Chapter the First, Section Alpha: Getting There, Part I

At the time of writing, I'm sitting in the Orlando International Airport, killing time in the lobby of Terminal B, because my flight leaves in an hour and 45 minutes. I'm probably going to get some lunch before I head out to my specific terminal.

I feel naked without my phone in my pocket. Every so often I'll do a possessions check--you know, pat my pockets and make sure I have every little thing. And when I don't feel my phone or my keys, I have a small heart attack before remembering that 1) my phone is in the very capable hands of my little sister, and 2) my keys are in my backpack because I don't need them right now. I wish I had it; I'd much rather kill time by texting my friends than writing up this post in Notepad to upload later, because there are no unsecured wifi networks in this lobby.

Where to begin? Once Galen and I actually found a [swear word] parking space, we began the long and arduous journey to the check-in counter. I headed to Lufthansa's counter where, to my dismay, there was nobody; I asked an employee and she said the desk didn't open until 5. Cue the first minor hiccup of the day. I checked my itinerary again, and it turns out the first flight (Orlando to Charlotte) is operated by US Airways, so I was able to check in at their counter (all the way at the other [swear word] end of the building). As we approached the US Airways counter, I saw a massive line and my heart sank...and then I felt better as we moved past it, because those people were checking in on different airlines. There was almost no line at the US Airways counter, and I was able to check my big suitcase all the way through to St. Petersburg. I got my three boarding passes, thanked the lady, and started the inexorable march toward THE SECURITY CHECKPOINT.

Mom, you'll be glad to know I made it through security without incident. I picked a line that didn't send me through the backscatter machine (those are the X-ray machines that I find to be an incredible breach of privacy, so here's hoping I'll remain so lucky), I wasn't scowling the entire time, and everything progressed very smoothly. The line was a bit long, but I wasn't waiting more than about 15 minutes and I was through and collecting my belongings again in all of two minutes.

Apparently, though, the Orlando International Airport believes that chewing gum is Public Enemy No. 1, because there isn't a stick of it to be found in the entire airport. I must have circled the counter of the airport convenience store three times looking for gum, and finding nothing but mints and candy. Well, okay then. I got some Altoids, hopefully those will help.

I've still got a good hour and a half or so to kill before my flight boards, but I've parked myself in a relatively comfortable chair in front of the Arrival/Departure boards. Waiting on US Airways Flight 1722, departing 1:50 PM EST, January 31, 2012.

QUICK STATUS:
Headcold: Still sniffly, occasional sneezing. Doing OK overall.
Excite-O-Meter: 3/10. Maybe it's because I haven't left yet, but I'm mostly missing my friends and family at the moment. I'm excited, but it's kind of on an abstract level right now, if that makes sense (it doesn't).

Prologue: Introduction

Hello, friends and family! This is the blog I said I'd be maintaining while abroad. Enter your email address in the box to the right and you'll get email updates when I post. Click Submit after you enter your email address; a box will pop up (you may need to disable your popup blocker temporarily). There will be an image of some distorted text at the bottom of the popup box; type the letters you see in the text box below it, and click Complete Subscription Request. Then, check your email for a confirmation. Click the link in the confirmation email (or copy and paste it into the address bar), and another box will pop up confirming that you've subscribed to my blog. Now, you'll get an email when I make a post, so you don't have to worry about missing anything!

If you have no idea who I am...well, first of all, how did you even get here? Second of all, welcome. My name's Emily, and this is a chronicle of my semester in St. Petersburg, Russia.

I'll change the background image occasionally; if the cell phone they give me as part of the program has a camera (I think all of them do these days), I'll try to upload my own pictures and use those. Otherwise, I'll raid Flickr. Right now, the image is out the window of an airplane; that one is a default image for this theme, but I think it's appropriate.