The Luggage, Drive, & Plane

The day I have been eagerly awaiting is here! It is time to jet set to a new destination, a land I know little of, except for the stories I hear from Pengfei. Who happens to be roommate freshmen and sophomore year of college. This adventure not only broadens my outlook on the world, but also the trust I have instilled in our friendship.

We have scheduled out our last day of school strategically. We both have our room packed into various boxes and we are ready to leave. We decide that we will be staying at my house for the night and then going to the airport from there. Once we have gotten settled back at my house, the excitement sets in and minutes feel like hours and hours feel like days. Counting down the every second until it is time to depart to the airport.

This is the longest flight I have ever taken. Pengfei qualifies as a professional flyer to China in my eyes, since he has taken this flight a total of two times prior. It is our bright idea that we will stay up the entire night, that way we sleep on the plane. China is exactly 24 hours ahead of U.S. time. It is with this logic we feel we will sync to the Chinese clock.

As the night progresses we are doing anything to stay awake. We are listening to music, talking about China, the adventure that will soon be taking place, and video chatting with his cousin back in China, of whom I will quickly become his new “American Friend.”

The time has arrived and we begin filling the trunk of the car with the items we deemed desirable to pack and we begin the trek to Cleveland, which is 1 hour and 30 minutes away.

Once getting on the plane it finally begins to hit me. I will be in China within the next 18 hours. I’m so excited. Once we board the second plane, the plane that takes us straight to Shanghai, I feel alleviated. I can finally sleep! I pop out my secret to extensive plane travel; Dramamine. Soon I will be sleeping like a baby.

Before dosing off, I begin to notice that the flight attendant has taken a liking to me. As we continue to exchange shared glances. This has got to be one of the first signs that this amazing adventure is just what I needed.