There and back!

Late, I know! I was going to tell you of the adventures of flying to Tijuana and making my way to the US! So here we go!

I made it to check in with no problems, but the flight itself was very, very, very, very, very bumpy (and even that's an understatement). I don’t know if we had an overly enthusiastic pilot that wasn't aware he was flying a passenger plane, not a fighter jet, or if it was really just the turbulence (and air pockets) that were so intense, but TTL, all is well that ends well, and we made it to TJ safely.

I saw "we" as it turns out I was sitting RIGHT NEXT to two other Family members (a young couple) from the TJ Home. - It was incredible how the Lord orchestrated that! I didn't know the guy from before, and I didn't recognize the girl, though I had met her once at a party. I noticed she was PG, they looked sweet together, and when we were taking off I heard them praying. Knowing we're not the only ones that believe in prayer and not being able to hear too well (other than that it sounded like English) I didn't want to interfere as they were cute and cozy together, so I did some work, etc. and about 15 minutes before we started our decent, the girl leans over and asks me if I'm a Family member. HA! Turns out she recognized me, but wasn't 100% sure, and the guy then saw PGP start on my laptop - so that confirmed it to them. Funny! :)

The next adventure was the decent though! - I don’t think I've prayed so hard on a flight as I did this time. I've flown a lot, but this was, by far, the worst flight ever. It felt as if we were on a roller-coaster. - LITERALLY. First the pilot started his descent too fast, then turbulence hit and I think he lost control a bit. I was holding on to those arm rests so hard, my hands were sweating! We had the usual humorous ones in the front with their arms raised (as they do on roller coasters), but we also had crying and screaming kids who were freaking out with the air pressure in their ears and the craziness of the flight in general. - Again though, TTL, we landed safely!

It was a real God-send the other Family members were there though as someone from their Home came to get them so they gave me a ride to the border crossing and walked me the stretch with my bag. So sweet! - It was already dark, the Taxi would have cost 180 Pesos (for a five minute drive - crazy) so again, TTL for such a perfect set up! And I got to practice a bit of Italian as one of the guys who came was a good old friend from Italy. :)

Turns out though that the person on the other end (the US side) wasn't there. HA! My bags weren't too heavy, but as I mentioned, it was already dark, and I had no idea where I was meant to meet up with this guy. Those who had coordinated the pick-up told me that if he wasn't parked at the exit of the customs/passport check he'd be at the fast food place, or at the gas station. Well, that was all good and well until I had to walk a good 6 or 7 blocks to get to the nearest gas station, and that was after passing every possible fast food place you can imagine. (Right, so which one was that again?) I did find super friendly folks who let me use their phones, so I got in touch with the Home, and it turns out the person coming to get me got mixed up and somehow went to the wrong border crossing, so when I called they were all worried as he had supposedly been waiting for me and given up and driven back Home. HA!

I was able to wait for the team coming to get me in a closed McDonald's though (they were closing as soon as I got there, but said I could stay in there with them as they were still cleaning the place, and realized I probably wouldn't be safe otherwise - whew). So yes, they came about an hour later, and TTL, I got to my destination a lot later, but with a fun adventure to tell. - And with something to tease a certain someone about. :D

So that's the adventure of my trip to TJ and then on to FCF. - The folks there are always so hospitable and friendly, and really make you feel at home. Thanks guys, if you see this, for putting me up and for putting up with me. They not only worked it out to pick me up and drop me off, but they also had it coordinated to where I was able to be driven to my DMV appointment, and they even allowed Smichelle's and Niki to come spend Saturday night on such short notice. - It was so nice! (Tales @ that to be shared at a later date...)

Oh, and I got to see Dan and his lovely wife, Gin! - And their adorable kids!! So nice, after 6 years!

I'll have some pics soon, I hope! And perhaps even find a chance to post about the fun time with the girls mentioned above. - Until then, ciao, and have a great week!