Of I go!

The past few weeks have been really busy trying to sort out everything for my big trip. I've had to sort my visa (took a lot longer than I thought), vaccinations, travel details, health checks, packing and plenty more. It's kind of weird trying to plan what you need to take for a whole year of living abroad. It was obvious from the start that in having only one suitcase and a carry-on bag was going to be pretty tough to fit everything in. I had to prioritise things which I didn't think I could buy out in Chile or essentials from home i.e. some kayaking kit, my favourite clothes, laptop, paperwork, a few books etc. When I'd finished the case definitely weighed too much, but I was hoping that check-in would let it slide.

All packed and ready to go!

After a ridiculously early start (who even wants to be up at 5am!?!?) I arrived at T3 Heathrow ready to check in. There were a few hiccups along the way... The bag drop took ages because the system was confused about my visa situation, I got stopped for a random search at security and had to unpack everything and then got stopped again for another random search at the departure gate. I'm beginning to think this isn't so random and might be a recurring theme during my transits in the US, perhaps having "Mohamed" on your passport is not ideal when the world is at a high terror alert, it's sad really...

Anyway, I'm currently sat writing this at the departure gate just before I board my first plane for the start of a mammoth journey. 7hr30 flight to Boston, 2hr transit, 3hr flight to Atlanta, 5hr transit, 9hr30 flight to Santiago, 30min bus to coach terminal, 6hr coach to Concepción, ?hr car to final destination. I'm thinking stockpiling snacks might be a good plan! If all goes well I will be in Concepción in the evening tomorrow (local time) and will update you all then!