Reykjavik, Iceland
My journey was *supposed to be* a fairly simple one: drive to the Chicago airport, get on a plane headed to Iceland, get on a plane headed to Manchester, join my study abroad gang and drive to Liverpool Hope University. To be fair, I had done/am doing what my plan calls for, just in a much longer way.
Here’s the story of why I’m currently typing this in a hotel room in the capital of Iceland.
It starts as it always does, with a small drizzle that naturally turns into a storm. Chicago is normally difficult to drive through with its heavy traffic, but thunder and lightning make it that much more eventful. The change from being able to pass the time playing video games as unaffected car passengers was sharp and abrupt once in the O’Hare International Airport, as the 3rd flight delay message came over the intercom. 7:30 became 9, became 9:15, became 9:45 and so on. Frequent flyers know that once the first flight has been delayed, all connecting flights are done for. It was going to be a long night.
With this in mind, after finally landing in Keflavik International Airport, I expected to hear that my wait for a flight into Manchester would be a several hour wait. 22 hours to be exact… I was staying overnight in Iceland!
After updating several family members, contacting the International Hub of Liverpool Hope, organizing a night stay with the kind Keflavik service desk workers, and working through some breathing techniques, I had a new flight to Manchester for the next morning.
A whirlwind of beautiful, brightly colored modern architecture, sprawling mossy fields and mountains, a fantastic brunch, and a moment to count all my blessings and not my misfortunes. All of this helped me put everything into perspective.
This is what traveling is all about! Experiencing the new, even if it was all completely unplanned and unexpected.
Time to explore Reykjavik!
