I set my alarm for the ridiculous time of 5:30am on Sunday. I really didn't want to be up that early, but I wasn't sure exactly how long it would take to get to the airport and how long it would take to get through customs, so I figured I should err on the side of early rather than late. Oh, my departure time? 9:30am.
I got up and packed and walked out of the hotel by 6 and walked about 4 blocks to the bus station. They had buses leaving every 20 minutes to the airport. I happened to board a bus just as it was leaving, so that saved me 20 minutes at the station. I also wasn't sure how long the bus ride would be; my guess was about 1 and 1/2 hours, but it only took about 45 minutes. And there was almost no wait to go though ticketing, security, or customs. Yeah, I was seated at my terminal at about 7:45. I really wished I had my hour and a half of extra sleep, but it was better than being late. As the flight ahead of mine boarded I couldn't believe the number of people who ran up in the last 15 minutes.
I ended up flying back the same way I came to Asia. The flight from Taipei to Tokyo sat on the tarmac for quite a while before we left and there was a lengthy walk to my connecting flight so when I got to my gate I walked right on with only about 10 minutes to spare. I was a bit nervous because I didn't want to sit in a foreign airport and try to figure out the mess of getting home, but I would have liked a chance to check out Tokyo. Next time, I guess.
The flight back to Detroit was Loooong! The problem with a 12+ hour flight is that you try not to look at your watch for as long as possible, and then when you feel like you are almost home and you can't stand to be in your seat any longer you look to see that only 6 hours have gone by. It was tougher because I finished all the books I brought along and the movie they were showing were totally lame chick flicks... and we were only halfway home. I tried to sleep on the plane to help with the jet lag, but I wasn't tired much even though I didn't get much sleep the night before. We arrived a bit early in Detroit (about 45 minutes ahead of schedule) but only one set of the doors worked on our 747. Of course, I was seated near the back of the plane so it took FOREVER to get unloaded. Back on American soil, I got a ride home (it is so nice to live within 10 minutes of the airport) and then drove 3 and 1/2 hours to spend time with Becky and the kids at her parents place in Indiana. It was great to see them and get some huge hugs from all the kids and Becky.
And it only took about 3 days to get my body and brain back on Detroit time. Then I went led a youth trip to Washington, D.C. the following week. Whew!
It was an amazing adventure and I really hope to go back someday.
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