I was like a child in a candy shop, bouncing for joy and smiling from ear to ear. I was on my way to O.R. Tambo airport and it felt as though my brain might explode from all the happiness I was trying to hold back. This was my first trip overseas. A moment I have been dreaming about since the age of 10. I was tempted to pinch myself to make sure that it was not a dream.

My boyfriend, his mom and I checked our luggage in and said goodbye to his dad and brother. As I walked through the gates, my heart was pounding with anticipation. We walked down a long tunnel with blinding fluorescent lights and we emerged into the international section, or as I saw it, the airport shopping center. I did not expect it to be so large. There were shops everywhere. We sat down at Mugg and Bean to have something small to eat before we got on the plane. The view of the airport from Mugg and Bean was stunning. The sun was beginning to fall behind the aeroplanes, which set such a beautiful scene. I wish I had captured it on camera.

Once we were on the plane, after three hours of exploring through the different shops (and internally crying because everything was so expensive), I felt the nerves begin to set in. The longest flight I had ever been on was an hour and a half between Cape Town and Johannesburg. I was trying not to think about what would happen if the plane crashed or what would happen if we flew near a storm. I am sure many people feel like that when they fly. So I managed to suppress them, I wanted to enjoy this moment as much as possible. I had the window seat (I love having the window seat every time I fly between Johannesburg and Port Elizabeth) and as I looked out at the airport, I realised that this was one of those moments in life which will be etched in your memory forever.

When we arrived in Abu Dhabi, it was six o’ clock in the morning. As we were coming in for landing, I was fascinated by what I saw below me. The streets were empty and hazy with dust. While we disembarked the plane, we stepped outside and a thick wave of hot air collided into me. Bear in mind, I had just left South Africa’s winter wearing a thin jersey and jeans. Once inside the Abu Dhabi International airport, I was taken aback by the ceiling design. The green and blue colours reminded me of a peacock’s tail feathers, beautifully splayed out to attract a female.

The airport was humming with people. We bought breakfast from Urban Food Market. I had a small yogurt with a berry concentrate at the bottom and a juice. We had a four-hour wait before our next flight, so we sat at one of the lounges at the airport. Even though I was struggling to keep my eyes open, sleep did not succumb to me. There was a lot of activity going on around me. So instead, Dani (my boyfriend) and I went exploring. The airport seemed to be equipped with everything, from computers for people to use to a variety of places to eat as well as some expensive-looking shops (which I dared not enter). I loved the shop that had small stuffed camels and baskets filled with massive dates. I still had to keep reminding myself that this was all real.

From Abu Dhabi, we boarded the next flight, to the land of pizza, pasta, and espresso. I managed to get some sleep on the flight because Dani and I had a row all to ourselves. He watched a movie while I curled up next to him. Next thing I knew, the captain announced that we were about to land at Leonardo Da Vinci International airport, in Rome. The view was spectacular, there were pops of colourful umbrellas on the beach and lovely green trees lining the streets.

It was lunchtime when we landed, so we went on a search for food. Naturally, being in the land of pizza and pasta, we went and ate noodles at Ajisen Ramen. The noodles hit the spot. We only had a two-hour layover in Italy, so we did not explore that much. Next up was our final destination: Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria.

The two-hour flight felt the longest. It was probably just because I was dying to finally be there. When the captain announced that we were about to land, I could not have been more ecstatic. My eyes were probably the size of dinner plates, filled with anticipation. As we got closer to landing, I could see the luscious green landscape stretch out before me. There were thick forests below, with a scattering of houses in between.

Once we landed and had gotten our luggage, I was introduced to Dani’s grandparents and uncle. All I could do was smile and say hello because they do not know much English and I do not know any Bulgarian (well… I know what butterfly is, but I didn’t think that would be useful in that specific situation).

After the formalities were over, we began our journey to Montana, which is where Dani’s grandparents live. Montana is a two-hour drive from Sofia. Everywhere you turned your head, there were deep green forests. I was fighting sleep just to absorb in this new, fascinating world around me (I fall asleep easily in cars, so that shows you how excited I was). By the time we arrived in Montana, the sun was only beginning to set, which was strange for me, because it was eight o’ clock at night. I am not used to seeing daylight beyond 6:30 p.m. We were welcomed up into the apartment where we would be staying for the night. Dani’s gran had made a delicious roast lamb for dinner. The lamb quite literally melted in your mouth. For dessert, we had fresh cherries, which they had picked from their garden in selo (which means village in Bulgarian). The cherries were the best I had ever tasted, rich with flavour. It is still common for many people in Bulgaria to have a house in the city and a house in a village. It is uncertain if people still do it until this day, but it used to be common for children to spend their summer holidays in the selo, helping out with farming.

After the delicious dinner, we all got ready to go to bed. I was beyond exhausted. This is just the beginning of my trip. Next stop is Veliko Tarnovo.