Then.... at 3:00am we get a call from one of the husbands (apparently our team was destined to NOT have 1 whole night of sleep the entire trip) who says that after extensive research, things will NOT be fine by the end of the week and that volcanic activity had actually INcreased that day. He says he found us a flight through Australia back to the United States. According to the husbands and the travel agent, we were looking at $3,000 to $5,000, with a possibility of up to 10 to $15,000 if we were re-routed through Japan. Yes, that's PER person! The husbands insist that it's necessary to take this route or not get home for a very long time. So.... you can imagine the shock and stomach issues in the room with 7 girls and Gregg at 3:00 in the morning upon hearing this news. Traveling the opposite way around the world???
Our concerns with this option:
1. We might not all be on the same flights - we could be separated.
2. We had no idea whether ALL of us would get on a flight or some would be left in Ukraine.
3. The number of connections. 1 option had 4 connections, and the other had 5.
4. Luggage - we still had 9 bags, and more connections would mean more opportunities for luggage to be lost.
5. We couldn't hold the tickets. We had to book them immediately or wait, and if we waited, we'd run the chance that other people would get the same idea, and the flights would fill up quickly.
6. We had no idea of the ending cost, and none of us even had an extra $3,000 to spend. We're just average people here... no millionaires among us!
After discussing the issues, we decided to go ahead with the new flight plans because the feelings that there would not be another opportunity to get home for who knows how long and that God would provide prevailed. When Amanda spoke with the travel agent during the night, he said he was booking our flights. However, when Amanda called back at 6:00am, he had NOT booked the flights and said that we needed to get to the airport 6 hours early to get them booked. Ahhhh! So 3 of our girls rush to the airport to book the tickets while the rest of us frantically re-pack bags for the trip home. Clothes that we had washed that night had to be shoved into suitcases wet. Yuck!
After a couple of frantic calls, the tickets are booked, several of our credit cards are maxed out (because they wouldn't take credit cards from people back in the states over the phone), and 3 of us have tickets that stop at Sydney, Australia instead of the U.S. The Kiev airport is complete chaos, with people everywhere. The woman at the ticket counter in the Kiev airport said, "You want to fly to the U.S. through Australia?!?!?!" Going through security, checking bags, and going through customs took forever. The flight left 30 to 35 minutes late, which was a blessing for us as we barely eeked by on time! At customs, the man asked Kym how much cash she had, and she said, "$4... Would you like to give me more?" Haha! We were broke.... but we were on our way home. Final flight pattern was Kiev to Dubai, Dubai to Australia, Australia to LA, and LA to Tulsa (aside from the 3 of us who had tickets that ended in Australia - the husbands at home were working on this). Then a drive to northwest Arkansas.
Gregg, Kym, and I were bumped to business class, we think because we were the ones with tickets ending in Australia. I must say... business class was NICE! Before the flight left, the 3 of us were talking with Christie (who was not in business class), and Christie got the curtain shut in her face by a flight attendant. Funny stuff!
Kharkiv - prior to knowledge of flight cancellations:
Driving to the train station in Kharkiv.
McDonald's outside of the train station. Our first "American" meal of the trip.
Vova says, "YES, McDonald's!"
Hauling the luggage to the train station.
Inside the train station. It was beautiful.
The ceiling of the train station.
Everyone was looking up at the elaborate ceiling.
Yes, I actually dozed off like this, with my pillow on top of the luggage. The flash from Alex's camera woke me. It was actually quite comfortable, despite what it may look like.
We love Vova!I guess I'll insert my "restroom" experience here... So, as I've described before, I have a bit of a phobia about dirty bathrooms... After seeing the toilet on the train last year, I vowed to never use a train toilet. So, I'm thinking with this elegantly decorated train station, surely the bathrooms will be decent... I decide to go before getting on the train. HUGE mistake! First of all you have to PAY to use the restroom at the train station. Secondly, I have never been in a worse place in my life! It's a hole in the floor, and I'll leave the visual and olfactory descriptions out because you DON'T want to hear it, I promise! Just DON'T use the restroom in the Kharkiv train station EVER, girls! I was told that the restrooms on the train that we took this time were much more pleasant. I wouldn't know - I was too traumatized to go at all for quite some time.
Waiting on the train.
Crazy tired Amy.
Crazy tired Kym.
And just crazy me!
