Flight to Vietnam (7/11 - 7/12) || Alicia Lin

Salutations 16G blog viewers! We are about to take flight on Starlux Airlines from Ontario to Taipei and then to Saigon! I arrived at the Ontario International Airport an hour before check-in call time. I was very surprised to see how relatively chill it was navigating the airport compared to LAX. We had plenty of time to relax and talk to familiar MEMObers before boarding time. As Nina and I were walking to our gate, we saw a Skittles vending machine. I was intrigued, but unfortunately it was broken. Too bad, because I’ve always wanted to try those unique vending machines! I wanted to eat before the flight so I wouldn’t get as dizzy, though, so we bought the Subway meal of the day. Nothing wrong with keeping it simple!

After that, we walked back to our gate and sat with some other 16Gers already settling in. I hopped around activities, from a truth-or-truth circle with UCSD friends, to playing 13 with Nina, Dan, and BOD, to watching a Smash Bros free-for-all between some hardcore gamers (note to self: Jordan is an Isabelle main). Finally, we were called on to board the plane. As I am writing this, I hope that my motion sickness doesn’t get too bad because my vestibular system isn’t the strongest.

Quick summary of the first flight: the food was okay, I slept until my legs got sore, and I watched Parasite. We had about two hours before the next flight, some of the group went to get boba, but otherwise we headed to the gate where we boarded the plane. Once again, I got a bit motion sick during the flight but it was more manageable because I had an outward-facing seat. There was also a screaming child for about thirty minutes until food arrived. Great quality bonding for us!

At last, we made it to Vietnam! It was definitely humid, but not bad since it was cloudy. When you’ve lived in 120F summer, nothing else is really as terrible as it seems.That’s all for the flight days, but tune in for the more meaningful moments of Mission Trip where we have the opportunity to serve and interact with the community!

Evelyn takes a big bite of her Subway as Oliver looks on in amusement.

Nina, Justin, Dan, and Jordan play an intense game of Thirteen.

Sophie and Ian smile for the camera as Shaylene and Jolie