If there is one thing that anyone knows about traveling, it’s that there is a likely chance you may get jetlag going from point A to point B. While this may not have been the biggest worry I had in preparation for my trip, it was definitely something to note. The time difference between Memphis, TN (CDT or central daylight time) and Madrid, Spain (CEST or Central European Summer Time) is seven hours, with CEST being ahead. Because I decided to travel to Europe a week earlier, I had gotten tickets to land in Zurich, but the time zone difference and jitters still applied.
In preparation of preventing myself from dealing with this sleep disorder, I knew I needed to sleep as much as possible on the plane ride since we would be landing in Europe at around 8 in the morning. The issue with this was that I was placed in a seat not necessarily fit for comfort (middle seat of the aisle section). My attempts at rest were futile, as I barely managed to get even an hour of sleep. I tried covering myself with a blanket, wrapping a neck pillow around myself, and turning on a sleep playlist, but the battle against the uncomfortable position I was sitting in and the nonstop movement from the person in front of me led to an ultimate failure.
After landing, we had made plans to go out all day and to not fall asleep. This meant that I had been awake for over 24 hours by the time I had gotten back to my hostel for the night. Luckily, that night, I slept like a baby and managed to get nearly ten hours of well-deserved rest. The jitters of getting jetlag were bound to happen, but I was able to overcome them without having to suffer too badly from the symptoms. If I had to give advice to anyone wanting to travel abroad, I would say to make sure to get some good headphones and a sleeping mask because those would have been lovely to have for my own flight.
(Below is an image of me at the airport with my friends unprepared for and unbeknownst of the future exhaustion to come.)
