August 3rd - My 1st Night in Honduras

I had never been to Atlanta International Airport before this trip. I entered the airport and went to the line for kiosk assistance - having absolutely no clue what that meant. A lady in a Delta uniform was walking up and down the aisles telling everyone to try the "self check-in" kiosks first. So, I got out of line to try to check myself in. I scanned my passport through...only to read the message "Go to kiosk assistance", so back to the end of the original line I went. I was behind some people from Indiana, Chicago and Milwaukee though...so we shared a commonality.

It seems Delta had a LOT of delayed and cancelled flights last night due to the storm. When I got to the representative from the kiosk assistance area, he told me I was in the WRONG line. He pointed out the "Ticket Line" across the room, which seemed to have a never-ending, snail-paced line. I was extremely grateful that he checked me in rather than making me go over there.

My black bag weighed in at 51 pounds - he made a verbal note of that, giving me the opportunity to take something out before charging me. Again, I was very grateful. All it took was to take out a pair of shorts (my carry-on could at least fit those) and I was down to 50 pounds. The other suitcase weighed in at exactly 50 pounds. I had done some shifting around of the items to my carry-on back at the hotel this morning.

My flight to San Salvador went well. I had requested a low-calorie meal when I ordered my tickets online, so when the flight attendant came around with the meals and asked if I had the diabetic meal - naturally I said "no". They checked their records and said "Are you LoriAnn?" That´s when I realized that DIABETIC EQUALS NO SUGAR WHICH MEANS LOW CALORIE. Where´s Bob when I need him?

My layover in San Salvador was just under 7 hours. Did you know their currency is the U.S. dollar? About 1/2 way through the layover, I got myself a vanilla cappuchino. I spent most of my time doing sudoku puzzles and finishing the book that Rita bought me - Sticks & Stones by Susan Meissner. It was a GREAT Christian fiction book! I will most likely leave the book at the orphanage for staff and future volunteers to read.

While I waited at Gate 12 for my TACA flight 374 to Honduras, the large flat screen TV on the wall came on and the 1st thing that was shown was a music video by Maranatha Music of "Power of Your Love". This was one of the songs played at Bob & my wedding. It was very reassuring for me to see and hear music worshipping our Lord as well as giving me a few comforting minutes to remember one of the best days of my life.

The flight to Honduras was okay. We flew through a storm, so there was quite a bit of turbulence. When I got to the airport, there was no one to pick me up; however a really nice young man from Hotel Real Intercontinental sent me one of their taxis to take me downtown to the hotel. I shared the taxi with a woman from Panamá. The taxi driver was GREAT and drove a lot better than what I was used to when I lived in México.

My hotel room is cozy, but I´m only going to use it to sleep and I´ll be heading out for the bus station at 5:00am tomorrow to catch a ride to the capital, Tegucigalpa. A driver for the orphanage will pick me up at the Tegucigalpa Hedman Alas bus station to transport me from there.