Saturday May 14, 2011: Departure & Setback

I went to bed at 10 last night and woke up at 2:30 this morning half-asleep but nonetheless ready for the trip. My shuttle was outside waiting for me at 5:50 am when I got an automated call from American Airlines informing me that my flight to Chicago at 9:20 this morning was cancelled due to mechanical problems. There were no other flights to Chicago that would get me there in time for the connection, so they booked me another flight to LAX at 5:10 pm, LAX to Heathrow at 8 pm. I will get to Delhi on Monday 6 in the morning instead of my plan of getting there Sunday night. I'm just crossing my fingers that I'll be able to get some sleep on the plane, since I have slept so poorly the last couple of nights. So unless there are any further changes, I'm just gonna take BART or maybe book another shuttle. Not sure yet.

About the immunizations for this trip--I had five shots altogether. One for polio, the other for Hep. A, and three for rabies. I also took 4 capsules for typhoid. For malaria, I have to take pills everyday for the entire trip. That reminds me that I should begin my course today (but I wonder if there will be any mosquitoes in the summer?) The doctor said that I'm supposed to take it 2 days before going into a malaria zone, everyday while I'm in the malarial zone, and 28 more days after I have left the zone. They advised me to take it throughout the entire trip. I've never been a fan of taking daily medications, but maybe this time around, I'll do it just to be safe.

As you can see, I've brought only a backpack and a carry-on which I will be checking in because there are liquids inside. The guide book suggested that I bring enough contact-lens solution for the duration of my trip.