Chasing the Sun

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We had a bit of stress leaving our hotel for the airport this morning. A driver was supposed to pick us up at 7am to take us to the airport to catch our 8:40am flight to Munich. When noone had arrived by about 7:15 we decided to take the hotel transport instead. We got to the check-in line at the airport at 7:40am, which seemingly took FOREVER to get through. After checking our bags and getting through customs and airport security, we made it to the bus that would transport us to our plane with just minutes to spare. As much as I hate getting to the airport two hours early to wait for a flight, it sure beats having to worry the whole time!

The flight to Munich was short and pleasant, and at the airport there we only had to wait a few minutes before boarding our main flight home. We flew Lufthansa Flight 452, leaving Munich at 11:10am. The flight was filled with children who had a limitless amount of energy for such a long flight. Three children in particular spent a good portion of the flight using the aisles as a relay course. Because of the direction we were flying, the entire 11 1/2 hours were filled with daylight, so any chance of sleep were slim to none (leaning more towards none, especially with the Children's Olympics that we got to watch).

One thing I will give to Lufthansa, they feed you well, and often! We were given drinks and crackers after take-off, followed by ravioli with asparagus for lunch (or breakfast, depending on what time you considered it) and vegetarian pasta for dinner (lunch). For you meat lovers out there, they also offered turkey and beef selections as well. Another bonus was a set of trays set up in the "lounge" area filled with extra drinks and chocolate bars (!). The chocolate, a German Sun Rice bar, was especially good, and I smuggled one home in my purse to enjoy later.

The flight was incredibly smooth and seemed to go by a lot faster than it should have. We did have to endure another round of "Wild Hogs" (which was funny the first time on the flight over, but not so much the second time), followed by "Music and Lyrics" which I had just watched a few days before leaving on the trip. It's a cute movie, and I enjoyed it this time as well. There were also several music channels that I sifted through as a means of drowning out the rest of the people on the plane.

We arrived at LAX at about 2:25pm and finally made it to our gate at about 2:50pm (after waiting for another plane to move out of our spot). I didn't have any problems getting through customs, which was good because I brought home some Absinthe that I was worried would be an issue. Our luggage also made it safely (although I wouldn't necessarily have minded if it hadn't so I could avoid this huge pile of laundry!).

Now all that is left is to update my photos and my blog will be complete! Then it will be time to start planning the next trip (okay, I'm getting ahead of myself a bit, but planning is fun, no matter how far in advance you start!).

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