1:06PM - Madison to Chicago
First leg of the journey...bus to Chicago. I FINALLY got to start meeting some of my teammates. Here's luggage for six of us for 17 days!!
First only three...then there were six...starting to feel the groove and strength this group will have.
I did have someone send me this video and had a fantastic laugh..."IS THIS THE BUS TO EVEREST!?" 🤣🤣
8:06 PM - Chicago to Doha
Here we go!!
Check in was a breeze. Visa application, COVID vaccination card checked along with COVID test results
No issues with my COVID test but we did have a couple people in our group who hit a snag with test results not coming back in time and they had to go to another terminal and get a rapid test done onsite. Apparently $225 for that so I'm glad mine wasn't an issue.
Leveling up here got me my boarding passes!
More team members showed up and we met this wonderful couple who own Bella Goose Coffee in Wisconsin Dells and a coffee shop in Southeast Asia where they help trafficking victims find work and reintegrate. The people I will meet on this journey is one of the things I am most looking forward to...more connections and more opportunities to listen and learn.
Great group! I'm a newbie...most of them were signed up for this trip 18 months ago. It was postponed twice due to COVID. I joined up in August and we are obviously a go!
Walking onto the plane knowing where it's going and how long it will take was just surreal. Still can't hardly believe I'm on this amazing journey.
Still feeling like a kid on Christmas morning...😄
Right now 13 hours 20min on a plane and 26 hours until Kathmandu feels like forever...but the last 24 hours flew by and I know the next 24 will too.
9:07 PM - In flight to Doha
Dinner time! I'm still in the eat-all-the-things mindset...especially now knowing we hit the trail in 48 hours and my body will need all the fuel it can get. As my mom always said, "eat for the hunger that's coming"! Not sure what this is but it's not too bad...
Only an hour in...but it's about time for some sleep. Lots of excitement leading up to right now and it's a good time to recover from it all a little bit.
3:29 AM (Madison time)
Fun game: Where in the world is Sarah?
I'm just waking up and my watch says 3:29, it's light outside, there's 6+ hours left on the flight, earbud not dead.
Answer: Somewhere over Spain thanks to the flight info display!
Fun fact: Nepal is 10h45m ahead of Madison time.
So weird that you're half a world away already! Beyond excited for this journey...so many of us are living vicariously through you! Go get 'em!
ReplyDeleteSo excited Sarah! What is the name of the coffee shop in the Dells? Want to be sure I support them when I'm in the area.
ReplyDeleteIt's Bella Goose Coffee! I'll update the post with the name :)
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