Leaving home for Durham North Carolina

I flew on 19 August 2008 with SAA. Saying good-bye to my family was one of the hardest things I've done in my life. We had lunch at the airport, and I had my last cigarette with my mom, I was going to be an Au Pair and was not allowed to smoke according to rules and regulations of APT Au Pair Work and Travel. Well, I thought I was going to quit anyway...

I cried my eyes out walking all over the airport, realizing that I didn't even have enough money for coffee on the airport. Its a horrible feeling, being broke that is, never mind not being able to contact your family because you have no phone, no money, and there's no one to accompany you.

I remember getting onto the flight, I had the window seat, and an older man sat next to me. He went for a safari somewhere and was returning. Actually, I think he went hunting, he mentioned that he did it once a year.

If you know me, you know that I talk excessively. After about 5 minutes in my seat the man turned to me and said "I hope you're not one of those talkers". I felt ashamed of who I was for some reason and kept to myself the rest of the flight. I even kept in my urge to go to the restroom, afraid that he might say something.

The food was disgusting, a choice between lamb and fish. I don't eat either of those. But I ate out of starvation. Eventually I also got up to go pee, and then, something even more terrifying happened. I did not know how the taps work on airplanes. I couldn't wash my hands. And then I got lady problems as well. Awesome, hey?

We landed on Dakar for an hour, waiting for people to get off and new ones to get on. Real African people too, carrying large plastic bags, about 4 times the size of regular hand luggage. The place was cramped. And people aren't allowed to stand up in that time, you have to wait until the plane takes off and the "fasten seat belt" sign is switched off.

The plane then took us to Washington DC in Virginia, where, if I remember correctly, I had a 3 hour lay over, just to fly 20 minutes to Raleigh North Carolina.

I then experienced the second worst pain in my life. My feet were swollen up about 4 times they're normal size, my toes weren't touching the ground as I walked, and I got excruciating stinging pains in my feet and legs. That's what happens if you don't walk enough during a flight.

Thanks asshole! If you didn't tell me not to talk, I would have moved more.

Lesson learnt, don't sit at the window.

I eventually got to Raleigh, walking with my overloaded bags. My hand luggage had story books in for the kids, and it felt like the bag, along with my shoulder was on breaking point. I had two large bags with wheels, luckily, but my feet hurt so bad, I still couldn't walk properly.

Alisha, my host mom greeted me at the exit. She was friendly, taking most of my luggage of my hands, asking me how the flight was, and worrying about my swollen feet. She is a doctor, and she thought that I might have gotten blood clots, so, she gave me aspirin to thin my blood. We got home, she showed me the house, I got myself a glass of water as the agency told me, the sooner you do things for yourself, the better, you feel at home more easily.

I still remember the smell of they're house. I can never forget that smell.

Alisha gave me an option to take a nap, and I took it.

And that was the beginning...