Twenty Seven

That's almost how many hours my ordeal was - getting back home from Ohio.

I left for Port Columbus for my connecting flight to Detroit, MI at around 9:35 AM EST, which is 10:35 PM Manila time. I was better prepared and conditioned this time, but still not right on when it came to determining where I had to be with every step.

The connecting flight to Detroit, MI was fine. It was on a Canadian Jet with a 50 people capacity and flew at a relatively lower altitude compared to the international flight. It only took an hour and twelve minutes to get to the international airport in Detroit, MI which was HUMONGOUS. Everything there was big, and people had to travel using travel-belts (or whatever you called those conveyor belts). I thought I had to re-check my baggage like I did last time so I made the mistake of going to the luggage claim area, waiting for a fucking hour for my stuff, which of course never got there. Because I went outside the boarding gates area, I had to go through security again which was the most frustrating thing ever.

The international flight from Detroit, MI to Nagoya was completely different. I was on a Boeing 747-400 which had a 400+ passenger capacity and made the Canadian Jet I rode look really small. Unsurprisingly, majority of the passengers were Filipinos, most of which were years older than I am. The flight was thirteen and a half hours long, with dinner and breakfast served in between. I hated almost every second of the flight minus the ones I spent playing Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3 on my laptop. Unfortunately only World Business Class passengers have access to power outlets which would have made my entire trip at least 75% pleasurable (uninterrupted gaming, anyone?). Getting off at Nagoya was a big relief minus the fact that we all had to go through security again to get back on the plane we left to be cleaned less than 10 minutes prior to the fact.

The last leg of the flight didn't feel like it went on too long. It was only for around three and a half hours, around an hour of which I spent listening to music, another hour napping, around 30 minutes eating, and the rest looking out the window excited to get home. The local time shown on the digital clocks was 11:54 PM as I boarded off the plane. It took almost 2 hours, though, to get my luggage and a few more minutes to get on a cab.

I got home around 1:21 AM Manila Time. Tired and exhausted, relieved and excited. I sent a text message to my mom, my sister, and my best friends (Ryan, Scav, Terence and Vharz) to make sure none of them went through the night worrying about me... Thank god my boss told me he won't be needing me back in US until next year, which is technically less than 30 days away. LOL!