Arrival in Romania

On Sunday morning, I spoke at the Leonardtown, MD, Church of the Nazarene, which is about 3 hours south of my parents’ house in York, PA. After lunch out with several people from the church, I headed home to Pennsylvania, getting home around 7:00 pm. While my packing was mostly done, I had a few last-minute items to squeeze in, making sure neither of my 2 suitcases weighed more than 50 pounds. I also had to make sure other items on my to-do list were checked off and items stored away at home. before I left in the morning. It was after 1am until I got to bed.

Monday morning began early, waking up at 5:00 am (yes, that’s right…just 4 hours of sleep!) so I could get to Baltimore-Washington International airport 2 hours before my 10:19 AM flight. The flight was then delayed almost an hour because a florescent light bulb needed replaced in the cabin. Fortunately, I had over 5 hours of layover time in New York’s JFK airport, so arriving a little late shortened that wait.

While waiting for my flight and again on the flight to Bucharest, I was able to meet some really nice Romanians and speak Romanian with them. I also got to watch the new Star Trek movie on the flight before falling asleep for about 2 hours.

My flight arrived in Bucharest about an hour earlier than scheduled, since we had a strong tailwind. (The flight from JFK to Bucharest was about 9 hours.) Everyone got their luggage except me. When I went to the lost baggage office, I was told that the suitcases were on the next flight and should arrive this evening around 6:00pm. Even if they don’t arrive until tomorrow, I’ll be fine, as I packed several sets of clothes in my carry-on suitcase.

The rest of the day I have spent with the Hudsons (Michael, Tamara, and their 3 daughters), the Nazarene missionaries in Bucharest. I’ll be staying in Bucharest for the next few days, before going the final leg of the journey to Sighisoara.

UDPATE (9/1/09 10:30 PM): My suitcases will be delivered in a few days directly to Sighisoara. This way I won't need to bother with taking them on the train.