Coming home

We left Lawrence's house at 5:40 am Ghanaian time on August the 5th.

• 57 min driving to the airport


• 7 hr 26 min waiting at the airport


• 40 min waiting on the plane


• 10 hr 30 min flying to NY


• 14 min waiting in the airplane


• 2 hr 2 min at the airport


• 7 hr 13 min at a hotel


• 5 min riving to the airport


• 2 hr 6 min waiting at the airport


• 1 hr 16 min waiting on the plane


• 3 hr 21 min flying to Dallas


• 12 min waiting in the plane


• 20 min at the airport


• 17 min driving to a restaurant


• 37 min eating at the restaurant


• 24 min at our friends house


• 3 hr 4 min driving to Uncle Darryl's house


• 1 hr 9 min at Uncle Darryl's house


• 12 min driving home

We Arrived home at 6:36 pm Texas time on August the 6th, for a total of 41 hr 55 min travel time.

Our flight out of Accra was delayed 4 or 5 hours due to a fueling problem. It was pretty sad to watch 4 other flights leave that were supposed to leave after us. During the delay we met some interesting people. First we met two girls. They had been in Ghana for three weeks. One of the girls was normal and the other one would be normal and then you would say something and she would get all wound up about it. Not mad at you, just...annoyed at the subject. She made some pretty strange faces too.

We talked a little bit and then another white guy came up and talked with us. He was a strange character. We started playing some card games. Ucker, crazy eights, uno with regular cards, spoons and BS. He only knew of BS but still didn't really know how to play. While we were playing he left like 4 times and "went to the bathroom" and was gone for half an hour each time. The first time we thought he didn't want to play and ditched us, but he had left his bag. This guy came to Ghana to "get away from his mom" but was going home a couple of week early because he didn't feel good. Daddy seriously wondered how he got to the airport ok.

While we waited for the plane two kids cried at two different times but on the plane I didn't hear either of them. Instead there was this lady with a stupid dog!!! She sat right in front of us on the window side. That dog didn't bark; it yipped. It was the most annoying dog ever. The lady would sit for about five minutes and then it would start yipping, so she'd bother the lady next to her to get out and walk around some. Then she'd come back again, and it would start again. On the plane we watched Maid of Honor, Nim's Island and something else which I can't remember right now.

Considering that we had several hours of layover and the flight was so long the airport should have known that we were all going to miss our connections. But when we got to New York they were so surprised and unprepared for a whole airplane of people who had missed their connections. That was pretty frustrating.

When we got our hotel vouchers we had to walk to the buss that would take us to the hotel. The lady who gave us our vouchers didn't even tell us how to get to the bus until we asked. It was "go out and down the ramp, up the elevator. Take the tram to station C, and then get on the bus." And how do you think we were supposed to figure that out??? It was a long way too. Why couldn't the bus just pick us up out side? We already had to walk across the road. By the time we got to the hotel, got checked in and taken a shower (which we were thoroughly grateful for) we had about 5 hours to sleep. By the time we got to sleep it was like 12 NY time, I woke up and checked my watch. It was 2. "Great!!! I have a chance to actually sleep and I'm wasting it by waking up. "

We go up at 6:15 to catch the 6:30 bus. On the way out we met a lady also going down to catch the bus. We rode in the elevator and talked a little bit. We went outside to wait for the bus, and it was already there, along with just about everyone else. A bunch of people were already in front of the bus and the bus was part way full. While the first bus was filling up another smaller bus came. Some people got in and then we were close to the front. The lady that we talked to in the elevator was getting on. There was another lady trying to get on, she had three kids and lots of luggage we were sort of next after the lady with kids. The lady we met on the elevator said, "oh I was with them." and pointed to us. So we got to get on the bus!! We helped her put her suitcases on the bus. After us only one or two more people got on after us. We were so grateful of the lady.

While we were waiting at the airport in NY daddy called a couple of people using a pay phone since we had left our cell phones in the car, because they wouldn't do us much good in Ghana. It was complicated to get change. Anyway daddy called a friend and arranged to have him pick us up and take us to our car since the people who's house it was at were at work. We went to a BBQ place to eat lunch and visit.

Coming home we stopped to visit with Uncle Darryl and Aunt Karyl. Then I did some laundry and went to bed at 8. So in a 44 hour chunk I got about 4 hours of sleep. It's great to be home.

Replies:

Ray, We really missed you. No I didn't touch the snake. It was dead. I didn't think to touch it, but I did get a couple of pictures.

Anonymous, I really can't help you out with the recipe unless I know who you are. lol

April, thanks for reading! It was a great trip.

Lawrence, Thanks for housing us. The food was great! Last year was a good trip as well. Thank you so much.