Stranded in Hong Kong International Airport

After thirteen hours on a plane from Los Angeles to Hong Kong, we eventually ended up in the Hong Kong airport. Thanks to the delayed flight, we ended up missing our connecting flight to Bangkok, so we have been stranded in the Hong Kong airport for about 15 hours now. Needless to say, I want to break down and cry right now. Never in my life have I ever had to stay overnight in an airport. These airport chairs are quickly becoming my best friend! I’m pretty sure Tyler is about tired of hearing me vent. I guess this is all a part of the Jet Set Zero experience!

Onwards and upwards, my friend

So I’ve been working on coordinating everyone’s travel itineraries. Everything should be settled within the next couple days and one lucky cast member – our least traveled, in fact – will get a crash course in the vagabond lifestyle. And it should look a little like this:

• Drive from Louisiana to Ft. Lauderdale (approx 15 hours)
• Fly to L.A. at 7am (approx 5 hours)
• Leave a day and a half later from L.A.
• Connect in London (approx 10hours)
• Fly to Hong Kong (approx 12 hours)
• Haul ass to connect to our final destination: Bangkok, Thailand! (approx 2 hours)

Total travel time: approximately 44 hours, not including layovers. You’re welcome, Jeremiah.

So since I am the bearer of this itinerary, I figured I’d show him around L.A. a bit. That is, if his fear of flying doesn’t propel him into permanent catatonia.

Stay tuned…

One of the hardest things to be honest about are our relationships while on the road.  For the most part, we don’t have any problem divulging all the gritty details of our lives, but when it comes to relationships, it can get tricky because that begins to involve other people in what we’re doing.  We’re four pretty liberal girls, and yes, when we’re out on the road, there’s a pretty likely chance that we may get involved with some men.  So here’s my honest story of how things went for me in Turkey:

The first time I went to visit Rob in Istanbul, I met a guy on my very last night in the city.  The two of us hit it off pretty quickly, and when it became evident that the two of us were going to get the opportunity to meet back up in Istanbul when I joined the cast, we were both pretty excited.  I packed my bags, and was on my way to a brand new life, and was also happy that I was going to have a guy in a brand new, foreign city.  When I actually got to the city, I saw the aforementioned guy a few times and well, things didn’t really work out.  It didn’t work out because of time.  I had a lot to do to adjust to JS0, I went to Bulgaria, and I went on a tour around Turkey.  He wasn’t very happy with this, and I quite frankly don’t blame him, but it just wasn’t working out.  So, I sat around, got to know Kris and Jen, and prepared to get ready for Vietnam, leaving my love life behind.

Oh but wait!  My life is never that easy, or maybe I’m just too boy crazy, I can’t tell.  Enter Turkish man #2, one of Jen’s coworkers.  I met this man for a quick second at Jen’s work and immediately had the heart flutters, but waved it off because I was leaving for Vietnam in two days, and what was the point?  But oh wait again, I’m not that rational!  Cute coworker showed up at our going away party, and I pretty much found myself stuck to his side like glue the second he walked in the door.  We chatted throughout the evening, went for a very nice dinner my last night in Istanbul, and said our goodbyes at the airport.

Multiple e-mail conversations later, I’m now in Saigon finding myself still a bit smitten by said cute coworker.  I’m glad to have a new friend afar, but sad that I didn’t get to spend more time with my new love interest.

This, ladies and gentleman, is the crappy part of traveling.  We’re screwed.  We can meet the most amazing people in each country, but there will always come the point where we have to say goodbye.  I joined Jet Set Zero because I love adventure and I wanted to experience something unique.  The sad fact is, you can’t plan on meeting people, you can’t deny it when two people are attracted to each other, and we will always leave each country heartbroken, the heartbreaker, or both.   Sometimes, traveling ain’t easy.