The last 24 hours have seemed like 42 hours. I actually feel like I have lived the 18 hours that I lost.Now, there have been several journals written about what happens when you cross the International Date Line. I particularly like the one that Mindy Bell did on October 1, 2007. Of course, I might be a little biased since she was the Antarctic Undersea ROV 2007 teacher. However, she describes how you can use an orange to explain what happens. I really like the fact that it is visual and kinesthetic (you get to use your hands) and that you can eat the orange when you are done. The bottom line is that I am now 18 hours ahead of my school in Virginia (that's EST). That means I am 17 hours ahead of CST, 16 hour ahead of MST, 15 hours ahead of PST, and 14 hours ahead of AKST. When I go home next month I will gain those hours back and get to relive 18 hours. I wonder what I'll do with my extra hours. Any ideas? Let's start talking about my adventure.
I made it to the airport on time, although I was cutting it a little close. I was so proud when I put my duffle bag on the scale and it only weighed 52.5 pounds because I knew I was way under the 70 pound limit. Unfortunately, the man from the airline informed me that their limit was 50 pounds. Oops! Luckily, he said it was alright and didn't charge me the extra fee. Little did I know that this was just the first of my problems involving my luggage.
I caught a flight to Philadelphia. When the plane was approaching the airport an hour later I was surprised to see reds and oranges. The leaves were changing and it was breathtaking. Back home on Virginia the weather has been really mild and the leaves are still mostly green.
I then caught a flight to Los Angeles which took 6 hours. This may seem long but just you wait. Once in Los Angeles I had to take a shuttle to another terminal to catch my next flight. I rode with a man who had been on my Philadelphia flight. His name is Todd and he lives in Canada. Todd just quit his job that he has had for 7 years so that he could go to New Zealand. He plans to travel around for the next 10 weeks and see as much of the country as he can. Todd made arrangements to spend some of the time working for room and board. It's a great way to learn about a country and its people, not to mention that it helps with expenses.
My camera took this picture of the many lights on the runway at LAX. I think is looks so cool.
We found our gate and I immediately began looking for Scott. He is another member of our research team. Scott is a software engineer who used to work designing computer graphics. He said that he used to help make the blood and gore in some video games look more realistic. That sure sounds like a fun job.
Todd and I quickly found Scott and also learned that our flight was delayed by an hour. A few minutes later we met Seth who had seen the USAP (United States Antarctic Program) baggage tag on Scott's backpack. The tag is really cute with a picture of a penguin. Seth lives in Wyoming and works as a hydrologist for the USGS (United States Geological Society). He will be working in the Dry Valleys of Antarctica (just like Robin Ellwood). This will Seth's second trip to Antarctica. It's nice to have a veteran to show us the ropes.
The baggage tags sent to us from the USAP (United States Antarctica Program) have an adorable picture of a penguin. Hope I get to see a real one.
Our flight ended up being delayed over 3 hours. There was a problem with an engine. On take-off the plane shook so hard that I wondered if the problem was really fixed. Luckily, everything worked and the next 12 hours were calm. That's right, I said 12 hours. Most of the time was spent sleeping, but it was more like a bunch of naps. They gave us a small kit with a toothbrush, toothpaste, and an eye mask to make the flight a little more bearable.
When we landed it was 9:00am on November 6th. Remember that when I left on November 4th it was 2:00pm and only 23 hours have passed. It is a little hard to get used to.
Today promises to be another busy but exciting day. I'll let you know what happens.
P.S. I am amazed at how interested the people in New Zealand are in the results of the election that just took place in the United States. We tend to forget that what happens to us in the United States impacts people in other countries. We are all truly connected.