Home from India!

I know I've been neglecting my blogs, but now I'm back, and finally ready to post about my amazing trip. I have so many pictures, videos, and stories (and still accumulating more as my team members put them up on Facebook!), and it would take days to sum it all up, so for now I'll do it a section at a time. For today:

The Journey

Our 42 hour long journey began at 5:00am on March 14th, at the Vancouver airport (after getting up at 3:30 in order to Skype with my grandma, who lives in England and couldn't bear me going to India without actually saying goodbye!). I was the first one at the airport, and as more and more team members arrived, the excitement grew.

After we checked in, I said goodbye to my dad, and our adventure had officially begun. Our flight to Toronto left at 8:00, so we just hung out and ate breakfast until boarding time. The flight from Vancouver to Toronto felt like HOURS (despite the fact that it was almost the shortest leg of our journey), and when we finally got there we weren't really looking forward to the next 20 hour flight. But we had a few hours at the airport (my first time in Toronto! While I've traveled a lot internationally, I haven't really gone to that many places in my own country! BC and Alberta is pretty much it.) to rest up, and hang out.

We also got the chance to meet up with Team Slovakia, also from our school. We had thought we would be on the same flight to Vancouver with them, and were very disappointed when they were bumped to the 9:00 flight. We hadn't really said goodbye properly, so when we saw them at the airport in Toronto we were soo excited! That was a lot of fun, and we got a few pictures of us hanging out in the Duty Free Store! :D

Our next flight was almost 20 hours, with a short re-fueling stop in Brussels, Belgium (9 1/2 hours for the first leg, and 9 hours for the second leg of the flight). We flew Jet Airways, and were so surprised with how nice it was. The flight literally (no pun intended, promise) flew by! There were so many movies available (I finally got to see Juno- LOVE IT!!!! Ellen Page is sooo good!) and TV shows, and games, and even seat-to-seat texting and phoning that we weren't bored at all. Stopping in Brussels was very cool, and me, Danielle, Kate, Taylor, and Jason even got the chance to buy a little bit of Brussels chocolate. (very good by the way!)

We searched for about an hour to find a sign saying that we were in Brussels, but we finally found one, and got a picture beside it- the entire waiting area watched us pose for it too!

I slept for most of the flight from Brussels to Chennai, India, so that was very good.

Arriving in India was SOO exciting, despite the fact that most of us were exhausted, and sick of traveling. Here is an exerpt from my journal- this is the entry I wrote about 6 hours after landing in India, during our 10 1/2 hour layover in the Chennai Airport- oohh how I hate that airport):

"March 16th, Sunday (6:55am, India Time)

So here I am, more utterly exhausted than I've ever been in my life, sitting in the Chennai airport. I'm in India!! Oh man, I'm so excited, but yet too tired to be really excited.

......

The flight from Brussels to here wasn't bad- I slept/dozed for 8 our of the 9 hours, so I was happy with that. It was so exciting to see India for the first time. We walked off he plane onto the tarmac, just like in Africa, and my hands were immediately soaking, and the rest of me was hot and sweaty.

After our first experience of Indian guys [hitting on us girls] the guys on our team were warned to always "protect/guard the girls", and we were on our way. We went through baggage and immigration- disgusting bathrooms!- and then met up with Emanuelle from the Michael Job Centre. He brought us here to the waiting area, and since then we've just been sitting and waiting. We exchanged some money, and went to the bathroom- thank goodness Kevin has toilet paper in his carry-on!!!- but other than that we've just been sitting here. Since 2am. And our flight is not until 11:30.

I'm so bored and tired, I don't even know what to do with myself.

But still; I'm in India! And that's awesome!"

That layover was one of the hardest, most tiring, boring things I've ever gone through in my life. 10 1/2 hours of just sitting there. We couldn't even go to sleep, because it was those airport waiting chairs, where you can't lie down on them because of the armrests. Unless we wanted to sleep on the floor, which definitely wasn't an option!

But finally we got to go board the plane heading for our final destination: Coimbatore, India. That flight was only 45 minutes, and felt like 10. It was gorgous view as we took off and landed, and it seemed like we were in the plane for 2 seconds.

When we landed we were greeted by Dr. Job, founder of the Michael Job Centre for orphaned and abandoned girls, went through baggage claims, and went outside. As we were walking outside we noticed that we were being filmed, but thought it must be because of someone else on the flight. We were hoping to get to the orphanage, and go to sleep- we figured we could meet the girls after. Little did we know!!!

Dr. Job had us all line up, and suddenly this band started playing, and 15-20 girls from the orphanage were there with flower garlands which they placed around our necks. There were cameras and video cameras everywhere, and we so overwhelmed and didn't know where to look. Dr. Job kept on saying that we were "amazing people from Canada", and then he finally let us onto the bus. When we arrived at the orphanage, it was one of the most amazing experiences of my life.

All the girls were there, with the whole school band, waving flags and singing to us. Some of the littler girls came and gave us other garlands (this time ones from the Centre, with pictures of Dr. Job's martyred sons on it) and suddenly fire crackers went off across the street.. all in honour of us! It was incredible. We were led towards the chapel, and the girls were lining the path, all waving Indian flags and waving.

When we got to the chapel, all the girls (there are 306 girls staying at the Centre- not including the College girls, who don't stay, but come in to school during the day) sang many songs to us, and then we introduced ourselves.

Finally, after lunch we were allowed to go and get settled in to our rooms, which were so nice, with bathrooms and electricity, and air conditioning!! After settling in, and resting for a little bit, we went to go and meet the girls. But that's for next time, so for now just enjoy these pictures and videos (Yes, I finally got videos to work!!)! :D

Tiffany, Danielle, and me at the Vancouver Airport

Going to our gate..

Kate, Danielle, and me.. flying to Toronto

Meeting up with Team Slovakia at the Toronto Airport

Me, Ari (another Slovakia member), and Danielle

Flying to Brussels!

The picture that took 1 1/2 hours to take!

Flying from Chennai to Coimbatore

The Airport at Coimbatore

Welcomed at the airport

Driving to the Michael Job Centre

Getting to the Centre!!....