Saying Goodbye :( :( :(
Jill Jensen I got to visit you right before I left. You better show your mom my blog and Paul. I miss my second family! Thank you for always taking me in and taking care of me... even when Jill and I are really really retarded. Ha ha oh and give cuddles a kiss for me!
Friends friends friends :)
Here are some things that happened right before I left. I wish I took more pictures now, but oh well! I love all my friends and I miss you! Even the ones I didn't get pictures with the last week or two I was home. I hope you are all doing well and I can't wait to see you in April!
Road trip!
2nd stop... Music Emporium in Seattle Washington!
....Next stop Canada
Alaska at last!
I have the best family in the entire world! I will miss being with you, though I better get lots of emails, so it feels like I'm right there!
Airport in Korea
![Picture](/uploads/8/8/6/5/8865117/8861731.jpg)
For some reason I have the all time worst luck when I ride airplanes. My first moment leaving my family for the next year occurred in a little hotel room in Ketchikan Alaska. From here I proceeded to ferry... yes you have to take a ferry.... to the airport. It was definitely an adventure trying to carry my massive 50 lbs suitcase and my backpack that was nearly as big as I was across the on the boat to the airport... Which was all uphill btw. Once there I made it safely on the plane with only a minor stoppage through security to repack my bags and switch some shoes so I could make the weight limit. From there I headed to the Seattle airport.
As I sat there waiting for my bags for a long time... I finally realized that this red suitcase looked an awful lot like a beat up version of my bright red, NEW, suitcase. I finally pulled it off and sure enough it was definitely my bag. It had apparently fallen off the plane or encountered some adventure in which it became torn... normally I would duct tape it and call it good. This time I figured I should probably get it looked at since I still had a long way to go still. Plus getting all my stuff back from China... anyways I found the airline baggage people and they kindly replaced my bag with a new one for free. I then proceeded to unpack and repack my entire suitcase just right there in the airport. Luckily I had a few hours before my next flight left to Korea. I found Korean air... this was my first taste of culture shock. I was the ONLY white person on my flight that I saw. Almost everyone spoke either Korean or Chinese. The airline attendants were so sweet and would switch from Korean to English whenever they came near me. This is also when I realized how pathetic I must look because as I was checking my bag they asked me if I needed an escort because I was underage (ha ha underage is like 15 for those who don't fly often). Despite everything I made it safely to Korea.
As I sat there waiting for my bags for a long time... I finally realized that this red suitcase looked an awful lot like a beat up version of my bright red, NEW, suitcase. I finally pulled it off and sure enough it was definitely my bag. It had apparently fallen off the plane or encountered some adventure in which it became torn... normally I would duct tape it and call it good. This time I figured I should probably get it looked at since I still had a long way to go still. Plus getting all my stuff back from China... anyways I found the airline baggage people and they kindly replaced my bag with a new one for free. I then proceeded to unpack and repack my entire suitcase just right there in the airport. Luckily I had a few hours before my next flight left to Korea. I found Korean air... this was my first taste of culture shock. I was the ONLY white person on my flight that I saw. Almost everyone spoke either Korean or Chinese. The airline attendants were so sweet and would switch from Korean to English whenever they came near me. This is also when I realized how pathetic I must look because as I was checking my bag they asked me if I needed an escort because I was underage (ha ha underage is like 15 for those who don't fly often). Despite everything I made it safely to Korea.
Flying over Korea
![Picture](/uploads/8/8/6/5/8865117/7910539.jpg)
As I flew away from Korea I snapped a few shots for Seulbee's benefit :)
Ha ha once on the airplane I figured there was no turning back. I didn't really know what would happen when I arrived in Beijing, but I was desperately hoping that Jacob, or someone, would be there to pick me up from the airport. If not I wasn't quite sure what I would do, but I learned to be resourceful from Trafalga, so I was sure I could figures something out.
Thank goodness that as I walked out of the waiting room with my bags I saw Jacob's smiling face. He waved me over and we headed off to the hostel with Clement and Kyle (our tour guide and the other boy who flew in). I was still very nervous and stayed that way until I finally met the whole group the next morning.
I loved my group and the girls I would room with for the next week in Beijing. I stayed with Jordan, Morgan, and Tina. They are all so sweet and happy to be here. It made the transition to China so much better. We have had so much fun together already and I hope we will be friends for life!
Picture below : Tina, Me, Mekenna, Morgan, and Jordan
Ha ha once on the airplane I figured there was no turning back. I didn't really know what would happen when I arrived in Beijing, but I was desperately hoping that Jacob, or someone, would be there to pick me up from the airport. If not I wasn't quite sure what I would do, but I learned to be resourceful from Trafalga, so I was sure I could figures something out.
Thank goodness that as I walked out of the waiting room with my bags I saw Jacob's smiling face. He waved me over and we headed off to the hostel with Clement and Kyle (our tour guide and the other boy who flew in). I was still very nervous and stayed that way until I finally met the whole group the next morning.
I loved my group and the girls I would room with for the next week in Beijing. I stayed with Jordan, Morgan, and Tina. They are all so sweet and happy to be here. It made the transition to China so much better. We have had so much fun together already and I hope we will be friends for life!
Picture below : Tina, Me, Mekenna, Morgan, and Jordan