Getting to Uganda

After a long journey I finally made it to Uganda! I am so excited to be here, and I am thankful I made it safe and sound with all my luggage. The journey was not the smoothest though. Here is my story of getting to Uganda starting in St. Louis:

Last Friday I left St. Louis with a sad goodbye to my friends and family but with excitement for the journey to come. I landed in New York with no problems and was greeted by my dearest friend Rachel. Rachel and I took off for a weekend of fun in the big city!  

Together again!

We were so fortunate to have amazing accommodations right smack in the middle of Manhattan next to Central Park provided to us by Rachel’s Aunt who was out of town for the weekend. Even though Rachel’s parents were also out of town they treated us to an excellent sushi dinner. That night we went out with some of Rachel’s friends and had a blast. 

The crew we went out with minus Rachel

The next day we started off with breakfast at one of Rachel’s favorite places – Grey Dog. Breakfast was delicious. Next we went to the High Line which is a park made out of old railroad tracks. The park was really fun and we enjoyed some people watching. After High Line we wandered the streets window shopping. 

High Line Park

 Then we hit up Washington Square Park for more people watching and street performances. The street performers included a hula hoop dancer, a band, a man playing piano, and a guy dressed like a wizard but I could never tell what his trick was.

 Later that night I enjoyed every bite of a giant piece of New York pizza. After dinner we meet up with one of Rachel’s good friends for drinks. After chatting for a while we meet up with more of Rachel’s friends and headed out for the night. We didn’t stay out too late because I had to be at the airport early. All in all my short time in New York was fantastic. The city is never ending and always interesting. I had a blast with Rachel and all her friends. Thanks so much for showing me a good time! I cannot wait for my next long layover in NYC. 

Next stop – Johannesburg, South Africa.

I made it through the 14 hour and 30 minute flight to South Africa. My seat was not great but they had some good movies. Overall I probably got about 2 hours of sleep. Needless to say when we finally landed I was very tired, very out of it, and so happy to be on land. We landed in South Africa around 8am. I had 6 hours to kill. I walked around the terminal, looked in some of the shops, had a snack and then I made the worst decision I’ve made so far….I laid down. Lying down would not have been the worst idea if I hadn’t slept right through my flight. I had about 3 hours until boarding started and I never for one second thought I was going to fall asleep much less fall asleep for that long. The worst part for me was the fact that I woke up less than 5 minutes after the flight departed. I cried. I verified with an airport worker that the flight had left and I asked him what I should do. He pointed me in the right direction and so began the beginning of my additional 24 hours spent in the airport. The next flight was at the same time the next day. I was told I would have to pay $250 which made me cry again. The manager told me I could talk to the supervisor in the morning and she might be able to help me with the fee. 

They were nice enough to let me call my parents. I absolutely hated having to tell them I missed my flight because I fell asleep. It was so embarrassing and such a stupid thing to do. However, I am mad at all the people on that flight and the people doing the boarding because I was asleep at the gate. I wasn’t asleep in some other random place around the airport. I was at the gate and no one thought to wake me up. I will never ever pass by someone sleeping at a gate in the airport without waking them to make sure that is not their flight and also making sure they have an alarm set if their flight is later.  I just don’t understand how I didn’t hear all the commotion going on around me and the loud announcements. 

I ate dinner in the terminal and then return to the ticketing area to make my bed for the night. It was only 9pm but I was tired and bored. I slept for about 4 hours and woke up hoping it was morning but it was only 1:30. I was pretty awake and not happy about it. I tried to sleep more but couldn’t. I fell asleep for a few more hours in the early morning.

My accommodations...

I got up for the day around 7am and talked to the supervisor but she just told me I had to wait until 8 so she could talk to the manager about the fee. Finally I found out I would have to pay the $250. I tried to pay with my debit card but they only accepted credit cards and cash. This meant I had to go out to the main airport which involved going through customs. I was so nervous I was going to miss my flight again even though I had six hours to figure everything out. I waited in line at customs which only took about 20 minutes to get through even thought it looked like a two hour long line. They were very efficient and I really appreciated that. 

Entertaining myself with Bananagrams sitting in front of the boarding area.

My first stop was to make sure the airport knew where my bags were and where they need to go. Surprisingly they already knew exactly where my bags were and they had already sent them on their way to be loaded on my flight. That was some very welcomed good news. Next I found the right desk where I could pay my fine with a debit card. I was mentally preparing myself to spend $250 when the lady told me it would only be $50! I cannot tell you how relieved I was. Then I gathered my boarding pass and went back to my favorite terminal to wait some more. I had six hours to kill just like my original layover. This time I drank coffee. When I finally went to my gate to wait for the flight I sat right in front of the desk so if I happened to fall asleep again people would have to step over me to board the plane. I thought that was a good plan. I also had alarms set, but I did not fall asleep again

 

Finally I board the plane! It felt great to be on my way again. The plane ride was easy and really short compared to the previous one. I landed, went through customs, gathered my luggage (which I was completely convinced was not going to be there), and then I found Dani and Eric who graciously came to pick me up.

This is the end of my second day and I am still adjusting to the time difference and jet lag. I was going to include my first day activities and thoughts so far but I think I'll save those for next time. I'll do a week update in a few days with more pictures. I hope you enjoyed my story and I can't wait to share more in the future.