watched Hitch, a bad movie where Al Pacino played Spector, and The Big Bang Theory for basically 6 hours cuz my flight mate slept AGAIN! Lol. I wanted to, but I just could not get comfortable.

When we arrived in Lima, the world seemed so surreal. I could not quite believe that I had actually made it! There were so many emotions going on inside – excitement, fear, eagerness, doubt, surprise, derealization, depersonalization (that’s right psych folks, I said derealization and depersonalization, but I was not suffering from DID), astonishment. It was too weird of an experience to try to describe. As soon as we stepped in the airport, a PC staff member exuberantly hugged each of us. The country PC director, a U.S. embassy official, and several others greeted us and helped us navigate security and customs. It was a breeze. We felt really special. We then boarded a very nice bus and rode for over an hour to our weekend retreat.

When we got to our final destination, we had to tote our own bags up a huge hill (huge for a Texas girl) to a storage room. We had been spoiled everywhere else with either luggage handlers or carts, but after 4 nights with little sleep, carrying about 100 lbs up a ½ mile hill was a struggle. Since I sweat so much toting bags, I decided to take a shower. First cold shower of my next two years! It was one of the worst experiences of my life! Lol. I usually come out of the shower beat red because I like them so hot, so this was a shock. Many more changes to come, I’m sure.

Here are some pics from the trip today: