After 20+ hours of travel, we landed safely in the states! As usual, the kids did great, and we had a little excitement on the way!
I was amazed to see the progress of the transformation of the Joburg airport. They’ve been working on a makeover for a couple of years now in preparation for the 2010 World Cup to be hosted in SA.
After a quick stop for schwarmas at Anat’s, we were off to check-in. As we entered the international check-in counters, we spotted one of my favorite worship bands, Hillsong United! They were checking in for their SAA flight. We stood there in awe for several minutes. We even spotted Brooke Fraser. That’s for you, Courtney! (Although it’s not like we heard her sing or anything.)
I thought, “Wow! Add that to my list of famous people I’ve seen!” At check-in we were told to go straight to our gate because the plane was already boarding. We hurried only to discover the opposite. They hadn’t even started! Oh, well, we sat down to wait. But then everything – the wait, the beefed up security – it all became so clear as none other than former President Jimmy Carter walked past us with his secret service entourage to board our flight! We couldn’t believe it!
As we boarded the plane, the secret service were scattered throughout. We fastened our seat belts still buzzing with the excitement. Suddenly I look up to see President Carter walking down the aisle shaking hands! What do you say to a President? “Uh, nice to meet you, sir?” Well, that’s what fumbled out of my mouth as my heart skipped a beat! He leaned down to Emma Grace and said, “What’s your name, you pretty little thing?” Of course, she didn’t give him the time of day. If only she knew… I was too in awe to think about my camera (and nervous if that was even allowed, those secret service scared me!) until he walked up the next aisle, and I snapped a quick one.
With a former President on board, comes many secret service. There had to be around 15 on the flight. So now you see why Delta flight 35 was the safest flight I’ve ever flown…
What about you? Any stories of meeting or seeing someone famous?
*To read more about President Carter’s visit to Africa, visit MSNBC.
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