#USAadventure Part 4: My very-much-failed Original Plan and THE END

Alright people, my original plan of blogging about my wonderful and incredible #USAadventure this summer completely failed. Nothing, literally nothing, worked out the way I planned it. And I am very sorry about this. I try to think about an apology, but the best thing I am able to come up with is: life got it the way. Anyway, I really want to tell you about the rest of my trip, so be prepared for a long post. And by long, I mean endless.

I think I left you off with my rant about how stressful the program was which I was attending during the summer. When I posted my last post, I still had one more week to go in Santa Fe, NM. I had to hand in all of my papers that week (actually that Tuesday) and I finally got my life back. Well, kind of. During the program I took two classes. One of them was a poetry class, which consisted out of reading poetry, learning more about poetry, and writing poetry. Yes, I was that crazy by taking a poetry class which consist of also writing poetry myself. During the first session, I literally thought: “What the heck did I get myself into?” But it turned out to be one of the best classes I ever took. I learnt a new skill, something I never thought I would be capable of. And we were an incredible group of people. The classroom was a safe place – a place where there was no judgement, a place where you were able to really open up without being afraid of people talking behind your back, and a place where nothing left the classroom. It was pretty special. At the end of the last week, our class had a reading. And trust me, I was freaked out because of that. I hate speaking in front of people, let alone reading and performing poems I wrote. I mean, I just started writing poetry six weeks prior to this reading. But the reading was more than successful. I absolutely enjoyed it. Not my performance, but everybody else’s. Even the reading, which was public by the way, had the feeling of being exactly the same safe place like our classroom. Just amazing. After it, a bunch of us got together and celebrated the end of studying. It was kind of bittersweet. On the one side, we were finally done with this crazy schedule and all the studying. But on the other side, it meant that summer was almost over and we had to leave in a couple of days. It was a happy and sad get together. The next couple of days were filled with packing, saying goodbyes, soaking in the summer, and trying to squeeze in as much time as possible with the wonderful people I met there. Those six weeks were very stressful, exhausting, and challenging. But at the same they were wonderful, fun, and exciting. I met some great people there and we had a blast. Without them, it would not have been as great as it was. It was an amazing time, a memory I will cherish forever, and a time I would not trade for the world. But my adventure did not stop there. My next destination was Oklahoma City.

Some of you probably wonder, why I would go to Oklahoma. Let me tell you something. It is a wonderful state, with lots to see and to do!! It is a great place on earth and another one of my favorite places. Anyway, I went there to see extended family. I know, more extended family in the US. The two and a half weeks I got to spent with them were absolutely wonderful. We spent our time shopping (lots of it and my credit card still hates me), laying by the pool, little bit of road-tripping around a national wildlife part and to a lake, playing knock-out (the German game “Mensch ärgere dich nicht”), eating cheesecake, talking, laughing, and just having a great time. On one of my days there, I got to spent it in one of my favorite museums on this planet – the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum. Next to the Salvador Dalí Museum in St. Petersburg, FL this is my favorite one. This time and for the first time ever, I went there completely by myself. I only got dropped off there and picked up later (thank you very much by the way). I was able to go through the museum and look at everything in my own pace. I absolutely enjoyed it. The weather in Oklahoma was so hot. I never experienced such hot temperatures and those for weeks. God, it was hot. Therefore, I really enjoyed just laying by the pool and having nice relaxed days with wonderful people. Oklahoma was my final destination. And the perfect end for my almost three-month adventure. I will cherish this trip, the time I got the spent with my American family, the people I met and who became friends, and the things I learnt about myself forever.

As amazing this trip has been, my journey back home was horrible. It is a very long story, but I will shorten it. It started with my first flight to Dallas Fort Worth being delayed for five hours. We boarded the plane normally and we even were on the runway, when the pilot told us that we cannot take off. We had to stay on the plane for the next hour before they rolled us back to the gate and we got off the plane. For more than three hours they told us we are going to re-board in a couple of minutes. Due to the delay, I missed my connecting flight back to Germany. I asked the airline person (I am not going to name any airlines, because I do not want to get in trouble for this) what they will do now. They told me that they rebooked me onto a different flight over London, England to Germany and that I would get any further information in Dallas, because I would be changing airlines. I thought to myself that is alright. I still have enough time in Dallas to get all the information I need. Well, I could not have been more wrong about that. After we finally arrived in Dallas, I had exactly 10 mins to find a person who could tell me on which flight I was booked onto, when the flight departs and where, to get boarding passes, AND to get to the gate. I still do not know HOW I was able to make the flight to London. I yelled at the person on the gate that I think I should be on that flight. I literally was the last person boarding that flight. They closed the door behind me and I had not found my seat yet when the plane started moving. After finding my seat, I even asked the stewardess where we were going and how long it will take to get there. Yes, that was how much time I had before to get all the information. My nightmare continued by me sitting in the middle of a French group of people who had the goal of drinking the entire alcohol on the plane. After two hours, I asked a stewardess if she may has another seat available. Luckily for me, she had. When we arrived in London (btw, London Heathrow is the worst airport I have ever been to), I asked an airline employee if my baggage made it onto this flight. The nice lady told me: “It was not on the flight and I cannot even locate it” (She said that with a very British accent). I should take care of this at my final destination. At this point, I was already travelling for the past 20 hours and I was dead on my feet. And I lost it. Envision me standing at the London Heathrow airport crying and yelling into my phone (I called my mum). Basically, I was throwing a tantrum like a 5 year old.  When I arrived at my final destination, I did the whole lost baggage thing and when I walked out of the baggage claim area and saw my parents and my brother I lost it completely and cried like a five-year-old. I was dead on my feet, exhausted, glad I even made it home, and so incredibly angry. When I got home, after a 24-hour journey instead of 14 hours, I called the other airline (which I originally booked) and explained everything to them. At least, they were able to tell me that my baggage was still in Dallas. Long story short, it made it back home the next day and I got it delivered. My baggage made it home two days after myself. But let me tell you, it was horrible not knowing where my things are. You might think, I should not exaggerate and be over sensitive here. I have to explain something for you to understand me better. I am a very organized person and I always control twice that I have everything, that I do not lose something, or forget something. Therefore, not having my suitcase, not knowing where it was, and having to leave the airport without my things was the worst for me. I hated it. When my suitcase arrived back home, I had the feeling that now I am finally back home.

Besides my horrible journey back, I had the best time!! Thank you to everyone who made this adventure unforgettable! I love you all!! And miss you!! And thank you, USA, for having me, tolerating me, and providing me with memories I will cherish forever. Until next time!!

Anyway, all of this was four weeks ago. I know, it took me a long time to tell you and to write this. I had to readjust and I had to organize so many things. I will not get into any detail here. I will tell you more about everything that happened since in another post. This one is already long enough, if you even made it to this point. I hope you enjoyed reading.