We've had some challenges on the way back but we wouldn't get the full experience without some, right?!
Sometimes, you've got to do the best you can to make the best out of the trip - even when you have to deal with a cancelled flight and being stuck at the airport for countless hours, and on the top of that missing your folks home, your favorite local restaurant, and your own bed.
So here is the story.
The day began very early, something like 2 am. We've had just enough time after the final dinner to go back to the hotel, refresh, take an hour nap, pack, and be at the airport (in Marrakech) for our flight. Our flight was cancelled for some reason ( we never learned why) and we had to take a bus ride to Casablanca which was over a 2-hour ride. Needless to say, none of us liked the change in travel arrangements for our return back home. But we tried to keep our cool faces on!
That was not all. Let me tell you about my experience with checking in my bags.
Check-in theBags.
Fortunately for us, there was no extra charge for the additional bags. I came with one bag and left with a total of two bags. I bought the extra bag at the Medina. I was so excited about it because it was huge and only got it for $2 and bargained for it, it could fit tons of stuff. Yes, it was ugly, but I didn't care because it was very cheap and would serve the purpose to fit the extra stuff. Now the fun part. After we checked-in the bags, the flight got canceled, so we had to go back and get our bags. Remember my cheap bag... well, it was ripped on one side, and the items inside could have easily fallen out. I guess that's what you get for buying a $2 bag with a zipper. The solution was to wrap the bag in a plastic wrap. The problem here was that I didn't plan for that, and I didn't have enough money to do so, but I got lucky and borrowed some from a fellow-student whose suitcase got messed up too. Finally, we were able to secure our precious cargo. My bag looked hideous, but nothing was falling out, so I was cool with that.
Tip#1: Be sure to have some extra money for emergencies like this. An amount equivalent to $10 - $15 is perfect.
Tip#2: Do not buy cheap bags for an international flight.
Tip#3: Stay cool, no matter what!
Next, the bus transfer from Marrakech to Casablanca. It took what it felt like forever to get on the buses, and were split into two groups because the buses were small. Even if, one of the groups were able to make it to the airport in the Casablanca, we all couldn't get on the flight because the second group was not going to be at the airport on time. We missed our connecting flight.
This is our group waiting on arrangements to return home at the airport in Casablanca.
After about five hours of waiting and not knowing when we were going to get on a flight, we got some news. We had a flight!! Yeah!!! The lesson here is you've got to deal with whatever comes your way. It doesn't matter, good or bad; this is life. Do the best you can. Some of us caught up on some sleep, did homework, enjoyed an excellent read, listened to music, reflected on the trip, talked about life after graduation, shared what inspires us and motivates us, and what makes us who we are. Not bad use of our time, huh?!
Did I mention that our laptops had to go in the check-in bags? There's no way around it. Rules are rules.
We left Marrakech on May 23, 2 am and got home to Atlanta on May 25, 10 am. Every minute was worth the memories and experience! That's how I chose to look at it!
Thanks for reading, V
