Our flight is cancelled?

I'm officially back in the United States! It feels so good being at home. I love Malawi with all my heart and plan on visiting again. There is so much to tell, and I'm not sure words can even describe it! I will try my best, but for what it's worth, traveling abroad was one of the best decisions of my life.

Here's Day 1:

05/06/12

Due to severe weather warnings, our first flight from Grand Rapids was cancelled. What a way to start my adventure right? Our flight to London got delayed, and our only option was to drive to Chicago to make that flight.

Sadly, none of my family could see me off at the airport. But I recognized a few familiar faces, such as my friend Lindsey and one of the speakers who visited our class a few weeks prior. He brought with him a graduate student named Micah from South Korea who's pursuing a Master's Degree in Divinity in Grand Rapids. He helped me stay calm and collected, which for me is a rarity. I got his e-mail and we're now friends on Facebook; I look forward to keeping in touch with him.
A few family friends and Joelle, the director of International Programs at Aquinas College drove us to Chicago to make sure we made our flight. It was great having people who were willing to drive us all the way to Chicago on such short notice, especially since this was my first time in Chicago. I hope next time I'll actually be able to enjoy the city instead of driving through it. 

By the time we got to the airport, I wasn't as scared about flying, probably because I was too tired and I wanted to get to Africa already. There were a lot of issues trying to check us in: too many bags, weight limit issues, you name it! I'm glad we got there when we did otherwise we would've missed our flight!
And it was not a fun flight. It left an hour later than it was suppose to because of the weather. I felt like an idiot compared to the people I sat next to, who obviously have traveled internationally before. One was a cute Irish boy, but he was asleep for most of the flight (gorgeous accent I might add!). We flew over Traverse City, so technically I got to be in TC before leaving for Africa! I barely slept, but at least flying wasn't as scary as I thought it was gonna be.