My Trip to Ghana

The following events occurred on the evening of December 30th and the morning of December 31st.

My trip here was pretty cool all things considered. It started very well in Dulles Airport. I got through security without any issues and headed to my gate where I waited for my flight. Since I was flying world business class I had the opportunity to sit in the lounge rather than in the gate area. The lounge had complimentary food and drinks. We were also allowed to board the flight directly from the lounge. It was a great experience. I arrived at the airport with a few hours to spare, so I had the chance to make some phone calls before the plane departed.

After I made all of my calls and had a little something to eat the lounge attendants came around to let us know our flight was going to board soon. Before boarding I took some pictures of the plane and loaded them on Facebook. A flood of feelings and emotions washed over me as I began to walk towards the plane. Excitement and happiness for my trip as well as a sadness as I knew I would be even farther away from those I love the most. I also had this sense of wishing I knew exactly what tomorrow would bring. I soon found out there would be some surprises coming my way well before I landed in Ghana.

Now first let me say the two planes I rode on this trip were the two biggest planes I have ever been on in my life. In addition, having the opportunity to fly in world business class was supposed to make this the most comfortable flying experience I would ever have. All things considered it was until shortly after I sat down. The first thing I noticed after settling into my seat was the flight attendants and one of the pilots kept checking something electrical in the wall behind me. They had very concerned looks on their faces. I couldn’t tell what was going on because they were all speaking Dutch. Soon the flight attendant came to me and asked me to pull out my television from the arm rest. I did and initially I was like “Wow that’s cool”! Then she pulled it towards the aisle and started fiddling with it, but she was only getting a black screen and sometimes snow. I looked at my watch and I noticed we were supposed to be leaving right now, but by the look of things it didn’t seem like that would be happening.

Soon the pilot came on the intercom with an announcement. It was a really long announcement that I couldn’t understand. I couldn’t understand it because it was in Dutch. After he finished the Dutch announcement he started one in English. Apparently they were having problems with the on board entertainment system and they were working to fix it so our flight was going to be delayed until they were able to get it handled. So I settled in to have some water and maybe a short nap. As I drank some of my water I felt a rumble in my stomach that I didn’t like very much at all.

I took a quick nap and woke up to another Dutch announcement followed by an English one from the captain. He said they were unable to fix the entertainment system what it would take to fix it would cause the flight to be extremely delayed further and possibly even cancelled. Based on this information he decided we should depart without the on board entertainment system.

Soon after his announcement we were pulling back from the gate and in the air. I watched through the window as I left American soil. I snapped a few pictures and waved. It was a moment that is hard to explain. I was in disbelief I was finally doing this, but again a bit sad not to be sharing this moment first hand with the ones I love most. My stomach rumbled again.

Once we were in the air for a little while the flight attendants started bringing the food. The first course was a lobster and salmon appetizer. It was delicious, but as I ate it my stomach was beginning to tell me I shouldn’t be. There was nothing wrong with the food. As I said already it was delicious. Something was seriously wrong with my stomach and I wasn’t sure what it was.

Next course begins and it’s a steak. One of the best steaks I’ve ever had and I was on a plane. Once again my stomach was talking to me telling me shouldn’t be eating it but of course I did. Third course was a cheesecake. I took one bite and that one bite sent my stomach over the edge. I spent the rest of the trip asleep, taking Maalox tablets supplied by the flight attendants, and in the bathroom.

During one of my many naps I awoke to find the plane was descending very quickly. So quickly my stomach was moving for reasons other than the ailment that had now plagued me for hours. It seemed as though we were landing. I looked at the clock on my laptop which I had set to Amsterdam time. It read just a few minutes past 7 am. We weren’t due in Amsterdam until 8:30 am. Something wasn’t right. I’ve heard of pilots making good time but this was a bit much.

The pilot came on with an announcement in Dutch followed by the English announcement. The pilot said a passenger on board had suffered a stroke and we needed to land at the nearest airport to get the passenger some assistance. That airport was Shannon, Ireland. I felt really bad for the passenger and immediately sent some prayers up.

We landed safely in Shannon and pulled into a gate where an ambulance and two police cars were waiting for the plane. Once we were safely parked at the gate the emergency personal ran up the stairs and onto the plane to begin their work. Soon after, they had the passenger safely off the plane and into an ambulance.
The pilot let us know we would remain on the ground for another 45 minutes to refuel before we continued on to Amsterdam for another 90 minutes.

I had planned on meeting up with Jordan in Amsterdam. Jordan is a new friend I met who has done volunteer work in South Africa. He lives in Holland and we were going to grab some food or coffee or something and just talk. Through email I learned a lot about his experiences in South Africa and it really helped me prepare for mine in Ghana. Unfortunately due to some issues with the transit system in Amsterdam we were unable to connect. So I just found my gate and sat down for some people watching and web surfing.

The Amsterdam’s airport was amazing. There were so many airlines I had never heard of. Many cities on the departure and arrival board I had never heard of as well. Usually right next to American cities I knew very well.

I found my departure gate without any trouble. The gate was full of people. The gate next to mine was heading to Lagos, Nigeria. There were so many people going to Lagos also. It was really unbelievable. I’m sure it’s believable to someone but for me it was amazing.

In Amsterdam security is not done after you check in at the counter downstairs. It is done at the gate before every flight. Security teams travel from gate to gate. When they arrive they check the gate for anything suspicious and then the gate is considered open and you can go through security to the gate area. From there you board the plane. If you have already been to Amsterdam I’m sure this is old news for you. Again I have never left North America so I’m amazed by a lot of things on this trip.

Once the gate opened I went through security with what seemed like a sea of people all heading to Accra. I found a seat in the boarding area. Soon there were people all around me. Two men right next to me struck up conversation and I was happy to talk with them. This is really something because one of the things I loathe more than anything is talking to people in airports and/or on planes. I really don’t enjoy small talk on any form of public transportation. I don’t know why it’s just how I am. But as I waited to board the flight to Accra I was happy to talk to anyone really. Both of the men were Ghanaian, but they lived in the United States. One lived in Boston the other in Washington D.C. They were asking me why I was going to Ghana and I told them. They told me Ghana is an amazing place and that I would love the country. They both also spoke about how much they love living in the US. They were great conversations and wonderful introductions to Ghana.

Once we boarded and I found my seat my stomach started once again. So I settled in to sleep most of the flight. The flight attendant tried to bring me an appetizer. I’m not quite sure what it was but I tasted one bite of it and couldn’t even get it down. The appetizer came with a salad. I ate that with no salad dressing and managed pretty well. Then she brought me another course, a lamb dish. Just the sight of it put me in more pain than I have words to describe. I explained my situation to the flight attendant and she said “we’ll find something to help you.” She went into the flight attendant rations and found me some chicken soup and a piece of bread. I was able to get that down and I was so excited. Then she brought me some Imodium AD tablets which miraculously gave me some relief.

After this meal I went to sleep again for a long time. When I woke up we were flying over land that I assumed was Africa. The sun was setting outside my window and I smiled knowing I was seeing my first African sunset.
Soon after the flight began to descend…..