The Journey

So I know this is going to be a rather long post, so for those of you who just want the gist of it, here it is: I flew to Athens and had a few problems, but found myself safe and sound, right where I belong at the end of it all.

But for those of you interested in the details, here goes:

A long, long time ago, (in a galaxy far away)… I left for Athens from the Philadelphia airport. My plane was scheduled to depart at 6:50pm for London, so Sean and I left from Middletown at about 2:30 to make the 2 hour drive to the airport.


When I first got to the airport to check in, I was completely amazed by how simple the whole process was. There was no line, I had no trouble with my baggage, and there wasn’t even a line to get through security! So after checking in and getting rid of my luggage, Sean and I decided to go get dinner (instead of sitting in the airport, outside the security checkpoint with nothing to do.)

So we started driving around, and found this pretty cool diner: the PennRose . The Eagles’ game was on, so the place was pretty desolate, aside from the employees (who were, of course, gathered around a TV screen watching the game.) But the food was great and it came out so quickly we even had time for dessert! And as we were on our way back to the car, it started to snow. (What an appropriate Pennsylvania send off.)


After that, Sean drove me back to the airport to drop me off. We said goodbye and I am proud to say I only cried 3 tears (which is an unusual accomplishment for me, as I am usually bawling at that point.) But instead of thinking about all the people I was leaving behind and how much I would miss them, I focused on trying to feel excited about the amazing opportunity I was receiving. So we hugged and kissed for the usual 5-10 minutes (yes, I sure know how to drag out a goodbye…) until he finally got in his car and drove away, leaving me waving goodbye on the sidewalk alone.

And just like that, I was completely on my own. Which to some may be a scary idea, but I find that I rather enjoy going on my own adventures. It’s nice to be alone—sometimes anyway. It makes me feel independent and strong; like I am able to do anything I put my mind to on my own, without relying on other people. It reminded me a lot of the way I felt when I left for school in California back in 2005. Leaving to go to a new place is always a very crazy time emotionally. I find myself hurting because I have to leave everyone I love behind, and feeling a little nervous about not knowing what to expect—but the bubbling excitement always reigns supreme, and by looking towards the future, I never wallow too long in thinking about what I’m leaving (at least in the beginning anyway…) So as I was saying, it’s really a mixed up time inside my head. No fear though. Fear is something I rarely experience.

After flying through security with no hassle whatsoever, I only waited about 15 minutes, and it was time to board. And as I took my seat on the plane, I thought to myself with amazement about how easy the whole process had been thus far.

Shoulda knocked on wood…

We were scheduled to depart at 6:50pm, and when I was still sitting in the plane (which was still parked at the gate) at 7:30, I started to get a little concerned. Then, the pilot got on the loudspeaker to inform us that, because of the snow and icy weather, the plane had to be “de-iced.” The catch, however, was that ALL of the planes in the airport needed to be de-iced, and thus, there was a long line. So, to make a long story short, we were waiting on the airplane for about 2 hours on the runway before we were finally de-iced and able to take off.

The funny thing is, I didn’t even really mind the 6-7 hour plane ride. It was long of course, but it passed quickly for me. And I didn’t even sleep. I read my book (I’m currently working on “The Hobbit”), watched 2 good movies, (Vicky Christina Barcelona & Crash), and before I knew it we were there. And it was amazing how different flying on an international flight was, as opposed to flying anywhere in the US. The seats were rather spacious, and luckily for me, the middle seat was empty, so I got to spread out a little more than usual. And each seat had an individual TV that you could control individually from your seat, so I got to watch whatever I wanted from their selection of movies and TV shows. And we actually got free food and drinks! (This is not something I have enjoyed on a domestic flight in years!) On the flight from Philly to London alone, we were given “supper” (I had roast beef with mashed potatoes, which also came with a salad, bread, apple pie and a kit kat bar), and a snack, and breakfast in the morning. And on top of that, we cold have all the free beverages we wanted (including the wine.) So all in all, I’d say international travel is absolutely the way to go!

But after landing I quickly discovered that although I was finally in the London airport, my plane to Athens was not. We had arrived 15 minutes after its take off, because of the delay we had in Philadelphia. So, they re-booked me on the next flight, which left roughly 4 hours later. But while the long wait was pretty annoying, they did give me 10 pounds to spend on lunch, which was nice. (Because otherwise I would have had to exchange some of my Euros for Pounds, which would have been irritating.)

By this time, I had met a whole slew of people from the CYA program, who had also missed the scheduled flight to Athens. And while I didn’t really mind the wait, I was worried because I remembered that we had already turned in our flight information to the CYA people, and there was supposed to be someone waiting at the airport in Athens to meet us, (to give us our apartment keys, etc.) And they had specifically told us to make sure we scheduled to arrive no later than 5pm, because the people would only be there to meet us until then. But luckily, I had the phone number to the CYA office in Athens and immediately took action as our little group’s ambassador, and asked the help desk for British Airways if I could use their phone to call CYA, (since it was their fault we missed the flight.) And to my surprise (again), the airline worker was very nice. She let me use their phone for free, and was both sympathetic and helpful! (She helped me dial, pulled up all our past and current flight information on her computer and pointed out where to find all the information I needed, etc.) And when I finally got a hold of a person from CYA, they were also very comforting, and told me we had nothing to worry about—that someone would be there to meet us no matter what time we arrived.

The second flight to Athens went very smoothly. It took about 4 hours, and the time flew. I had a window seat, and flying over Greece was just beautiful. We flew over mountain villages that dotted the landscape with cream-colored patterns, several islands with port cities and sailboats lining the coast, and sprawling mountain ranges with snow capped peaks. Even from the air it was easy to see how Greece has come to be known as such a beautiful and unique country. Even the patterns their civilization has made on the earth is such an interesting site from the plane.

What I mean is, as an American who is used to flying over the US, where every road, neighborhood, farm field, etc. is very strategically planned, forming grid-like and angular patterns across the land when viewed from the sky, I found the sprawling spirals and curving patterns created by the roads (many of them dirt), houses and villages as they snaked up and down the mountains and hilly country side to be rather beautiful. It made it seem like this was a culture that has expanded slowly and naturally (I guess they were not as concerned with efficiency, and felt no need to grid plan, cram and lay out all the houses in rows to ensure maximum capacity.) And really, that says a lot about both our cultures (at least I think so).

But as I was thinking about what I was in for (seeing as even from a bird’s eye view this country was much different than anything I’d seen back home), we landed.

And just like that, I was there!

-Summer Rose