Guardian Angels...

Ok, so I have officially been home now for a full 36 hours and I am barely starting to feel human again! I am still battling a terrible cold and stomach issues... but I am grateful to be here. Today is my birthday and on one hand... it's the worst birtday ever (jetlag, exhaustion, illness, no voice, having to work) but on the other hand it is the BEST birthday ever because I am HOME safe and sound! There was a very real possibility that I was going to have to spend my birthday sleeping on the floor of London Heathrow. So the mere fact that I am home is enough to make this the best birthday ever!!! Plus people at my work went out of their way to make me know how important my birthday was. My group supervisees brought me an apple pie and sang Happy Birthday. My fellow supervisors brought a delicious pear tart and I got to blow out a candle. And my individual supervisees sent me a card telling me that a donation had been made by all of them in my honor to Habitat For Humanity. WOW!!!! On the way home from work, I heard the song Dancing Queen and was immediately taken back to the bus ride to the Taj Mahal and how I'd gotten some of my fellow teammates to have a dance party in the bus aisle to ABBA... what a sweet memory!

Now that I've have a day to process the trauma of my trip home... and in order to work through some of my PTSD... I am going to share with you all the joys of coming home from India. On Friday night I learned that my flight from India would be delayed. I was stressed because it would mean I only have one hour to catch my flight in London. I also was feeling really ill as I had caught a terrible cold and throat infection/cough. Luckily a few of my teammembers stayed up with me to cheer me up and keep me company. I left for the airport just after midnight and spent the night trying not to fall asleep in the terminal. I ended up getting a row of seats all to myself and slept about 5 hours of the 8 hour flight... little did I know it would be the last peaceful sleep I would have for awhile!

