Things they didn't tell us in school...!
Well, the trip to Korea is off and running. After a departure from the Cedar Rapids airport that left the gate 
on time (6:55) only to move into position and wait for a 30 minute delay....I arrived safely in Chicago to await the international flight to Seoul's Incheon airport .... departure time..1 am.
But never fear, there's always a restaurant or pub to keep you distracted in Ohare, right? Well, at the International Terminal in Ohare, things are somewhat limited to begin with, but additionally, the pub and most restaurants close at 9:30. Thus leaving only 3 and a half hours for contemplation. Lord knows the 15 hour flight to Seoul won't allow enough time for that!
So the first challenge is to locate a gourmet meal in the world's largest airport. Being the professional tubist that I am, there are standards to be met. With a bit of effort, and some leg work, at last a fitting dining experience was had!
Luckily, everything went fine boarding the flight and we were off on time.
As a pleasant surprise, I also discovered that Jay Krush, tubist of the Chestnut Brass Quintet was on the same flight. Some lively conversation and general 'catching up' made the wait go more quickly.
The flight went well, no real problems. That is unless you count the apparent 10 or so attempted hijackings which occured while we were enroute....
Following arrival at Seoul's Incheon airport at 5am local time, I had the pleasure to be met by an old friend and tubist Sung Youl Gie who has just completed his first year as principal tubist with the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra. He was kind enough to meet me at the airport and transport me the 30 minutes or so to Gimpo Airport where I could wait until 10am for my flight to Jeju. We had a very nice breakfast and conversation to catch up on the couple of years since we last saw each other.
So, there's the beauty of 'makin' it' and traveling the world. Somehow the reality of 24 hours of travel just doesn't quite match up the to 'romantic' thoughts. That said, it still is a lot of fun! Just, no one ever really tells you how much drudge work is also involved. Luckily, this time I'm not hauling a tuba! That's when the real fun starts!!