Chasing the sun

Yes it's 3am and I've been up since midnight! I was exhausted by the time we settled in after dinner, slept 3 hours, and here I am. I guess this is that internal clock, doesn't matter that I only slept 1-2 hours on the plane, it's been awhile since we've travelled across times zones. Quite amazing that the whole flight it was never dark, from Friday Cobourg day time, to Saturday Beijing day time. We were just chasing the sun!

I've already forgotten all about the bumps we've had this week, and can't stop thinking about Monday (GOTCHA day!!) So far things have gone smoothly. Beijing airport is quite large, but what struck me when we got off the plane, was how empty the airport was, other than our own flight lining up at the "Health Inspection" stall. Was this effects of recession or swine flu? We had a questionaire to fill and have reviewed, then we walked through a temperature scanner. All airport personnel at these check points had masks (not even the N95 ones) and gloves on. We didn't use ours. We found our luggage quickly (good thing because Jim and Theresa, the other couple we are travelling with completely impressed me, they had NO checked in luggage!... and then there's me the over packer). We found Lily, our tour guide, very sweet, and quite fluent in English, and followed her to a very "clean" airport garage (shiny painted concrete) where two drivers met us and took us on an "Amazing race" style drive into Beijing. I guess seat belts are not required here...

Lily told us that during the Olympics months, there were restrictions on cars for traffic and air pollution control. It's too bad in this densely populated city, that they couldn't apply those rules ALL the time. License plates that ended in a certain number could drive on certain days. It would definitely help with this permament grey in the air they call smog.

We are so grateful to the Ley family for lending us their very compact travel computer. And for Mark, introducing us to Skype. It worked! After several unsuccessful attempts initially because Nathan and Brendan were still sleeping, we finally called to wake them up to go down and turn on the computer. Oh my very adorable Mighty Knights, freshly awoken, bed head, rosy cheeks and all. So great to SEE you on screen! After a brief report on everything, we booked them in for another video call at 7 again later today.

Oh I'm just rambling now, it's late, but I do have to mention the BEST shrimp dumplings ever! We survived our first Beijing restaurant experience on our own (tour guide left by now). I do have to say this is a most humbling experience, to be spoken to in Mandarin, because I am obviously Chinese on the outside (a CBC, jook sing, banana - white on the inside as they would call it). This is where I'm just kicking myself for not being more diligent when I was younger in Chinese school(Mandarin and Cantonese are the same written, but spoken different). In Toronto I get by with my limited Cantonese speech and my favorite dishes in Cantonese, but I have no Mandarin at all, and the waitress had extremely limited English. To my relief though, on the menu there were PICTURES! So ordering was easy that way. Roger even learned to say "beer" in Mandarin! Priorities! Aidan has been doing well up to now, but at dinner, I could just see the energy level draining exponentially out of him. Straight to bed he went after dinner!

In several hours now, we check out and head to the airport for our flight into Hunan Province. 30 more hours until GOTCHA!