Travel Delays

We’re back in the hotel in Johannesburg.

The bus ride from Philly went swimmingly and we got to the airport so early that we had to wait for an hour and a half in order for the ticket counter to even open. Everybody got their bags checked and through security without incident and onto the plane. The first eight hours of the trip were quite easy, I had some red wine and salmon for dinner then watched WALL-E, The Incredible Hulk and some other movie that must have been forgettable, because I don’t remember what it was.

We landed in Dakar, Senegal to refuel and exchange some passengers, so I decided to finally strike up a bit of a conversation with the man I was sitting next to. It turns out he is a New Jerseyian by way of Massachusets, South Africa and originally Zimbabwe. He was headed back to visit his parents in Zimbabwe then go travel around South Africa. My questioning of life in South Africa was tolerated very well, with only mild eye rolling and the final remark of, “South Africa is basically the same as the US. You can get any food you want, and there are some bad parts of every city.” That satisfied me well enough and we had cordial conversation until about 30 minutes after we took off when I went into a deep, bear-like slumber.

I awoke to breakfast and just an hour left to Johannesburg. After landing we went and got our passports stamped, found our shuttle and got checked into the Southern Sun Hotel. Everybody was dually impressed with the hotel and we were treated to a welcome glass of red wine in the lobby. I took a shower and went and sat outside to what felt very much like a cool fall evening in Los Angeles, 60 degrees, orange clouds in the diminishing sunlight and the roar of cars on the adjacent thoroughfare.

This morning we had a 3:30 am wakeup call to get to the airport by 4:30 to catch the 6:25 regional plane to Maseru (ma SEru). All of the checking in went without incident, but at the terminal gate one guy had lost some component of his ticket that prevented him from getting on. After a lot of back-and-forth he eventually sprinted back out to the ticket counter, bought a new ticket, and got back to the gate just before we were about to leave him to catch the next flight.

We took the little 22 seat puddle jumper all the way around Maseru then headed back to Johannesburg because the airport was at Maseru was covered in clouds and the plane was not capable of an Instrument Flight Rules landing for one reason or another. This bit of news was sad considering we were 10 miles from our final destination when we turned back. After much waiting in the airport we were told that the flight was cancelled for the day because of deteriorating weather at the Maseru airport. So we went and picked up our luggage and headed back to the hotel. Long day of sitting.

So those are the adventures so far. The delays and such today were made much easier because a representative from South Africa Airlines kept us up-to-date, gave us some sandwiches and arranged for all of our tickets and such tomorrow, and the staff at the hotel has been extremely accommodating and helpful. Group moral on the whole is high with just a few glimpses of frustration and tiredness.

Tomorrow we will try another flight, and if the weather is still uncooperative then apparently a bus will be chartered. So here's to hoping we make it through.