I landed in London and before I could even get to the connecting flights terminal, they told us that all flights for the day had been cancelled and we would need to go through immigration. Uh, excuse me?! The line was REALLY long and took about 3 hours to get through. I met a woman from Chicago who was going to be staying in London for a few days after spending a month in India doing some research for her microfinance dissertation. The guy behind us showed us a paper he had gotten from British airways. It basically said "fend for yourselves." They said that all flights had been cancelled and that British airways would be unable to rebook our flight or get us a hotel. However, if we could find a hotel, they MIGHT reimburse us up to $300. When I walked up to the Immigration desk, the guy asked me how long I would be staying in London. I chuckled and said "uh, I think you had better ask British airways that question." I went to gather my luggage and was told that all luggage that was supposed to connect to another flight was being held and could not be released. So with no luggage I walked htrough customs. I went upstairs to ticketing and there was not a single British airways person to be found. I met a woman who was trying to get to Seattle and the earliest she could rebook was on December 24th. A little bit of panic began to set in and I asked if I could borrow her laptop (mine wouldn't recognize the internet in Heathrow and even if it did... it was $20 a day!!!). I checked my booking and it said that I had been rebooked on an American Airlines flight the next morning. I felt relieved and just needed to find a place to stay. I soon found out online that EVERY hotel near the airport was completely full or overbooked. With no options, I decided that maybe I should venture out to see some of London and try to find a hotel in a more touristy area of downtown. I bought an Underground/tube ticket and hopped on. I soon realized that this trip to London center might be more drama than it was worth. I talked with a guy next to me who had to abandon his car @ LHR (Heathrow) because the roads were all impassable and he had to take the tube to get home. The tube kept stopping and they were saying that there were problems on the track due to snow. I finally got off at Westminister. I walked outside and was immediately hit with the frigid temperature... I was wearing capri pants, a tank top and a sweater. I jumped back into the station and dug out my new scarf and a second pair of capri pants. The pants went on over the first pair. The first thing I saw was the London Eye which is a Ferris wheel right next to the Thames river. I turned to the right and immediately saw Big Ben! WOW! Super impressive. I walked a bit and realized how silly the idea of going into London was starting to be... it was really cold (probably in the teens) and was starting to get dark. I walked around looking for a hotel but couldnt find one. I bumped into Westminister Abbey and House of Parliament. They were both beautiful and covered in snow. I decided to go back to the tube. When I arrived, it was pure pandemonium. The train had stopped running. I decided to try to find the hotel where Nicole was staying as it was near Victoria Train station. I met a man on the road who worked at Westminister Abbey and he agreed to walk me the two miles to the Victoria station so I would not get lost. By this time my shoes and socks were wet and cold from walking in the slushy snow.
Just outside the station I found a McDonalds that had free wi-fi! Yea for McDonalds!!! I updated my blog and called my mom. I ended up going to the bathroom and trying to dry my shoes and socks with the hand dryer. At the train station I ended up buying some socks and a few munchies. At this point, I realized that I should probably just head back to LHR. I got on the train and headed to the airport. About an hour later, and many delays, the train operator came over the intercom and said "due to problems on the track up ahead because of the snow, we are going to have to suspend service here." Fan-freaking-tastic! They dumped us out in the middle of nowhere! Luckily there was about 20 of us trying to get to the airport. we were able to find a bus and hopped on. I didn't have any pounds (currency in London) and so I snuck on the bus! Once on the bus, an incredibly kind British woman named Melissa (who looked Indian!) asked if we were heading to the airport. She was returning from work as she had been called in eventhough it was her day off. She told us which bus routes to take and where to get off and actually offered to help us get there! She helped us navigate the three transfers needed and at the last one, she walked us to the stop and told us to wait for the 490. She crossed the street and caught a bus back to wherever she was headed. I was REALLY grateful for her help! It took me about 4 1/2 hours total to get back to the airport (which should have been a 45 minute tube ride). Once back at the airport, I realized that things were pretty rough there. They were handing out blankets but didn't have enough for everyone. Fighting quickly ensued. I managed to get a blanket (more like a throw actually) but not a mat to sleep on. I started takling with this guy who was trying to get to Philly. His name was Spencer. We decided to bunk together and pulled up some space behind a ticket counter. I think I got maybe 3 or 4 hours of light sleep. It was cold in the terminal and sleeping on the cold, hard marble floor was terrible! In the morning, I found a random sleep mat lying on the floor and grabbed it. I ended up carrying that mat and my refugee blanket with me everywhere that day... no way was I giving it up! At the point, people also started to realize that there was a shortage of food. Some of the restaurants had run out. BA handed out a few sandwiches but quickly ran out. I got up at 5:30 and took the express train to terminal 3 where I was supposed to catch the American Airlines flight. I got there and it was complete pandemonium! There was barely enough room to walk and people were all in a panic. After about an hour, there was an announcement that all flights for the day were cancelled. My last option had just run out... I tried to think of what to do next and figured I should head back to terminal 5 since they would soon be closing terminal 3. I went to take the express train and they had blockaded it and were saying that the train to terminal 5 was not operating. They told me to either catch a cab or pay the $8 for the tube. I chose the tube. While waiting for the tube, a kind man about 50 years old began to talk with me. He and his wife were on their way to New Zealand to visit their daughter who is my age. I must have been in quite the state because he asked if I had breakfast. I told him I had not and he offered to have me come to his hotel @ the airport and treat me to b-fast. I accepted. I realized at that point that I had not brushed my hair and it was completely matted... nice! No wonder the poor guy took pity on me! The hotel had stationed armed guards outside to keep out anyone who did not have a room key. B-fast was a buffet and I quickly realized how hungry I was. I think operating in survival mode had quenched my hunger. His wife came down to b-fast and she offered to let me take a shower in their room. I gladly and gratefully accepted. It was the best shower ever and I didn't care that the only option was hotel shampoo without conditioner! I put on the same clothes I had been wearing for the past two days. I called the hotel desk and they were able to send up a toothbrush and toothpaste. HOORAY! I've never been so grateful to brush my teeth! I decided to head back to the terminal to check in and John and Lilia offered to have me meet them back for dinner @ 7. It was really sweet! Back at the terminal I checked in with the baggage area... they told me it would be 2 to 3 weeks before I would be able to get my luggage. AWESOME! I went back upstairs where Spencer was waiting... no news. No flights leaving. He told me that some people had tried to call British Airways to rebook their flights and were told it was a 13 hour wait!!! At about 4pm that afternoon, despair and desperation started to set in. Up until that point, although exhausted, I had some hope that I would be able to get out of the airport. In those dark moments, I began to pray. I prayed to keep myself from crying and I prayed to try to resurrect some hope within me. 20 minutes later Giff (another guy who;d started to hang with us) came running over and said "they've agreed to let 4 planes fly tonight... we need to get on one of them." We grabbed our bags and ran over to try to get on a waitlist. Our options were Cape Town, Singapore, New York and Boston. I immediately went for Boston knowing that I had family there I could stay with if I couldn't get a flight to LAX. The woman put my name on the waitlist and said "you will be lucky to even get on this plane. If you do get on it, you will be responsible to find your own way to LAX, including buying a new plane ticket to get you there." At that point, I didn't care, I just wanted to be AWAY from London! Send me to Siberia, I don't care (ok, well maybe not Siberia... however, they would probably be better equipped to deal with snow!!!). I called my mom from someone's phone and told her that if she didn't hear frm me in the next 2 hours, it meant I got on the flight and that she should call my cousin in Boston and ask her to come get me. When they began to call names, I have never wished so hard for anything in my life!!!! When they called out "koller" I squeeled and ran up to the counter. She told me "congrats, you have 20 minutes to get on the plane... run!" So I ran!!!!!! I got on the plane and ended up that my seat was in Economy plus! A little extra legroom and slightly better recline... nice!! Spencer, Giff and Landon also made it on the plane. When they plane took off, the entire cabin began to clap and cheer. PEACE OUT LONDON!!!

