15 Hours

I’ve had some long flights in my travels, from California to Singapore and California to New Zealand, but today’s flight from Dallas to Doha, the second of my eleven flights this summer, is 15 hours, putting it right up there at the top of my list of long flights.

So, I’ve got some time to tell you more about my packing adventures. Two years ago, when Jessica and I went to South America, we knew we would be carrying our bags a lot, so we packed in a backpack. When we’ve taken road-trips before, we have filled a minivan from floor to ceiling, so a backpack is certainly a challenge. However, I was never in want of anything (aside from Hermione’s spell where she packed everything she needed including text books and a tent into her handbag), and to be fair, packing in a backpack really did make life easier. Remember, we aren’t staying at five star resorts where bellhops with cute hats carry your things for you (except for our first stop in Doha where this exact thing occurred). So, inevitably, packing light is a favor for our future selves.

Once again, I packed in a backpack. Just how big is this backpack? Well, it is larger than what my 4th graders bring to school for sure, but smaller than what hikers carry along the Pacific Crest Trail. It’s quite full, but I’m gone for a month and will be in a variety of climates and situations. Plus, to be real with you all, I, like most of us, have a bit of vanity in me and want to look cute for all the amazing travel destinations Jess and I will be posing in. To continue with honesty, I also have a teeny backpack, like the ones that adorable toddlers carry with their change of clothes and juice box to daycare to act as my purse/day pack. Oh, and technically I have a checked bag with me as well. However, it is just carrying our two sleeping bags. Yep, you read that correctly. For our first safari, we have a few nights that we need a sleeping bag. No, they don’t rent them out, and they have said it gets cold at night, so just a sheet won’t do. We bought inexpensive ones and will be leaving them in Rwanda, so hopefully I won’t have a checked bag until perhaps the journey home when it is full of treasures!

As I began planning clothes for this journey, Mom mentioned something about making sure I had safari clothes. You know the camouflage and khaki ones? My closet looks like a rainbow. Purple certainly stands out, with lots of bright greens and an ocean of blues in the mix along with a plethora of blacks and whites. The only colors lacking in fact are olive green, khaki and brown. It was at my appointment with the travel clinic where I received medication and vaccinations that my doctor mentioned why people wear “safari” clothes. The bugs are attracted to colors, in particularly blue and black. Thus began a shopping extravaganza for clothes that I did not even truly want. My safari clothes may not be Instagram ready, but they are sufficient and will hopefully keep the bugs at bay (along with heavy duty deet). 

Although I had planned to have sufficient time in Dallas to meet up with Jessica before boarding our long flight, planes did not travel as planned. So, by the time I was jogging up the tarmac off of my first flight (thankful for fellow passengers who allowed me off first), our plane was already boarding at a different terminal. The lucky penny Jessica found this morning (yesterday morning? What day is it?) must have brought me luck as well for the gate I arrived at was close to the train between terminals as was the gate where I was to board. While I did not have time to stop and use a real toilet, I did not have to jog far, and thankfully Jessica and I made it, together, safely onto our second of eleven flights.

What did we do for 15 hours? Well, there was some catching up to do of course, then meals (3 of them!), movies (Blended was cute), blogging, reading (The Poisonwood Bible), audiobooks (The Last King of Scotland) and knitting. For the first time on an international flight, I chose to bring my knitting. Despite the fact that it took up valuable space, it has become a calming activity for my mind and hands, and with so many long flights, I hoped it would keep me from going stir crazy! Thankfully, a neck pillow made a world of difference and for the first time in a long time, I slept on an international flight!

And now, we’ve arrived safely into our first country of this summer’s adventure: Qatar!