Well, I'm in Moldova!!! Amazingly, I arrived only an hour later than planned. The only delay was on my flight from Munich to Chisinau. My dearest best friend from home, Rachel, met my parents and I at the airport. Mr. Roy and Reid also came along for the send-off. I'll be honest, it didn't hit me until we were dragging all 120+ pounds of my luggage into the airport that I was actually leaving!
Blessing to Note: I was mentally prepared for an overweight, oversized extra bag fee of around $100. Turns out my second bag, at 69 lbs., just made into the first tier of extra baggage (< 70 lbs.) and only cost an extra $50.
Oddity to Note: The flight attendant on my flight from Charlotte to Munich clearly became bored with her job the first week. She was so dynamic when discussing the safety procedures and added so many oddly timed intonations that, at the end of her presentation, the guy next to me commented, "I feel like we should give her a round of applause."
Wierdest Travel Plans of the Day: In searching for an outlet in the Charlotte airport to plug my laptop into, I ended up sitting with a couple headed to Paris. Of course in true Southern fashion (and I have definitely discovered that this is one of those Southern charms), I started talking with them. The girl does research for a university on micro-vessels, micro blood vessels to be exact, and she is heading to a world congress on micro-vessels. We shared a laugh about each embarking on a "micro-focused" adventure.
Most Interesting Character of the Day: Lonnie. My new Albanian friend. Yep, we sat next to each other from Charlotte to Munich - my longest flight - and shared our reasons for our trip. Lonnie was headed back to Albania for the first time in three years. His parents and brothers are all there still. He said he was the youngest; all his brothers are married and have children. Inquisitively I responded, "No wife? You need to find an Albanian girl!" His answer, "I was the lucky one. I got to go to America." Lonnie drives a truck for a living, his reason for not having met a wife yet. Just being honest, truck-driving isn't exactly my dream career...or on my list of back-up career plans, yet he was so grateful for the opportunity. It blew me away. I'm so humbled to have been born an American and afforded so many opportunities, and I'm grateful that I'll only be away from my family for a year....
Cutest Character of the Day: Eighteen month old on the bus from the airport in Munich to our plane to Chisinau. Precious little boy, would grab my hand and try to speak to me. I would wiggle my fingers and talk to him and he would bust out laughing! Such fun :) His mom said he never acts like that....guess she's got a flirt coming on, lol.
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