The ride to the airport that Sunday morning was smooth and uneventful. Our driver drove us there in a big black SUV (maybe a Tahoe?) and we looked like we were being escorted somewhere by the FBI.. LOL We made lots of jokes about that to the uniformed driver who was obviously well trained to be serious and quiet. :)
We got to the airport with plenty of time to check and proceeded to the First Class baggage check-in and then to the First Class security area. Amazing how they let passengers paying so much for their tickets to move much more quickly through the security check points. I never can afford to fly First Class but really wanted to have the room and comfort there and back. I thought it might be extremely important especially on the way home right after surgery.
We got to our gate and waited for a very short time and we began boarding the plane to San Diego!
Alaska Airlines treated us with lots of dignity and class. I have to say that flying First Class is SO worth the money. What an experience! It was a little sad to watch my son eat the amazing food we were served as I sipped on my water.... uggghhhh... I did fine though!
Our trip to San Diego was uneventful and seemed to go pretty quickly. Before we knew it, we had landed at San Diego International Airport and we collected our luggage easily and made the phone call to the doctor's office coordinator to ask them to come and pick us up. They would be there soon, so we began the LONG and I mean LONG walk to the Jet Blue terminal which was on the complete opposite side of the airport. I was tired (no food for 2 weeks will do that to you) and my son even lugging all of our bags was way ahead of me. I felt much like a submissive Japanese wife trying my best to stay behind him but not getting too close. LOL
Finally we made it to the pick up spot - exhausted and hot. The driver came very soon after we got there thankfully and we loaded into the van marked "Jerusalem Hospital" and began the journey to Tijuana, just across the border. The driver spoke some English, but not a lot. He navigated the area well and avoided lots of traffic on I-5 as we weaved our way across the border a little further than the most popular spot at San Ysidro. The Mexican border guard didn't ask to see our passports and just did a quick search of the back of the van and we were once again on our way.
The driver took me directly to the hospital for a pre-op blood draw. Even knowing ahead of time what to expect could not have softened what I saw next...
The "hospital" was not a hospital at all, but a very tiny two story clinic wedged in between an Office Depot store and a furniture rental shop. I gulped a little bit and my son asked nervously, "Is this where they do the surgery or is this just where they are taking your blood?" I explained that this was the hospital and he looked very worried. The blood draw was very typical and smooth and we were quickly back in the van on our way to the hotel for the night. As we left the parking lot, I almost flipped out to see several men wearing all black and holding assault rifles! IN THE PARKING LOT. Neither one of us said another word on the way to the hotel. All of our joking the whole way down and enjoying the trip was ended.
We checked in to the hotel and I collapsed on the bed and bawled my eyes out as my son used the restroom. "Oh my gawd... what have I done??" I said to him. He was incredulous and neither one of us knew what to think. We went to the hotel restaurant to have some dinner (or at least he did - I had soup) and talked a little bit. Joshua worked hard to calm my nerves and bring some sense and laughter to this scary situation. What in the world were they guarding? Is that typical? Is the area that dangerous that the guards are necessary? So many questions flooded our minds but we worked hard to relax.
The driver had told us that he would pick us up at 6am the next morning, so we went to bed relatively early in preparation for the big day - when my life would start anew as a thin and fit person!
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