Finally! The day that you've all been waiting for! It's time to fly to the U.S.!
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| I was still smiling here LOL |
Even as I said my goodbyes to my family, I still couldn't believe that I'm finally moving to the U.S.! It was like a dream. I was on auto pilot, and I didn't cry until I was at Soekarno-Hatta Airport in Jakarta. My feelings were all jumbled up! I was happy because I'm finally going to be a student again, with an awesome scholarship! On the other hand I was sad, and frankly scared because I wasn't sure how I'll survive alone. Will I make friends? Or will I just be another graduate nerd. I guess you could say that it was bitter-sweet.
My last night in Indonesia, I slept in my parents hotel room although AMINEF booked me a room to share with another Fulbrighter. I think at that time my parents also still couldn't believe that their eldest daughter will be travelling to the other side of the world alone. They were as nervous as I was. What if I somehow ended up in Africa or something? Haha. We talked all night long. They hugged me tight.
(This is where you all go AWWWW... XD)
We had to wake up before the break of dawn. My first leg of the flight was from Jakarta to Tokyo-Narita. I was pretty excited because I've been to Narita Airport before. I really wanted to get some Japanese gifts to decorate my new room in Iowa.
We arrived about two hours before boarding. I suggest you do the same. Don't take Jakarta's traffic lightly! You don't want to look stupid by missing your flight. It's better to just get ready earlier, take a nice shower, and relax once you get to the airport. I said my goodbyes pretty quickly, couldn't stand my aunt and uncle's tears (Yeah you guys, they went to Jakarta to send me off! I'm their favorite niece XD). Hugged my little sister a bit longer, since we were actually starting to get sisterly you know, no more bitching about each other! And then in I went to the immigration place thingy after getting my boarding passes and checking my two fat luggage. I only had a backpack and a small fanny pack where I stored my documents and some money.
My last night in Indonesia, I slept in my parents hotel room although AMINEF booked me a room to share with another Fulbrighter. I think at that time my parents also still couldn't believe that their eldest daughter will be travelling to the other side of the world alone. They were as nervous as I was. What if I somehow ended up in Africa or something? Haha. We talked all night long. They hugged me tight.
(This is where you all go AWWWW... XD)
We had to wake up before the break of dawn. My first leg of the flight was from Jakarta to Tokyo-Narita. I was pretty excited because I've been to Narita Airport before. I really wanted to get some Japanese gifts to decorate my new room in Iowa.
We arrived about two hours before boarding. I suggest you do the same. Don't take Jakarta's traffic lightly! You don't want to look stupid by missing your flight. It's better to just get ready earlier, take a nice shower, and relax once you get to the airport. I said my goodbyes pretty quickly, couldn't stand my aunt and uncle's tears (Yeah you guys, they went to Jakarta to send me off! I'm their favorite niece XD). Hugged my little sister a bit longer, since we were actually starting to get sisterly you know, no more bitching about each other! And then in I went to the immigration place thingy after getting my boarding passes and checking my two fat luggage. I only had a backpack and a small fanny pack where I stored my documents and some money.
You know, I can remember that at that time, everything felt so surreal. Like, OMG I am moving to the U.S.! Not Australia, but the United States of America! I waved to my family and didn't look back.
Fast forward to the International Departure waiting area, it was a cold morning, and I was kind of sleepy. But I didn't dare fall asleep. I was with two other Fulbrighters at the time who were also flying to Narita. A couple of hours passed, and then it was time to board the plane! Just a short review of my experience using ANA, the airline that Fulbright booked for me: Marvelous. Absolutely stellar service. I ate and slept well on the plane, and as a result, lost most of my nervousness.
Once we arrived at Narita Airport, we (one Fulbrighter and I) literally ran to our next gate to catch our next flight to the U.S. Unfortunately, we had to go through additional security, which I didn't expect, considering that I thought we were already in the international terminal. Well, it took some time, and I won't lie, I panicked a little. Once we cleared the security we practically sprinted to our gate. What did we find once we got to our gate? Our flight was delayed. Apparently, the plane that was supposed to get us to Denver, Colorado was late, so we had to wait for 5 hours.
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| Exchanged the remaining Indonesian Rupiahs that I had and bought souvenirs XD |
Fast forward to flying with United Airlines to Denver, Colorado. United was pretty nice too, but OMG you guys ANA's food! LOL Anyways, the flight to Denver was pretty uneventful. I would advise that you bring some sort of entertainment, like a book, for the long flight to the U.S. I had bought Chuck Palahniuk's Haunted, which was a pretty fun read. Or you can always watch a movie on the inflight entertainment system.
Once we arrived in Denver, Colorado, the other Fulbrighter and I went on our separate ways. Unfortunately, that delay in Narita made me miss my connecting flight from Denver, Colorado to Indianapolis, Indiana. The immigration line was suuuper long. And I got laughed at by the customs officer because of the extremely long and detailed Declaration Form that I filled on the plane. Hey, your girl doesn't want any problems entering the U.S.
After clearing immigration and noticing that I missed my connecting flight, I knew that I had to contact my Gateway Program coordinator because they were expecting me to arrive that day. So I guess this is another important tip: Have ready on hand all the important contact information in your purse/backpack. You should have access to these contact info from your email communications with AMINEF. But before contacting my Gateway coordinator, I went to the United Airlines Customer Service to ask them how to proceed with my missed flight. Since missing my flight was not my fault, they were able to set me up to stay for a night at a really nice hotel (pics below for bragging purposes), schedule me for an early flight to Indianapolis the next day, and they even gave me some vouchers to use to buy food. Damn, United Airlines +++ points! I also asked them about my luggage, and they said that it would be on the same plane as me to Indianapolis.
Having that figured out, I then used the Free Phone service at Denver International Airport because obviously, I couldn't use my Indonesian phone, to contact the coordinator. They were quick to answer my call and I was able to notify them that I had missed my flight. They told me that there will be a welcome station when I get to Indianapolis the next day and not to worry about being there a little later than expected and that I won't miss anything related to the program. While I was using the phone, I noticed that I could make free International phone calls too! So I made use of that opportunity to let my parents know what was going on. Free stuff for the win!
Awesome compensation from United Airlines~
Basically, I was too nervous to enjoy my wonderful room. I was technically stranded on my first night in the U.S. I used my voucher to buy food at the airport but was too chicken to go out and explore the city. So I just stayed in my room and slept. I promised to come back to Colorado!
The next day was basically straight forward. I used the airport shuttle to go back to the airport. Checked in and finally flew to my destination, Indianapolis!
In the next My Fulbright Journey post, I'll be talking briefly about what to expect in a Gateway program!
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Disclaimer: This blog is not an official U.S. Department of State blog, all views and information presented here regarding the Fulbright Program are the author's own and does not represent the Fulbright Program nor the U.S. Department of State.
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