July 18, Sunday - On the Plane
6:35 am
Los Angeles International Airport
The adventure, and the confusion, begins.
It is beginning to dawn on me that I am truly leaving English behind and stepping into a different world, a world of Spanish-speakers. I know that seems obvious, but I can be kind of dense.
I will have to communicate all my needs in this other language for the next three weeks. It's a good thing I pretty much keep my needs to myself.
It began gradually. The signs at the airport were partly in English at first, then as I got deeper into the Aeromexico terminal, more and more of them were in all Spanish.
Now I am filling out forms all in Spanish. I'm a little nervous, a little confused. My tourist form is a hopeless mess of cross-outs, but the customs declaration looks as if an actual adult filled it out.
Panic in the dark
My day began in panic. I can't rely on myself to set an alarm correctly - I am totally incapable of doing it. So I asked for a wakeup call at 4:15 a.m. The competent-looking clerk typed the information into a computer, looking as if they were actually doing something. But apparently not. There was no wake-up call.
Thankfully I am a bad sleeper and a nervous traveler, so, tossing and turning, I woke up and looked at my watch at 4 a.m., fell back asleep and awoke again at 4:35 a.m.
I leapt out of bed with my heart pounding and threw on my traveling clothes - everything that is too bulky or heavy to go into suitcases. I said goodbye to Greg, who was barely awake, and dashed out to the shuttle. My flight was at 6:30 a.m. They say to be there 2 hours early for international flights and I got there about 1 hour and 45 minutes in advance. I was vibrating with nerves and excitement.
I am such a freak about being early. I give myself a heart attack if I am not. It's the way I was raised. I can't help it.
Oaxaca street scene
Los Angeles International Airport
The adventure, and the confusion, begins.
It is beginning to dawn on me that I am truly leaving English behind and stepping into a different world, a world of Spanish-speakers. I know that seems obvious, but I can be kind of dense.
I will have to communicate all my needs in this other language for the next three weeks. It's a good thing I pretty much keep my needs to myself.
It began gradually. The signs at the airport were partly in English at first, then as I got deeper into the Aeromexico terminal, more and more of them were in all Spanish.
Now I am filling out forms all in Spanish. I'm a little nervous, a little confused. My tourist form is a hopeless mess of cross-outs, but the customs declaration looks as if an actual adult filled it out.
Panic in the dark
My day began in panic. I can't rely on myself to set an alarm correctly - I am totally incapable of doing it. So I asked for a wakeup call at 4:15 a.m. The competent-looking clerk typed the information into a computer, looking as if they were actually doing something. But apparently not. There was no wake-up call.
Thankfully I am a bad sleeper and a nervous traveler, so, tossing and turning, I woke up and looked at my watch at 4 a.m., fell back asleep and awoke again at 4:35 a.m.
I leapt out of bed with my heart pounding and threw on my traveling clothes - everything that is too bulky or heavy to go into suitcases. I said goodbye to Greg, who was barely awake, and dashed out to the shuttle. My flight was at 6:30 a.m. They say to be there 2 hours early for international flights and I got there about 1 hour and 45 minutes in advance. I was vibrating with nerves and excitement.
I am such a freak about being early. I give myself a heart attack if I am not. It's the way I was raised. I can't help it.
Oaxaca street scene
posted by Suebob at 5:22 PM
2 Comments:
I am from oaxaca it is a nice place Especially Monte Alban.
My family is from Oaxaca.
Thank you for stopping by my blog!
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