Last few days in Jersey and waiting at the airport

So the time snuck up on me faster than I thought it would.  My last few days included eating with family at Texas Roadhouse for the last time in a while, getting a free Grand Slam from Denny's, visiting friends and playing Wii and Dance Dance Revolution, Settlers of Catan, and visiting my school for a tapas event.

I was really stressed out yetsterday after seeing the weather forecast and was trying to frantically see about getting out on a flight for Tuesday instead of Wednesday, but the flight was full.  It was still on my mind while I was at school, but the tapas event was a nice break and was a good opportunity to see some of my students again as well as some of my teaching colleauges.

After I realized that there was nothing I could do to change my flight or the weather, I decided I was simply going to enjoy my last day before the trip and just take the flight one step at a time.  I had dinner with friends Tuesday night, and when I left their place around 7:45 it was already snowing, and it had accumulated quite a bit.  (Weather.com was forecasting it to start at 10 or so, so I was suprised that it came earlier than that.) 

Then I was off to another friend's to visit, and I stayed until about 11:30.  None of us bothered to look out the window at that time, but there was probably about 6 inches then.  Luckily I had brushes and ice scrapers with me, and I made it home safe and sound.

My dad and I ended up leaving around 7 in the morning, and luckily the weather had taken a break from snow, and we were getting rain.  The roads were mostly clear with a little bit of slush, and here is a shot from along the way:

We got to the airport around 9:45 or so, and by that time the weather had switched back to snow.  I found the window for TAM Airlines, but the woman was busy helping others.  So I decided to double check the weight of my bags.  A guy helped me use a scale at a window, and my bags were 54 and 60 pounds each.  He told me that the weight limit was 50 pounds per bag, which was contrary to what the airline told me of 70 pounds per bag.

I checked out a store in the airport that sold luggage pieces and carryon luggage, but a small duffel bag was $82.  So that started the Great Repacking.  I pulled out things for my dad to mail to me, and I started moving heavier items into my carryon pieces.  After about half an hour of that and reweighing bags, my dad was able to talk to the woman at the desk for TAM Airlines, and it turns out that the baggage limits for TAM were indeed 70 pounds.  So everything went back into my bags after all.

While my dad was waiting in line for the airline, he started talking to a woman also waiting in line.  It turns out that she is Brazlian but living in New York and is traveling there to visit family for Carneval.  She was also checking the weight of her bags, and it turns out she's on the same flight as me.  My dad and I and her got lunch together and got to talk some more.  She was giving me travel advice and even went as far as to call her son in law who lives and grew up in Rio.  She talked to him and told him about me, and he is willing to show me around over the weekend.  She even told me that she will be back for the entire month of September and offered to show me around if I wanted to visit her then.  I have her number there to call her.  Once they learn that you are visiting their country, the hospitality of complete strangers never ceases to amaze me.

This is completely off topic, but apparently men in the JFK airport need help with their aim in the restrooms:

The first urnial I went to looked like it had a dead fly in it, so I went to the next one.  Then I realized that every single urinal has a small fly painted on the inside of it.  I guess maybe other guys don't have such as good aim as me, and perhaps this cuts down on costs of cleaning the floors of the restroom.

So I got in line to check in around 12:15 or so, and it was time to say bye to my dad.  I'm going to miss him, and we got a picture together before he headed back:

I've claimed a small area of the floor next to an outlet, and my Ipod and camera are completely charged.  My laptop is plugged in now too.  I still have over 2 hours before I have to get ready for boarding.  It looks like my flight will be fine after all of my worrying, and asking all of my friends and family to cross their fingers and toes for me also helped out too.

Now hopefully my flight to Sao Paulo will go smoothly as well as making my connecting flight to Rio.

Countdown to departure: 3 hours 10 minutes

Adventures in New York and my Chilean Visa!

After a few months of stress, multiple phone calls to the FBI, and four visits to New York, I now officially have my visa to legally go to Chile.

I took the train up from Trenton and arrived with plenty of time to take my time walking from Penn Station at 7th and 34th to the Consulate at 1st and 48th. I stopped in at a Chase bank to close my old account since there are none in South Jersey, and it was just my luck that the gentleman helping me was originally from Germany. We chatted about life in the States and there and made other small talk.

Then I asked him the question I need to ask every native German I meet: der, die, oder das Nutella? (For those of you that may not be familiar, German has three words for "the". Nutella is an incredibly delicious chocolate spread in Germany, and it does not exist in any German dictionary. Therefore its article is up for debate.) His answer was das. I should really keep a tally of what each native German tells me just for fun.

I then made my way to the consulate. I arrived about half an hour early, but I figured it wouldn't hurt. After about 15 minutes I was called back to go over my paperwork and get a thumbprint taken. Then I sat for about half an hour, feeling anxious about not having my FBI Clearance and if they would grant me the visa or not. I then heard a woman calling me from the back: "Mr. Gum! Mr. Gum!" I walked back, and she handed me my passport with the visa inside and my copies of the paperwork I signed.

I was so relieved that I didn't know what to say. I could tell that I was beaming though, and I just thanked her and shook her hand.

I'm now at a Starbucks near 7th and 54th, and will shortly be making my way towards Hell's Kitchen to meet up with a friend I haven't seen in about 10 years.

Countdown to departure: 21 days

Brazilian Visa Success and Shopping

So yesterday I made the journey up to New York to pick up my Brazilian visa. I could only pick it up between 2:30 and 4:00, but I headed up early to be on the safe side.

I have never really been up to New York before a month or so ago. It's interesting walking through the streets, seeing the people, and all of the sights and sounds around me. I stopped for lunch at a place called Corner Cafe, which had some really delicious pasta. Afterwards I realized I walked ten blocks in the wrong direction, which gave me some good exercise and lifted weight from my conscience for not eating as healthy as I could have.

I arrived at the Brazilian Consulate around 2:00 anticipating a long wait in line. I was right, but they ended up going through the line and giving everyone picking up a visa a number and we were able to go inside and sit down. Nothing was happening at the windows, and it seems like they simply did not serve anyone until 2:30. I brought a book to pass the time, and glanced at my watch. 2:32, and no sign of movement from the employees there. 2:33, 2:34, 2:35, nothing.

Finally at 2:41 the signs lit up, and they took their postions at the windows. A woman carried out two huge tubs filled with passports, and the first person went up. She handed him his passport, and I was pleasantly surprised to see that I was the next person. (The ticket I was given V717 made me realize how many people come through there on a daily basis)

I went up to the window, and the woman located my passport quickly and passed it under the window to me. I checked to be sure my visa was inside, and it was. My face glowed as I told the woman "Thank you!" as a wave of relief came over me. As I walked away, then I remembered the phrase in Portuguese "Muito obrigado".

I took a picture of me holding my visa and put it on Facebook. I called my dad to tell him the good news. I called up my program and they were ecstatic. I was just feeling awesome.

Today I did some obligatory shopping for the trip. Since I've been losing weight (20 pounds since November so far) my pants have been getting loose, so I got some new pants at Sears. I also got a Dreamie (a soft sleeping bag type thing) as well as space saver bags that I can use with a vacuum cleaner to save space in my luggage.

I've started packing a bit, and it doesn't look like it will be as bad this time around. When I was going to Germany I had to leave a good amount of space for gifts for my host families, but this time around I only need gifts for the program directors and maybe a few teachers at the school. I have a better idea of what and how much clothing I'll need and what things I'll want to bring with me.

Countdown to departure: 28 days