So, on December 28th, 2010, my mom drove Brock and me to the Salt Lake airport where we would begin our journey on the most amazing trip I've ever been on! We got there around 11:00 so we could be 2 hours early, and it's a good thing; because, since there was a layover, we were given two boarding passes. I, being the space case that I am, looked at the gate for our flight out of Texas. Not the one out of Salt Lake. We walked FOREVER to the farthest corner of the airport to Gate E, exploring as we went and talking about how we'd never been in this part of the airport before! So I turned to Brock and asked, "Letter E, which number?" So he checked, and responded, "Gate B!!!"
Hahaha. Yeah. That's what started our trip. Good thing he was the one guiding our directions the rest of the time! So we walked all the way back, through that cool part of the airport that we had never seen before. Ate some lunch, and boarded our flight! Dramamine saved my life. I was sleepy for the whole flight, but the turbulence didn't bother me at all! Thank you modern medicine!
So then we had a short layover in Texas; enough time to eat dinner at Subway and board our flight. The Texas airport is hilarious! There's all these carts driving around giving people rides and the drivers are so funny! There was this one big black guy that had an especially loud voice: "Excuse the cart Please!" Over and over and over- sounded almost like a drill sargeant! And then another guy just kept yelling "Cart!" over and over. It was so funny to watch! Brock and I were laughing our heads off. They were aggressive too! I almost got hit by one! Haha it was funny :) Anyway, as we were boarding, some kid turned to me and said, "Hey, are you from Logan?" I was wearing my Aggie shirt. Gotta represent, right? So I told him yes and he got excited- "So am I!" Then the kid he was with turned his head and so did Brock and they both said "whoa!"
Haha, yeah it was a kid that served in Nicaragua with Brock. How crazy is that?! We were on the same flight as another Elder from Utah, both going back to visit the mission! It's a pretty small world! So we got on the flight and took off. The airplane showed us the movie "Salt." That show is so intense!! They better make a sequel for that cliff hanger. Anyway, they also fed us cheeseburgers.... I don't recommend airplane food. Good call on eating before we left :)
Anyway, as our plane was landing Brock pointed out to me all the different city lights as we passed over Mexico and Honduras and into Nicaragua. It was amazing! And I just got so excited! We landed just before midnight (one hour time difference- felt like 1 AM) in the beautiful Nicaragua! We got off, went through customs (tedious) and there we were! We were actually lucky to see Brock's friend because he had arranged for a member to come and pick them up from the airport! So he gave us a ride as well so that we didn't have to find a taxi! That was nice. We stayed at a Best Western Hotel just across the street from the airport.
Even late at night, I could tell how beautiful that country is. It was so humid and green and I definitely noticed what Brock calls "the Nicaraguan smell." Slight hint of burning, but also filled with lots of different trees and plants. It felt welcoming.
So anyway, we checked in to the hotel and the man spoke English! Thank goodness! I quickly learned that that is rare in Nicaragua... and my Spanish is nothing to be proud of! But with Brock as my translater, I got by just fine! When we got into our room Brock explained the key important things to be aware of in this country: don't walk around bare foot, wear flip flops in the shower, spray bug spray right away, and don't drink the tap water. Good things to never forget if you ever go to Nicaragua!
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