Hometurf

Hey everyone, I'm officially back in the states now. It feels kinda strange, I won't lie, though not being in an airport anymore is wonderful.
My flight was supposed to leave Iceland at 5, but kept getting bumped back later and later to the point where I started getting concerned. After a certain time, I would no longer be able to catch a bus to David and Meridith's house and would have to sleep in the Port Authority bus terminal to catch the 6 am bus...and that is one experience I would be okay not having. I really started to get concerned what time the flight was going to be, when they announced at the airport that they were giving the people on my flight 1,100 ISK (around $11), worth of dinner credits in the food area. Not a good sign.
Finally, around 4.5 hours later (which really isn't too bad considering how delayed some of my friends in Europe were flying home. I was just really more concerned about catching the last bus), we boarded our flight. Then I found out why we were delayed, and I can't even be upset. I would gladly sit in the airport again. Turned out, the Parisians went on strike. Two days before Christmas, during a snow storm. There were about 40-50 Americans that if their flight was canceled, they wouldn't get home til the 27th at the earliest. So they told them, we will not cancel on you. We will get you home for Christmas. And they delayed the connecting flight (mine) to ensure that they would get home. The guy sitting next to me would have missed his first Christmas with his kid if we hadn't waited. So obnoxious? Yes. But I would happily do it again.
We finally landed at 10:15 EST, a little after 3 am for me. Got through customs, got on the subway (really makes me appreciate London's tube. I didn't realize how nice those seats were!) and made it to Port Authority, 20 minutes before the last bus left at 12:45. Whew!
So here I am, at David and Meridith's house. I got in around 1:30 in the morning, and am now sitting around, drinking coffee, and hanging out with Noodle and Carly. Janine and Lisa were here too, but they ran to the store. I'm excited to be here, though sad to not be in Europe. And I do have to admit, the hours I kept in Iceland made the transition easy. Another perk to the weird hours of sunlight there. Who need jetlag?!
Nonetheless, it is Christmas Eve! So now it's time to wrap some presents (I'm so excited for how much room this will clear up in my bag!) and enjoy the prospect of seeing my parents tomorrow evening. I can't believe how fast the last 3.4 months flew by, but they were amazing. Memories for a lifetime.