What an adventure we have been having. Theo's mom is posting today. We started our trip to Addis Ababa, the capital city of Ethiopia, on October 1st, this past Saturday morning. We were up by 3:30 a.m. because we had a very early flight to catch. Theo jumped out of bed and was ready to go. We flew our first plane to Dulles Airport in Washington, D.C. to catch our next plane on Ethiopian Airlines to Addis Ababa. Theo took the above pictures at Dulles. They show the international terminal with the Korean flag (we couldn't locate the Ethiopian flag). And, they show the big jet, a Boeing 777, that we flew on across the Atlantic Ocean to Ethiopia.
After a few hours, we boarded the plane. It was quite large with 9 seats across and two aisles. The plane can fit between 300 and 400 people. All was going well, we were enjoying the flight. We ate a fish dinner. We were watching the in flight movies, and then, Theo started feeling sick. He probably got a virus from his brother and sister. His stomach was not good for the rest of the flight which unfortunately (for him) was 13 hours long. I will you spare you the details. . .but I am sure Theo will tell you himself when he gets back that having a stomach virus on a transatlantic flight is not all that fun. So now you know why I am typing this and not Theo.
Theo did want me to tell you that the flight was 7,485 miles long and we flew at an altitude of about 35,000 feet and at a speed of about 665 mph. Despite the fast speed, given the distances we had to fly and the circumstances, the flight seemed endless to Theo. We finally landed in Addis at 8:06 a.m. on Sunday, October 2nd. We moved ahead a day because the Ethiopian time is 7 hours ahead of the United States. Theo was glad we landed and really wanted to get to the Sadula Hotel where we are staying. The problem was we had to get visas (visas are like tickets to enter a country), go through customs, get our luggage, and get our luggage scanned all before going to our hotel. All of this took two hours (most of it standing). Theo's dad and I were hoping Theo wouldn't pass out. Fortunately, for all of us, Theo made it through the airport without passing out. As you can see above, we did get to the hotel, and Theo finally got to lay in a bed.
Theo's dad took a picture of Theo and I on the shuttle that took us from our plane to the airport terminal in Addis. We look a little worn down after a sleepless (and sick) flight. After the aforementioned two hours in the airport, we found a taxi. Theo took a picture of the taxi loaded on top with all of our luggage. This taxi took us to the Sadula Lodge. The last picture is taken looking out of a window at our hotel.
We hope by our next posting that Theo will be well enough to get some pictures of Addis Ababa and for Theo to post to this blog himself. We thought we would leave you with a picture of Ethiopia's flag since we didn't get a photo of it at the airport. The meaning of the Ethiopian flag is described below:
*red represents power or African blood spilled in defense of the land
*yellow for peace and harmony between Ethiopia’s various ethnic and religious groups
*green is said to symbolize the land and its fertility
*The star confirms Ethiopia’s bright future, while the yellow rays which it emits are equidistant and are
said to represent the equality of all Ethiopians regardless of race, creed, or gender.
YAY for a safe arrival
ReplyDeleteHope Theo is feeling better soon!