Getting There Is Half The Fun

I never think getting there is half the fun. In fact, with my track record, getting there is usually The Absolute Torture One Must Endure In Order To Have The Fun. And then you have to do it again on the way back.



I don't usually like travelling with my parents. Mom, Dad, I love you, but I prefer to have a printed itinerary in my hand the day before departure, and to know which country I am flying to before leaving for the airport. When I would bring these things up in conversation with my parents before the trip, I was assured that there was, actually, an itinerary printed out somewhere, and that we'd figure it out before we got there.




So I kind of did this thing where I unhinged my brain from the rest of my body and went into follow mode.




So the last thing I expected was the be flying business class to Barbados.






Please understand me when I say I will never be able to fly anywhere ever again. I have been totally and completely spoiled. The leg room! The ability to recline the seat ALL the way back! The personal TV's with tons of movie and television choices! The food with real silverware! The flight attendants that smile and don't look at you like you've been smuggling explosives in the diaper bag.




Of course, then we got to Barbados and began filling out what seemed to be an endless supply of forms. We had to go through customs, see? So Each time we arrived we had to tell there where we came from, and why, and how long we were staying and when we were leaving, and then two minutes later we had to provide everyone with exactly the same information on a different form. At our last airport we were led to an empty room with a CUSTOMS sign swinging in the breeze, and people actually came out of the back room to make us walk through immigration one at a time, and we watched as a guy unloaded our carry-ons onto a conveyor belt that would have easily fit inside my kitchen.



But the best part was the second flight.













Leaving Barbados we got on a charter plane. It was so small. It had spinning propellors. I sat next to my dad, and we both had a window seat!










  Here was my view:

 I could see the shadow of the plane on the ground, and then on the ocean. It took 30 minutes, and I thought we would drop out of the sky at any moment. But we didn't. And then when we got there it was so worth it!