It's now 7:37am on 2/5 and I have just finished eating my plane breakfast of a dry waffle and barely distinguishable sausage link, fruit and weak coffee, but you can't complain when airlines actually serve food!  I got to JFK airport extremely early after messing up on the subway and taking the A train uptown instead of downtown.  Nice move, Blair.  Prior to that blunder, I almost went to the wrong airport - thinking I was flying out of Newark and not JFK.  Again, nice move. 

Both mistakes corrected, I decided to buck up and take a cab instead of trying to fight my loopy brain at 2am.  My cab driver Luis was really friendly, a little too friendly, at 2am, but he was so eager and outgoing, I couldn't fault him for having the energy I lacked.  We had a nice conversation about my upcoming trip, his schoolwork and the weather -- he definitely earned his tip!

Standing in line at Copa Airlines, I made friends with the cutest three year-old who had the most elaborate hair and a lot of energy for 3am. Her parents were such a cute little couple (literally little: I towered over them).

Davis is probably en route to the airport in Chicago where she has a 9am flight (mine was at 5:07am and if I've slept at all it is only barely because I have been freezing on the plane). She meets a big group in Atlanta - her uncle Jim and Donna Cornish, her aunt Liz Cornish, her cousin Allison Cornish and two couples, Jeannie & Tom Guskey and Mary Diane & Lyle Hanna - to fly together to Quito, where I will already be and where Davis's parents, Caroline & Joe Federspiel will arrive an hour prior to the big group.

The other 11 in my group arrive late this evening, and I get to Quito around 1:30pm. Although I'm excited to see everyone, of course, I'm also really looking forward to spending time alone in the city today and practicing my Spanish.

As I sit here trying to capture every moment, I hope this is absolutely everything I've built it up to be: a true once-in-a-lifetime experience...and with my best friend in the world! I can't believe the first day is already upon us.

Has anyone else ever taken a trip with a best friend you rarely get to see? Tell me about it!