Kati on the train, so happy to be sitting!
Christie and Kym on the top bunks.
Kati and Amy on the bottom.Kiev sight-seeing - also prior to knowledge of flight cancellations:
In the streets of Kiev.
Our "Russian" pose. It's a tradition.
Apparently something was funny.
Hmmmm... "Life's Good," not "Life is Good?"
All these women in their boots with such high heels!
Hey there, Gregg! Like that Coke bottle in your pocket!
Going down below to do some shopping.
Levi's are a BIG thing in Ukraine.
We saw a couple getting married.
Scary Gregg at a little coffee shop.
A hummer limo... with baby dolls on the hood... I'm going to have to google that...
Shopping at the market.
A little entertainment while you shop at the market.
Seriously Gregg?
Some Carmen-Olga love. I love this woman!Kiev airport - AFTER knowledge of flight cancellations:
Gregg and I are guarding the luggage outside the airport.
Craziness inside the airport!
My torn customs slip. I did NOT lose it... it just got a little ragged-looking.Leaving Ukraine was hard, even though we had to do it in a rush. Surprisingly, I feel safe and calm while I'm there. I love Olga and Alex, and saying goodbye was even more difficult to do this time. Ukraine is really growing on me!
Dubai airport:
We got into Dubai around 6:00 pm Sunday night with an 8 hour layover before the flight to Australia. The airport was AMAZING! All of the women working there had on the same clothing, beautiful silk-looking scarves, and bright red lipstick. There were attendants standing around just to see if you needed help with anything. By far the most impressive airport I've ever been in! There were huge palm trees inside, and an area with grass, plants, and waterfalls. The restrooms were multicultural, ranging from American-looking toilets to a hole in the floor like Ukraine. However, the hole in the floor was much cleaner, and there were spray bottles of cleaner in each stall. I know you probably don't want to hear about the restrooms... like I said, I just have this "thing" about them... Hahaha!
We got into Dubai around 6:00 pm Sunday night with an 8 hour layover before the flight to Australia. The airport was AMAZING! All of the women working there had on the same clothing, beautiful silk-looking scarves, and bright red lipstick. There were attendants standing around just to see if you needed help with anything. By far the most impressive airport I've ever been in! There were huge palm trees inside, and an area with grass, plants, and waterfalls. The restrooms were multicultural, ranging from American-looking toilets to a hole in the floor like Ukraine. However, the hole in the floor was much cleaner, and there were spray bottles of cleaner in each stall. I know you probably don't want to hear about the restrooms... like I said, I just have this "thing" about them... Hahaha!
We ate at The Irish Village in the airport. Gregg had fish and chips, Kym had a burger, and the rest of us had a smoked chicken sandwich. It was very yummy! Their restaurants were also very multicultural. They had McDonald's, a pizza place, and places that different restaurants that served Indian, Chinese and Mongolian, and Lebanese food. There was also a Starbucks! :)
Another twist: We didn't have visas, but we needed them to enter Australia. Given our strange situation, the people in the Dubai airport were very helpful and had our visas ready in just a few minutes.
Waiting on visas.
An electronic charging station.
The shopping areas looked like this.
The flight screens.
Finally on a flight to Sydney, Australia. Emerites airline rrrrrocks!!! The tv monitors were in the back of the headrests. The screens were big, and there was a remote control you could pull out of the seat in front of you. There were lots of food and great snacks! You got a travel bag with a washcloth and toothbrush in it. I want to fly from Dubai again!
The screen with pull-out remote.Sydney, Australia:
We're in KEITH country, girls (my first words off the plane, as I'm jumping around excitedly)!!! Anyone who knows me knows I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Keith Urban... So... I have to say that our stop in Australia, home of Keith Urban, was NOT a sad or bothersome event for me. Quite the contrary... I was on cloud nine the entire time we were there! My sister-in-law was so jealous!
So we arrived in Sydney around 10:00 pm, with a 16 hour layover. We went through passport control, got our luggage, and went through customs. The entire airport was already shut down. We couldn't wait in the terminal. They made us go to a nasty part of the airport where people were sleeping on airport chairs that were CLOTH. Yuck! Then security came and closed and locked the gates, keeping us from the rest of the airport. We felt like caged rats. We decided to go to a hotel called O'Malley's.
