A Long Trip to The United States

It was the second week of January when I left my native country of Nepal to come to America to further study. I was excited to visit a new country and also excited about the new people, their culture, and traditions. At the same time, I was feeling uneasy and sad to leave my family as I could clearly see the tears in their eyes when I was leaving my country at the Tribhuwan International Airport.

I left my country on that Friday night at around nine o’ clock and flew for about six hours to Dubai, the capital of Qatar. This was my first international trip, so I was feeling nervous and different at the airport. Although I was traveling with friends from Nepal, we had a hard time finding the right terminals. After a few hours, the plane took off and landed in Paris. I had a very difficult time at the airport understanding their language. We were tired of walking with our heavy loaded luggage and of asking people where to go. One lady officer from India helped us. I was tired and feeling sleepy, but I could not find a comfortable seat because the airport was so crowed. Eleven hours later, I finally landed at the Houston airport in Texas.

At the port of entry in the Houston airport, there was a big line and we only had one hour left until our next connecting flight to Louisville, Kentucky. I was tired of taking off my shoes, belts, and jackets at every security checking. The security personal asked several questions and we kept answering them. One of my friends got into trouble and was chased by a security dog. They opened his bags and found shampoo, toothpaste, and body sprays in his carry-on bag. They took all liquids from him because of the recent liquid bomb scare in London.

After we crossed the security check, I got lost somewhere in a terminal. My next connecting flight was in Terminal B, but I was somewhere in Terminal E. I had only forty-five minutes left to report for the next flight. I was walking around and looking for the terminal while carrying one hundred pound of extra weight. I decided to use the Terminal train, but I was unable to find Terminal B. I was nervous and afraid of missing my connecting flight because the International Office at Campbellsville University Louisville, Kentucky would be expecting me at the pre-arranged time. I anxiously checked my watch until twenty minutes before my flight and luckily I met one gentleman from my country and he helped me.

When I reached the Terminal gate for my departing flight, I asked that my other four friends get paged over airport’s loudspeaker. The gate agent replied, “Do you want to stay or go?” I was totally disappointed and compelled to board that flight. I was alone on the flight and missing my friends. I went to Campbellsville, KY alone and my friends arrived one day later.

I arrived at the campus one week after the spring semester started. I really enjoyed the countryside, lakes, and natural beauty of Kentucky. People were really nice there and they were ready to help others. After the spring semester, I planned to transfer to Northlake College in Dallas. Again, I flew to Dallas without the previous airport problems as I have already gained some travel experiences.