T+24:32 It's Been A Hard Day's Night - Part One

Ken and I left my house a little over 24 hours ago. The train ride to NYC was smooth and we happily met up with 14 members of the team for the 2nd leg of the journey. We arrived in Abu Dhabi just a short while ago, and it is nightfall here (our 2nd of the day -- how does that work). The sun was setting as we made our initial approach into the area. Looking out over the wing of our aircraft into the dusky Persian Gulf we saw many water craft, freighters, fishers and of course the "keepers of the peace" all dotting the water with their night running lights illuminated. As a point of reference, Abu Dhabi is the capital of United Arab Emirates and is located right on the Persian Gulf with a population of over 1 million people. Originally the gateway to India, this land is filled with history.

This is an ultra modern airport in a very affluent part of the world. It's fascinating to people watch in such an airport, noticing individuals from many nations and in diverse costume speaking foreign languages. Groups dressed in white robes heads covered, men in baggy pants and tunics, ladies in richly colored saris, the casual tourist in jeans or sweat pants, and so much more. I just love that I am privileged to see it all.

We have all stretched our legs and made our way to the gate for our next flight that leaves here around 11:00pm local time. We were delighted to find our dear friend Dr. Julie Sofer (see an earlier post to learn more about Julie) who had arrived about the same time as our flight, but flew in from Detroit. We will connect with a few more team members in Ahmedabad when we arrive there 3:25am Saturday, January 19 (local time). We are time warp travelers at this point and as Dr. Roger Levin joked as we got off the last flight where we were served 2 dinners "we have a few hours here, perhaps we should grab another meal and a another dinner roll."

Here are a couple images for your viewing pleasure. I'm signing off until we get to India. Every team member has expressed their thanks that you are all out there, yet with us on this journey. We would love to hear from you via comments and words of encouragement posted to our blog.

Until the next post in the next city in e next time zone,

Peace,
- Cheryl