God might be laughing, but my sense of humor is definitely being tested. As if there weren’t enough challenges prior to boarding my first flight, I learned that the flight itinerary was more of a suggestion. I arrived at the Louisville Airport without incident. My 5:15 take-off was delayed half an hour, then 45 minutes, then an hour. I wasn’t too worried because I started out with a two hour layover in Charlotte. And even if it took off on time, I’d still have 45 minutes to make the flight.
It didn’t take off on time. At first it was a 45 minute delay. That gave me enough time to take care of printing my entry permit for Israel. After an hour and a half in line, I was told that they couldn’t print anything from there and that I’d have to try the Admiral’s Club. A woman at the front desk escorted me to the business center, a printer and a fax machine, and I proceeded to try and print one document. After some fiddling around, I eventually was able to send the pdf from my phone to the printer, but the printer would only print in landscape mode and I needed portrait.
A few helpful people and a different printer sent me on my way back to my gate where I learned the flights status had morphed from delayed to canceled. I joined the line to the customer service desk and a mere 4 hours later, it was finally my turn to see what they could do to help me.
The first option was to spend another day and a half in Charlotte and arrive in Israel 27 hours after graduation. Rejecting that option, we explored almost every possible flight, eventually deciding on an 8 am flight to New York, with an 8 hour layover there, followed by a flight to London. Once there, I could catch a British Airways flight and land in Israel at 3 pm, 4 hours prior to graduation.
And so here I sit on a near empty JFK terminal, waiting to see what will transpire with this round of plans.
My Journey to Israel: Connections and Disruptions 