Arriving at the Charleston International Airport was bittersweet. I never did enjoy saying goodbye, only if it was for a little while. Luckily no tears were shed at that moment, or it would have been much more difficult to leave. Passing through security was easy, everyone was nice and helpful. Waiting for the plane was, naturally, boring as hell. My first plane was rather small but obviously got the job done. Flying into Newark was interesting, as I'd never been to or seen an airport that large. I actually had to take a bus to get from one terminal to the next!
In Newark I had a 4 hour layover, so I wandered about and fetched coffee and snacks. I'm mildly ashamed to admit that I walked the extra distance (with my luggage) just so I could get some Starbucks one last time before I left. Waiting was, again, boring. But I survived long enough to get onto my next plane. This one was HUGE, though I suppose it needed to be for crossing the ocean and whatnot. The interior was pretty snazzy, organized by first class, business class, economy etc. I found it somewhat amusing that the pillow quality was slightly reduced as you progressed through the classes. There were large pillows with nice floral pillow cases until you got to economy, where the pillows were reduced in size and covered in a drab white case. Takeoff was fairly smooth, we climbed for quite a while to reach our cruising altitude of 39,000ft. The outside temperature at this point was -74° F and our cruising speed was about 619mph. The flight was supposed to last for about 8 hours, but due to a favorable tailwind it ended up being just under 7 hours. We were served dinner shortly after we got to cruising altitude. The meal was surprisingly good. It consisted of shrimp,vegetables and rice, a salad and a roll. After eating I was, of course, very sleepy and spent some time trying to get comfortable. I was extraordinarily jealous of an individual who had all 4 middle seats to themselves. They ended up putting all the armrests up and being able to lie down across them. As I was looking sleepily, and hatefully at this obviously comfortable individual the woman sitting next to me offered to move to one of the other seats on the plane (as it was not quite full). Thanks to her generosity I ended up being able to lie down! I got a small amount of sleep, unfortunately not quite as much as I wanted. Side note: the flushing noise that airplane toilets make is absolutely terrifying. It sounds like a vortex into the abyss is being opened. A little over halfway through the flight I developed a terrible case of the sniffles. I blame Paul. After a few more hours they served a small breakfast and we began our descent.
The runways in Norway were completely covered in snow, it was somewhat terrifying but the landing was incredibly smooth. There wasn't even a jolt as we hit the ground. As I was arriving in Norway for the first time from an international location I had to go through security again and get my passport stamped. This would have been all fine and dandy, but I ALSO had to get my boarding pass for my next flight, which just happened to be leaving in under half an hour. The airport was huge, so between getting all of my things together and traversing between points I was very nearly late for my flight. I quite nearly had a panic attack in the middle of the airport, traveling is super stressful. To get to the plane we had to take a bus, and here's where it gets interesting. I had my first (memorable) stroll out into the snow, it was quite a novel experience. Oslo was completely covered in snow. Thankfully though I was so hot from running through the airport I could barely feel the cold. Looks like stress is good for something! I was walking through the snow to get onto a bus that would take me to my last flight. Unfortunately I did not get a picture, but the middle of the bus had a sort of compressed area in the center that would bend with the turns. It was quite odd to watch and experience. I referred to it as a bendy bus in my mind, but further research provides me with the correct terminology: articulated bus. (And yes I did just google bendy bus.)
After getting onto the last plane the stress was really starting to get to me and I felt super homesick. At this point I was ready to go home or at the very least just get somewhere with a bed. Unfortunately I still had several more hours to my journey, so I soldiered on!
When boarding was complete we taxied to an area where several machines operated by people sprayed the plane with a de-icing liquid. It was an interesting thing to watch and gave off a sort of sci-fi vibe. (At least to me). The flight was about 1hr50minutes, and went by fairly quickly.
After arriving in Tallinn I was already so #done with everything, so I grabbed my luggage and went to find the bus stop. I had purchased a ticket for a 1:05 bus, but by accident boarded the bus that was juuuust leaving. No harm done, as I would be able to get to Tartu that much quicker. Once I found my seat I was falling asleep instantly, but it was not very comfortable as the person sitting next to me was taking up a lot of space. Regardless, I survived the journey and got out at the Tartu Bussijaam. Now, please note that I left the nice, warm bus with extreme reluctance as it was -2° F outside! I was very bundled: hat, gloves, boots, thick jacket, thick pants, etc. It was still pretty cold, but luckily not snowing. I walked inside and then almost freaked out, because I had forgotten to get my big luggage. I was so used to walking around without it! No harm done though, I turned around and picked it up and went on to find a taxi. Found a nice driver who took me to the hotel, where I checked in and found my room. After communicating with important parties, I collapsed on the bed and passed out for a few hours, setting an alarm so I could get food.
I ordered room service, which has now been eaten. It was pretty excellent food. After having a few hours of sleep and something of substance in my stomach I am a bit less stressed and panicked. Still terribly homesick and exhausted, but I feel a bit more prepared to tackle my stay here. Hopefully a good night's sleep will put me in better spirits for the morning!
