I have arrived! Since I left on a blustery snow storm day, as my mother had predicted would happen, flight delays ensued of course. Thankfully, that didn't effect me making any of my connecting flights, just shorter layovers, which was nice.
None of the flights were atrociously long, and I met some interesting people. The first, was a young man traveling to Egypt, where he grew up, but he quickly became annoying as he continued to try to have conversations with me despite the fact that he was drugged up on one to many sleeping pills. The second was a lovely elderly Taiwanese couple from New York, they are my grandma's age but travel often, and have been to six continents. Found out that the husband went to Lawrence University in Appleton, WI in the 1950's-small world!
It's interesting having the last name "Lingenfelter," it seems that whenever I go somewhere new, someone has a connection to the name. For example, the airport security man in Appleton asked if I was related to a man named "Aimi Lingenfelter," (I'm not sure if I spelt his first name correctly). However, apparently he invented a well-known wrestling move? Who knows, but the security man seemed really excited that we shared the same last name.
At customs in Amman, I thought it would be more difficult, but the hardest part was trying to help the security man there pronounce my name. He kept trying to pronounce it and then would laugh, I had to fake laugh along with him as at the moment I wasn't amused and just wanted to clear customs. Alas, this took more time as he proceeded to call over his two friends to look at my name and try to pronounce it, ensuing more laughs from the two newcomers. Finally, I just said yes, yes, that's correct, even though it wasn't, and they let me through.
Once I exited the terminal I was supposed to be greeted by the hotel driver holding a sign with my name on it, but I saw no one. I called the hotel and they said the man was supposedly there, he wasn't. I meandered around looking for him, all the while trying not to look completely lost as men were shouting things to me that I didn't understand, most likely wanting me to take their taxi. I sat down and was able to get internet for a short time and waited for 45 minutes. By this time I was getting anxious, I looked around the outside of the terminal again and saw a man holding a sign that I hadn't seen earlier. I got up and crossed the room in order to be able to read the sign, and it said Ms. Hannah Lingenfelter on it. Let me tell you, at that moment I felt like there could be no greater feeling in the world than seeing a complete stranger holding a sign with my name across it. I almost hugged the man, I was so excited to see him, but of course, I restrained myself and was composed. He told me that he had been waiting at a different terminal then he drove back to the hotel (30-40 minute drive) and they told him to come back for me. Praise the Lord! He was a nice young man, who didn't speak english well, but I did find out his name was "Moody." He drove me to the hotel, somehow without getting in an accident, (I had forgotten about their driving behavior in the Middle East) and I crashed in my comfy hotel bed soon thereafter.
None of the flights were atrociously long, and I met some interesting people. The first, was a young man traveling to Egypt, where he grew up, but he quickly became annoying as he continued to try to have conversations with me despite the fact that he was drugged up on one to many sleeping pills. The second was a lovely elderly Taiwanese couple from New York, they are my grandma's age but travel often, and have been to six continents. Found out that the husband went to Lawrence University in Appleton, WI in the 1950's-small world!
It's interesting having the last name "Lingenfelter," it seems that whenever I go somewhere new, someone has a connection to the name. For example, the airport security man in Appleton asked if I was related to a man named "Aimi Lingenfelter," (I'm not sure if I spelt his first name correctly). However, apparently he invented a well-known wrestling move? Who knows, but the security man seemed really excited that we shared the same last name.
At customs in Amman, I thought it would be more difficult, but the hardest part was trying to help the security man there pronounce my name. He kept trying to pronounce it and then would laugh, I had to fake laugh along with him as at the moment I wasn't amused and just wanted to clear customs. Alas, this took more time as he proceeded to call over his two friends to look at my name and try to pronounce it, ensuing more laughs from the two newcomers. Finally, I just said yes, yes, that's correct, even though it wasn't, and they let me through.
Once I exited the terminal I was supposed to be greeted by the hotel driver holding a sign with my name on it, but I saw no one. I called the hotel and they said the man was supposedly there, he wasn't. I meandered around looking for him, all the while trying not to look completely lost as men were shouting things to me that I didn't understand, most likely wanting me to take their taxi. I sat down and was able to get internet for a short time and waited for 45 minutes. By this time I was getting anxious, I looked around the outside of the terminal again and saw a man holding a sign that I hadn't seen earlier. I got up and crossed the room in order to be able to read the sign, and it said Ms. Hannah Lingenfelter on it. Let me tell you, at that moment I felt like there could be no greater feeling in the world than seeing a complete stranger holding a sign with my name across it. I almost hugged the man, I was so excited to see him, but of course, I restrained myself and was composed. He told me that he had been waiting at a different terminal then he drove back to the hotel (30-40 minute drive) and they told him to come back for me. Praise the Lord! He was a nice young man, who didn't speak english well, but I did find out his name was "Moody." He drove me to the hotel, somehow without getting in an accident, (I had forgotten about their driving behavior in the Middle East) and I crashed in my comfy hotel bed soon thereafter.
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