The flight was 6 1/2 hours and I rested for a little bit. I was still too amp'd up to relax. I landed in Boston and realized that my cell phone did not work. Of course not, how could anything come easy?! I borrowed Giff's phone to call my mom to get Leanne's #. I ran up to ticketing (they were about to close... it was about 10pm) and they were able to get me a voucher for a flight the next day on American. I was nervous though because she told me that there was only one seat left but that they couldn't assign me a seat, only give me a voucher. I turned and saw Leanne heading my way. Never in my life have I ever been so glad to see someone I love!!!!! I was a complete zombie... probably smelled pretty ripe and was barely functioning. My cough and cold had gotten worse and I was barely still upright. We got to her house close to midnight and after the most wonderful shower, I headed to bed. I had trouble falling asleep though... you know when you are just SO exhausted that your body forgets how to shut down? I think the wear and tear and FEAR of the past few days was starting to catch up with me. I didn't realize exactly how tense I was during my 36 hours in London and the stress from leavng India late. I slept a few hours and the next morning enjoyed some prime cousin time. As we left to head back to the airport, it began to snow. Of course it did! I get to the airport, load up on the plane and the announce that they need to de-ice the wings... one hour delay while on the plane. After de-icing, the pilot comes over the intercom and says "uh, while we were getting de-iced, the runway iced over and is now closed. It's gunna be a long night folks." They had us all get off the plane. The guy next to me took pity on me (I must have been quite the sight by now) and offered to let me go to the admiral's club with him. I accepted. I just about cried when I saw mouthwash and lotion in the bathroom. It was alittle piece of heaven. I was able to check my email for the first time in a few days. We re-boarded the plane and they had to de-ice again. The pilot came over the intercom and announced that due to heavy rains in Los Angeles, that they were also going to need to add more fuel because we might have to circle LAX for awhile before being able to land. Awesome! By the time I landed in Los Angeles, I could barely form words! My friend Purvi came to get me since it would have been unsafe for my mom to drive up in the rain. With the 4 1/2 hour delay, I felt terrible that she had to come get me at 12:30am! Once at home, I didn't have a key to get in since my friend had been staying at my place and I had told her to take the key with her since my mom would be picking me up and had a key. With no mom and no key... I knew my only hope was a spare key I keep outside. I had to hop the concrete wall (almost killing myself in the process!) and praise Jesus the key was still there!!!! I think it was about 2am by the time I finally got to sleep.

So long story short, those were the longest 86 hours of my life! I think I slept about 14 of those hours and am still reeling from all the events of the past few days. I called out sick yesterday and didn't even leave the house. In hindsight, I am overcome by gratitude for all the people that helped me along the journey. Friends, family and strangers alike all jumped into action to help me along the way. And in the end... i made it home without breaking down once! :) A pretty amazing accomplishment if I do say so myself!

I will try to post pictures in the next few days so please check back. GLAD TO BE HOME!!!!! :)