We knew it was coming. We knew what September 9th held in store for us. And even still, a feeling of nervousness hung in the air. A group from my squad decided to stay up for most of the night, partially because we were nervous about what the morning was bringing to us: the future. Many pool games and jokes led to a sleepy 5:00am Waffle House run, and that brought more comfort and peace. Come 11:00am and we were getting ready to leave on shuttles to the airport; the last goodbye of all that represented familiarity. As a logistics leader, I helped figure out checking in for our flight and getting boarding passes for the squad. After completing this task quickly, we then headed to security. This was a longer process, and one I am always weary of, but God got us in and out with no big issues! We then hurried to our gate, as we were running somewhat behind, only to find out that our plane was having issues with the air conditioning. After thirty minutes of sitting in our seats drenched in sweat, they told us that the process was going to take some time and that we could exit and cool down. Three hours later, we were able to board! I took a nice nap on the airport floor, which is something I wouldn’t normally consider doing. Tired times call for drastic measures! We were flying Delta, so praise God for His good provisions! It was a comfortable and relaxing 7-8-hour flight to Amsterdam. I ate a yummy dinner and had a nice movie marathon. Sadly, I did not sleep, but how can you when a million thoughts are running through your mind? When we landed in Amsterdam, because of our earlier delay in Atlanta, we were cutting it very close with our next flight. The last of our group had to sprint from one end of the airport to the very opposite side. Although it was slightly stressful, it was such a funny and crazy experience that we will forever cherish. The stares from onlookers along with our uncontrollable giggles made this moment a fun and necessary break from the mundane traveling. We arrived at the gate literally just in time to scan our passports and board, talk about a close call! Our second flight was to Bucharest, and it was with the KLM airline. Contrary to the first flight, I slept almost the whole time during this three-hour flight. Landing in Bucharest, Romania was a very exciting moment; it meant that we were going to finally start what we had all been dreaming and praying about for so long! We went through customs as a large group, and I am happy to report that my passport now has its first stamp. 🙂 We slowly trucked to baggage claim, aka bathroom break time, stumbling along after a long day of travel and restlessness for all. After about 45 minutes, we realized that nobody had gotten their backpacks. I joined the rest of my logistics team in the hunt to find out what had happened. Long story short, after many questions and running around, we discovered that our bags had never left Amsterdam. Because our flight from Atlanta cut it so close due to the AC issues, they had no time to transfer over our bags. We all had to file a claim to report our missing luggage, and that was a long and yet again exhausting experience. My team was tired, overwhelmed, hot, and confused, but we were all just glad that we arrived. The bags were set to arrive in Craiova the following day, so we all just prayed for their safe travels back to us. However, we soon realized that what we thought was an obstacle and a hardship was actually a huge blessing from God. We bought bus tickets to take us to the train station we needed to get to. The bus was extremely crowded, and the transit took forever to approach our stop, but it would have been way harder and almost impossible if we had all had to carry our big backpacks, as well as make room for the other people riding the bus. Us not having our packs made us less of a hectic group for everyone around, as well as one another. When we arrived, we had enough time to eat and get to our boarding area. The train was very similar to the bus: crowded and a tight fit. The three-hour train ride would have been impossible because there was simply no room for our packs yet again. What originally looked like a huge issue that made us all feel worried actually allowed for the rest of our travels to go so smoothly. How amazing is it that we have a God we can fully trust, and that He always sees the bigger picture?! Talk about amazing. Sleeping in a train is not ideal; my neck felt broken and the lights were on the entire time, but despite the annoyance I felt, I enjoyed the ride. I got to see one of the most beautiful sunsets out of the window, and that was worth it all. We arrived in Craiova around 11:00pm. We were all sleepy, but we were greeted and welcomed by our wonderful host Raul and his people. They took us to our house we are staying at and made sure we got situated. The house is beautiful! We have actual beds, wonderful bathrooms, flushing toilets, and the most scenic view. Not to mention, the house comes with a rooster as a neighbor that enjoys following the stereotype of being super loud in the morning super early. We were informed that before we came here, this house was used for human trafficking and video chats. We were able to redeem and clean what once was a very broken place, and it will now be a place of refuge and calmness that only Jesus can provide. God makes ugly things beautiful, problems into blessings, and hardships into times of joy. Thank you God for safe travels, and for your desire for us to be your hands and feet. I am excited to see what all happens in this amazing city known as Craiova, Romania.
