Halfway There

We are currently in the London-Heathrow Airport. The last 24 hours have been very eventful for us, starting with Doug locking his keys in the car while it was running when he arrived at Dena's parents' house Thursday morning. Minor setback. The real problems started after we got to the Los Angeles airport.

We pulled away from our gate, thinking everything was good and on time. However, on our way to the runway, the pilot informed us that the "flap gauge" was not working and we would need to go back to the gate to get it fixed. While we were waiting at the gate, air traffic control decided to give us a new route to New York--a longer route which would require more fuel...and more waiting. After we got fueled up, the pilot said we would need to wait even longer for the electrical power in the galley to be fixed. After 2 hours of waiting on the plane, going nowhere, our flight was cancelled.

Luckily for us, a very patient and friendly American Airlines employee named Donna was able to get us a new and BETTER itinerary. We had to wait awhile in the LA airport, but instead of a 3-legged journey through New York and Madrid, we only had one stop in London, where we are now. Also, we will arrive in Johannesburg a few hours earlier than we originally planned.

Overall, the first day of our trip has been a successful one, despite the troubles we had leaving our home town. We're excited to be halfway to our destination. One more 10-hour flight and we will be in South Africa! We'll try to update again when we get there. For those of you on the American West Coast, we will be arriving in South Africa at 10 PM your time, Friday night.

Cheers! Doug and Dena