leaving on a jet plane

June 5, 2012

Today was an entire day focused on orientation.  I don’t want to lose your interest, so I won’t go into details.  But during this time, I was able to get to know everyone more (there is a trainee who is from Iowa too!!)  and realize we all had similar anxieties and aspirations.  We all are getting into the same thing.  The only difference is how we decide to react to this experience. 

The day ended with a trip to the airport.  We left for the airport about 6 hours before our flight took off.  By the time we got to the hotel, we had about 4 hours to kill.  We split into random groups and grabbed dinner, and more dinner, and then dessert.  I, again, had a bacon cheddar burger (normal size) and onion rings.  I then gorged and got a scoop of Ben & Jerry’s Seven Layer Bar ice cream.  Yummmmmy!  We all finally met up at our gate and chatted with everyone as time crept by.  We met a Ghanaian woman who was surprising her family and coming home.  She hadn’t been home in 10 years.  She asked us what we would be doing in Ghana, and noticed that a few of us were a little distraught from having to say goodbye to friends and family members. She pulled a few people aside and reassured them that everything would be okay and amazing in Ghana.  I loved that.  This woman didn’t know a single thing about us, but treated us like we were family.  That was just a small glimpse into what we would get to experience in a few hours.  I sent my farewell texts and said my final goodbyes with tears running down my cheeks, but like that woman said, I knew everything would be just fine.  

We boarded the plane and noticed several seats in Economy Plus were not getting filled.  We all immediately called dibs and bolted to available rows and claimed our territory.  Most of us were privileged to get 2 or 3 seats all to ourselves.  It was brilliant.  I have never been on a flight where I could do that, so I of course was ecstatic!  And it definitely made the 10.5 hour flight seem like 5.  Right after takeoff, I was so tired and figured I would just go to bed.  Before I did, I decided to flip through and see what movies were playing.  Luckily I did, because 21 Jump Street was on.  I didn’t care how tired I was, I was definitely going to stay up and watch that!  I was practically cackling the entire time and was a little worried my fellow PCTs would hear me and think I was crazy (I later found out that other people watched the movie and laughed just as much).  It was definitely a pampered flight with meals, movies, and comfort.  And what better way to begin my new life in Ghana.