Here's the journal entry from the second day of flights and airports.

Friday, April 4, 2008

There weren't many people in the SFO airport, at least not around the gate where I came in.As more flights started coming in and the day got older, more people began joining me in the food court where I was sitting with my computer.Carson and I talked periodically on the phone as I tried to figure out how to load Yahoo Messenger and WindowsLive Messenger on my computer using the airport's wireless internet.It got pretty frustrating because the applications weren't working - probably due to my error - and I wanted to get them figured out before I left the country.We finally managed to figure them out, though, so I was in a better mood after that.I ought and ate my last fresh salad for three months while I was there, and I'm a little sad I won't be eating many fresh veggies while I'm gone.They are often grown and washed with unfiltered water, so if the water isn't safe for me to drink, these veggies won't be okay for me to eat, either.The same thing goes for fresh fruit: I've been told if I can't wash it, peel it, or boil it, I can't eat it.I guess we'll see how this works out.

After getting off the plane from Medford, I was informed I would need to go to the international terminal in order to catch my flight to Munich.A couple hours before departure I left the food court and followed the map on the SFO directory to find the international terminal.I found the right place to catch the shuttle bus to the international terminal, and I was led down to the tarmac level and got on the bus.Unaware that the bus was planning to wait for awhile, I got a little impatient as I just sat there by myself as the bus driver just read his Korean newspaper.About thirty minutes later, four or five others had boarded the bus, and we finally started making our way to the international terminal.On the bus I spoke with a man who had been to India before, so he told me some of his experiences and helped me get a better picture of what to expect.I also ended up in a conversation with a German woman leaving on the same flight to Munich I was on.After we made it to the correct terminal and up three flights of stairs, I looked for Gate 99.It was clear this gate would be quite a ways down the way, so I started toward the end of the terminal, taking advantage of two moving sidewalks on my way there because I didn't want to be at all late.When I reached the end, all I saw was a small coffee shop and restaurant: no desk or anything that looked remotely like a place I could get my boarding pass.I wandered around for awhile scared and feeling lost, eventually making my way back to where I had come in at the far end of the terminal.There weren't many people in the area, and hardly any who looked like they worked there.I asked the person at the currency exchange counter how I was supposed to get my boarding pass, and was only more confused after finishing that conversation in mangled English.I finally found a woman who was dressed in an airport staff suit and asked her what to do. The German woman and I had met up at this point as she didn't know what she was really doing, either.She already had her boarding pass, however, so when I found out I had to go all the way out of security to get my ticket at the Lufthansa counter in Aisle 4 and come back through the TSA again, she headed down toward the end of the terminal hoping to have more luck than I had.The man at the Lufthansa counter had some troubles getting my boarding pass printed off, but it finally worked, and I was finally relieved to know I had a chance of catching my flight.I was unfortunate enough, however, to get back to the security right behind the entire Lufthansa crew that I suspected would be on my flight.There were more stewards and stewardesses than I had ever seen for any single flight, so the wait to go through security was a touch longer than I would have hoped.Once through, the only thing I could really do was go back down to where Gate 99 was and hope that a desk and many more chairs had magically appeared.I walked for fifteen-minutes only to realize that there was an escalator leading down to the lower level, the level where the lovely check-in desk and all the seats were located.I felt stupid and like I had been in such a rush to get my boarding pass that I hadn't even realized next to the sign that said "99" was an arrow pointing down.I could have gotten my boarding pass about an hour sooner and not even worried about security.I got some good exercise in I guess!Even though I didn't know my way around SFO at all, I still felt like I was in a familiar place, and I got sad again when I called my parents and Carson for the last time before the 11-hour flight to Germany.I still haven't managed to get very excited for this opportunity, and I'm a little disappointed with myself because of this.I'm still dwelling on the people and places and fun I'm going to miss while I'm gone, but I should really be looking forward to the experience ahead.Maybe it is because I don't really know what I will be doing and what India will be like that I'm still uneasy about all of it.

The Lufthansa Airbus 340 is huge!It is very nice inside and looks pretty new.The restrooms (yes, there are 6) are located downstairs, as is the staff's kitchen area.Now I see why there were so many Lufthansa crew members going through security at SFO.My seat is next to the window, and looking out at the end of the wing is like trying to read a sign far off in the distance.I have never been on a plane this massive.

The woman next to me on the plane was very nice and had traveled many places internationally, so she helped me ease my concerns a bit.We chatted for awhile before she recline her seat to sleep.I played around with the personal television screen in front of me and watched various documentaries - the one about the Thai girl and her elephant was very interesting - and watched our progress on the virtual flight map.It was cool seeing where we were in relation to the continents and oceans below.I wasn't really sure what our route would be and whether we would be going over the North Pole or not.It turns out we took a slightly northerly route over the United states and across the Atlantic, then came in over England and Denmark.We were served two meals on the flight, and I slept the seven hours between the two.We had been asked to keep our window shades down during this middle part of the flight so people could sleep, so I didn't bother looking out the window to see the terrain below.Breakfast was served, and a little while later we landed in Munich.

Sitting in the waiting area at the Munich airport I felt very alone.The only times I heard English were over the airport intercom and the one time I asked an Indian man sitting nearby if his computer was connecting to the internet.After discussing the must-pay-to-use T-Mobile internet service for a few minutes, I introduced myself as a visitor staying in the Dehra Dun area for the nest ten weeks.Neither he nor his friend seemed very interested in talking with me.So, not only was I one of the only Americans in the placid waiting area, but the only people I could even relate to didn't feel like talking to me.I bought a Twix and a Snickers shortly after that to comfort myself.These would be the only American food I would have with me besides my sister's peanut butter protein bars I stole from the kitchen cabinet right before I left the house.To my amusement, the candy bars had different labels than the ones I was used to in America.Along with these small pieces of comfort food, I also bought a large pretzel…I had to, I was in Germany!These would be the only recognizable food items I would eat for the next three months, so I decided I needed to save them for later.I had eaten my last hot dog in the San Francisco airport the evening before, and as my backpack couldn't fit anything more than the two candy bars, that's all the familiar food I could bring.

I sat next to two Indian men on the Delhi flight, and I was glad they were much friendlier than the man in the airport.They are from Delhi, so they knew of the places I said I'd be visiting.They gave me some good tips and information (like the fact that I should be able to go inside the Hindi temples, that Rishikesh will probably be very crowded, that the schools get out at the beginning of May, that May and June will be very hot, and that I shouldn't walk around alone at night, and that the little sesame-seed-looking packet that came with my Indian meal on the plane were actually mint-y mouth-fresheners to eat at the end of the meal…who knew?!)I'm proud of myself for talking to the Indian men instead of sleeping on the plane.I also listened to the Indian music channels on the flight instead of taking out my iPod, so at least I am making attempts to integrate myself into the world of India.

I'm still not quite as excited as I'd have hoped or expected to be.I don't really know why, either.I think at this point it's the fact that the food will all be very different (and therefore unusual and uncomfortable) and that I just realized how long 10 weeks really is.I'm definitely stepping outside my comfort zone with this one!

I just went to the bathroom in the nice, big (bigger than normal) Airbus restrooms downstairs and forgot to lock the door.My luck abandoned me about the same time an Indian man decided he wanted to use the same restroom stall.Needless to say, that experience was a little embarrassing!