While I had a fantastic time in Costa Rica, the trip home was an incredible pain. We flew from San Jose to Atlanta, then Atlanta to Indianapolis.
The whole travelling fiasco started when our flight to Atlanta was delayed from 7 am to 11 am. It took forever to get us on a new connecting flight, but we got mostly everyone on the same flight. Then our flight was delayed to 1 pm... and we didn't actually leave until 3 pm.
It was a mess trying to figure out how we were going to get from Atlanta to Indianapolis in the same day, or even the next day. Most of the flights were already booked or full enough that they couldn't fit our large group (14) into one flight.
What happened was that the 3 of us kids that came with our dad's were able to catch a flight from Atlanta to Indianapolis that left around 10:30 pm. Even though we were worried we weren't gonna make it because of the crazy lines in customs and going back through security, we made it with plenty of time to spare. The 6 of us got on that flight and were able to head home that day.
But, everyone else in the group who didn't have a parent stayed back with my teacher and his wife. They were able to get a flight out the next morning and had a hotel to stay in for the night. But they weren't even given any meal vouchers for their stay... it was an even bigger mess. What the airline ended up having to do was put all of the girls on one flight and all of the boys on another. The girls were set to fly out about an hour before the boys- but the boys ended up getting on their flight because there was room.
Everyone made it home safe and sound, even though it was incredibly stressful. My dad and I got home from the airport around 3 am. Everyone else made it home around 10 am. I was still asleep by the time everyone got back home.
Even though travelling was a great pain, it very much prepared me for my travels to Peru when I will be alone. Looking back, it was a blessing in disguise.
Glad you were able to see the blessings in your delayed flight! That attitude will help you stay positive and get the absolute most out of your exchange.. I hope your other readers learn from your experience and intentionally choose to look at their challenges as an opportunity to learn and preparation for the opportunity yet to come!