My 8 hours in New York went much faster than I imagined. The first hour was spent trying to get myself to the correct terminal -- the only airport I've got off a plane and had to exit to go back through security! And then you could only reach the correct terminal by a monorail, and of course one of them was down, so it took forever and a day. To make it worse, I misunderstood the "approaching" and "arriving" messages and missed my terminal, and had to ride all the way around again.
Once I got through security, I went looking for the lounge my dad has access to, only to have them turn me away because I'm not my father; bummer! So all chances of a nap were out. So, I spent my time wandering up and down the terminal (easily 1.5 miles end to end), window shopping, eating, and using up all the data on my phone that I could since I will be without (spoiled). Now I am boarded on my plane and will remain here for the next 12 hours and 50 minutes. But of course, in typical Carla fashion, I forgot I had a tea in the bottle pocket of my back pack and spilt it everywhere, GREAT first impression to the people next to me that I will be next to for over half a day. I'm also stuck in the window seat, which may become a problem as I have the world's tiniest bladder. But no matter! This will be an adventure! We are on an Airbus 380, and it is HUMONGOUS! There are 2 floors. 2 FLOORS! ON A PLANE! My mind is totally blown.
My layover in Dubai is 8 hours as well. I'm just praying there's wifi even if only for 15 minutes to let people know I'm still alive!
I might only be 1/3 of the way there, but I can already tell I love this traveling alone thing. Hopefully I continue to have more opportunities like this!
Well, next time I see you I'll be in the United Arab Emirates! Bye America!!