Day One (8/7/09)

I woke up around 7:00am. Mom drove me to the airport. We almost got killed near the exit by a rogue picnic table that fell off the back of the truck in front of us. I was in quite a state after that. But the whole airport thing went well. Mom waved at me through the security windows for a good fifteen minutes, right up until the part where I was putting on my shoes and walking away.

The first flight was relatively uneventful, up until around mid-flight when we ordered drinks. The woman seated next to me ordered a "water and cranberry-apple" and she was unmistakably Irish. I considered saying to her, "Are you from Ireland? I'm headed there!" but I never actually did.

I landed in Chicago around 11:30 and headed to the International Terminal. You actually have to exit the building and go through a separate set of security to get there. Jean, Jon and Evan were supposed to meet me there around 2:30, so I had time to explore. Mostly, I just listened. Nowhere had I ever heard so many people speaking so many different languages in the same place at the same time. Anyway, I started to get cold, and tired, and was getting a migraine, so I took a Maxalt, wrapped up in a sweater and fell asleep in a bank of chairs.

I got a call from Jon when I woke up- they would be late. They didn't get there until around 4:00. When they got there, I was still feeling awful, so I took another nap. Evan woke me up as the plane was boarding. The migraine was still there, but only just a bit. As we boarded the plane, an Irish flight attendant greeted us and directed us to our seats. When we were seated, an Irish captain's voice came over the intercom and welcomed us to Aer Lingus. I was so excited. I called mom and told her everyone was Irish. Which shouldn't have been a surprise, but it was still cool.

There was an entertainment system installed in the back of every headrest, so Evan and I spent quite a bit of time watching movies, listening to music and playing games. They served us an amazing dinner of some kind of chicken something in rice with salad, a roll, meringue, and tea. After this, I went to sleep. Very briefly.