Ok, never in our wildest dreams did we think the trip home would be the "Trip from Hell" but it was.  We have read about other parents who had their own trips from hell but you always hope that you are not a member of that group. 

 

It all started with our Visa being delayed because of paperwork. So instead of traveling together to Hong Kong we had to split up and travel separately.

 

Debbie and Hanna had to stay to pick up the Visa at 3:00 on Friday.  Faye, Neilson and I went ahead and used our prepaid train tickets and left for Hong Kong at 2:30.  We had to purchase new tickets for Debbie and Hanna and they were supposed to meet us at the Kowloon train station in Hong Kong at 7:30.  Our flight was at 9:55 so it was going to be close. 

 

Well it got worse.  Debbie was late because of the long lines at the passport booths at the train station.  We did not get on the road to the airport until almost 7:45.  It was a 45 minute bus ride with our guide and helper in Hong Kong.  His name was Joe and without his help we would not have made it. 

 

We arrived at the Hong Kong airport about 8:30 and that is when the trip really got bad.  First they opened all our checked baggage at the counter.  This took almost 20 minutes.  Then we finally got in line to check in and that process took a long time. 

 

We checked all our bags except one carry-on that held all our gifts for friends and relatives.  We had heard horror stories about baggage handlers in the US ports of entry going through luggage and stealing Chinese pearls and jewelry and cameras and such, so we did not want to include any gifts in our checked luggage. 

 

So we got our bags checked in and finally got our boarding passes and headed for the gate.  Well, we never made it because a lady with a tape measure stopped us and told us our carry-on bags were too big!  Too big!.....that is crazy as they are standard carry-on size and were accepted by Singapore Air on our trip from America. 

 

We told the lady that and she said that Hong Kong airport has its own size rules for bags and that these were too big and we would have to check them as baggage.  Well, I thought Debbie and her mom were going to have a fit right there in the airport. 

 

But the lady was very persistant and sent us back to the counter to complain to the supervisor.  This very proper British lady then told us that they could do nothing for us and that we would have to check the bags.  We told her about the gifts and the problems with people stealing but she kept saying that it was a regulation and she could do nothing about it.

 

So in the end we had to check the bags.  It was ridiculous and we were very upset.  It made no sense that we were allowed to carry the same bags on in the US but could not bring them back!  Unbelievable.

 

By this time Debbie was really out of it.  Her blood sugar had dropped from no food and the stress was getting to her.  Not to mention that she had to hold Hanna in her arms the whole time.

 

But we finally made it through the doors and headed for the passport checking station.  They had already checked our paperwork at the counter but here there was a separate set of desks to check it all again.

 

There were about 15 people ahead of us and by the time we made it to the counter we had 7 minutes until our flight was scheduled to take off! 

 

We finally got through the paperwork line and then we discovered that there was another line for the x-ray belts and metal detectors.  And this line was just as long. 

 

Well, by the time we got through that one it was past the time for the plane to take off.  So even though we knew there was no hope we ran down the concourse anyway and finally made it to the gate.  They had held the plane for us! 

 

I guess it was because they already had our bags on board and could not accept them on the plane unless they could match them with passengers.  That rule probably saved us from missing the flight.

 

So we sat down, completely out of breath, stressed to the max but finally on the plane going home.  After Debbie had some orange juice and a cookie she started to feel better and we settled in for the 11 hour flight to San Francisco.

 

The flight home was uneventful as we were exhausted and just wanted to sleep.  It was hard because a little girl in front of us kept crying the whole flight.  I think even Hanna was getting disgusted with her.  Hanna managed to sleep about 4 hours and ate some dinner so she was handling it pretty well.

 

As soon as we landed in San Francisco I felt better.  We were in the US and on the final leg of our return journey home. 

 

I cannot describe the feeling that we all had as the customs official looked over Hanna's paperwork, and then stamped her passport and looked up and said, "Well, she is now an American citizen" 

 

At that moment all the problems and stress that had invaded the end of our jouney seemed to disappear and it really sunk in that we had done it!

 

We had started over 2 years ago to bring this little girl to a new life in our home country and finally we had those precious red stamps in her passport.  What a moment!

 

After that the trip just seemed to last forever.  We got Debbie's mom on a shuttle to the hotel in San Francisco (she had to stay overnight as the Baton Rouge airport closes at night).   Then we headed for our gate to catch the Delta flight home. 

 

Since we had to get our baggage off the belt in San Francisco and go through customs we were able to retrieve the bag with the gifts and carry it on the Delta flight.  Nothing was taken so we lucked out on that one.

 

But the tale is not over yet.  Oh no......the trip from Hell continues.  I am happy to report that the Delta flight attendents once again lived up to their sterling reputation and did absolutely nothing to help us with Hanna during the flight to Atlanta. 

 

About 2 hours into the flight she woke up and decided that her new parents must live on an airplane!  And that made her mad!

 

She had had enough planes, trains, and automobiles to last a lifetime and enough was enough.  So she cried pretty much the rest of the way.

 

Debbie finally took her into the bathroom and let her play with the water faucets to distract her and that seem to do the trick for a while. 

 

But the poor little thing had just had too much time in this dark people filled tube and let us know in no uncertain terms that she was very unhappy and wanted off that plane.

 

Finally we landed and I could have kissed the ground if I could have reached through the jetway.  People talk about that trip coming home and it is every bit as bad as we have heard it described.  We were way past exhausted and just wanted a hot shower and a nap. 

 

My son Erik and his girlfriend Angie met us at the airport and drove us home. 

 

Well you wouldn't believe what happened after we arrived back at Fox Ridge.  Hanna walked into the house like she owned the place and just loved everything she saw. 

 

She laughed at the cats and said "woof woof" to the dogs and went into her room and rocked the little rocker and picked up her red phone and pushed the buttons on her red tape player and just smiled and smiled. 

 

She cuddled right up to Angie and said her name and laughed at Erik.  It was amazing.  This little girl just fit right in and made herself at home.

 

Stay tuned for more as we find out how much sleep deprivation two parents can really take and how many times a little girl can wake up from a supposedly deep sleep.  And we thought we were getting off easy....ha!