Since we had slept on the flight to Australia, and we wanted to get on a sleep schedule for home, we stayed up all night and only used the hotel room for showering and storing the luggage. We took 2 station wagon taxis to O'Malley's, unloaded everything, and went to the King's Cross area (just down the street) to find something to eat. Unbeknownst to us, this area of Sydney is not the safest part of town. We saw prostitutes and a man passed out on a piece of cardboard in front of a vacant store. We took a couple of pictures of the street, and one of the prostitutes came and asked to see the pictures and to WATCH us delete them. She was testy at first, but when we explained that we were taking pictures of the street, she was nicer and said she just didn't want pictures of her put on the internet. Oh MY!
We ate at a McDonald's with an open store front on the street. Amy asked for honey mustard sauce, and the guy told her she'd have to pay 50 cents for it. Ha! She passed on the sauce. Walking down the sidewalk, there were lots of birds. Amy doesn't like birds, and she clapped her hands to run them off. I still have the image in my head. Ha!
After eating, we went back to the hotel room to shower. Then we went out to explore Sydney. We found a botanical garden with trees and plants from around the world. We had a nice walk through the gardens. We saw the Sydney Bay Bridge and the Opera House. The marina was gorgeous. In one part of the gardens, there were huge bats that were screaming loudly. They were in some trees and made terrible messes on the sidewalk below the trees. I had to run through the bad parts. Ha! They were neat for a few minutes, and then they were just a nuisance with their screaming and messes.
On the way back to the hotel, we stopped at an outside cafe for breakfast. The cappuccinos were good, but not as good as in Ukraine. I ate muesli with yogurt, honey, and fruit. Yummy! Amy found a hair in her bacon and cheese sandwich, but kindly didn't tell us until we were in a cab on the way back to the airport.
Trying to make a decision about where to go for the 16 hour layover.
O'Malley's Hotel was the destination.
The picture is sideways, but it's Australian money.
Opening the windows in the hotel room to try and air out some of the wet clothing we had to pack in Kiev.
King's Cross area.
View from our hotel window.
McDonald's.
The open store front at McDonald's.
Gregg protected us!
The picture is sideways, but this is the stairway at O'Malley's. We had to drag our luggage up those steps - no elevator.
Kati's reading us a list she compiled in her phone of quotes from different people on the trip. We got some good laughs out of that! And you can see all of the clothes we were trying to dry in the windows.
Trying to dry more jeans in the windows.
I was hugging a tree in KEITH country!!!
A great shot of us at the marina.
Look at the moss on those rocks to the left. So pretty!
I love how the clouds look in this picture!
The Opera House.
Beautiful! The Sydney Bay Bridge behind the Opera House.
A view up into a tree.
Great shot of us!
And Gregg... another great shot!
Can you see those nasty bats in the trees?
Ugh! They're so big and nasty!
Breakfast! The weather was perfect!
We did a lot of walking that day!
Returning home:When we got on the plane in Sydney, headed to LA, of course then the plane had mechanical issues. We were on the plane for hours before it finally took off. At this time, we were all so tired that most of us were asleep a few minutes after boarding the plane. I slept through all of the mechanical problems. I did wake up suddenly as we were taking off... when it sounded and felt like we left the back of the plane on the runway. It was a HUGE jolt that startled everyone!
Due to the mechanical issues, we missed our connection from LA to Tulsa. They immediately re-routed us through Denver to Tulsa, and we missed that one, too! So they booked us to Denver again. That time we took off, but the weather was awful. The pilot came on and said it was going to be a bumpy ride... And that it WAS! At that point, we were all so used to flight issues, that it really didn't disturb us much. Ha! We were just glad to be back in the U.S.
From Denver, we flew to Tulsa, and drove back to northwest Arkansas. I rode back with 2 of the other girls and their husbands. Amy and I were talking today about not remembering much at all about the ride back except that we were in Johnny's big truck, and we stopped at a really nice gas station to get some snacks. Amy didn't even remember that I rode with her. Haha! I had left my vehicle at Amy's house, so from there, I drove home. But I don't remember the drive. :) All I remember is that it was an unforgettable trip... full of hard, loving work with those precious children and families... and flights completely around the world within a week and a half. What a whirlwind of emotions and distance! So worth it! I'd do it again in a heartbeat!
Kati and Amy at the Tulsa airport - sooooo glad to be almost home!
Amanda's kids welcoming her home! What a bittersweet relief to be home!
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