Just had to get this down before I lose the thought.
Dragon Chick is hanging out the window…OK… glued to the window in the Galley with the
digital camera collecting evidence that global warming DOES exist regardless of what DUBYA’s experts say… that is until I explain that the guy that takes this trip a lot was a tad mistaken on location and that the water he said was supposed to be ice was actually Davis Strait between Goose Bay and Greenland. [not that I come this way that often but the map on the in-flight screen, and the flight attendant that DOES come this way far more often confirmed this minor fact.]So now she’s sulking that I burst that bubble… she was so sure she had enough evidence for impeachment on grounds of gross stupidity…bless her li’l environmental preservationist heart.
We’re 5 hours into the flight and everyone is up and walking around doing exercises and hydrating as much as possible… pretty decent ride except for the exit from Newark which was becoming socked in by a major storm front… half an hour later and we would have been on the ground for a long time.
Before I forget… a really Big Thanks to Class of ’60 long time pal Henry Bassman for braving the storm just to run over to the terminal hoping to coax the TSA into letting him past the BASTION OF TERRIORIST PROTECTION so we could have coffee during our 2 hour layover. Yeah right… like they're gonna do that. He did however sweet talk the nice supervisor lady [always the Silver Tongued Devil… some things never change] into letting me slip outside the RING OF STERILITY and catch up on each others lives, wives and adventures [all under the ever vigilant eye of a very stern looking TSA officer] who graciously slips me into the express line back into the sterile concourse. I'm just kidding the TSA they really do a great job under some really stressful circumstances and I'm always ready to comply with their every request… except for that one guy with the rubber gloves on the way to North Carolina the last time… but that’s another chapter in another book.
Time for a nap until she comes up with something else that tickles me about her excitement.
4PM Beijing
Flight relatively uneventful… Lots of walking around to keep the circulation in the legs and lots of hydration [Thank You Jewel] and a few nice meals and snacks but 13 HOURS with 2 movies, CSI New York and the Brady Bunch?!?!?
Boy I'm glad the pilot found Beijing on the first try. Of course we got there a half hour early and someone was still in our parking space so we sat on the taxi way for another 20 minutes… then someone else forgot the key to the front door and that took another 15 minutes to find so we actually stepped on Chinese Soil… OK… the Jetway, at 215pm Beijing time on Monday 4.16… or 2AM EST… At least the Dragon Lady got some sleep but I couldn’t get any and now I'm draggin’.
Health cards, passports, Immigration and Customs were a breeze as was baggage and on to find John Zhang our guide for the next 6 days who hustled us to the car where another Zhang our driver popped the luggage in the trunk and we were off to downtown Beijing and the Novotel, our home for the next 6 days. Ohhhh Yeahhhh the Ooooofffinnng and Eeeeeeking would have started with the kamikaze traffic but John kept her attention with a rundown of what we could expect and where we would be going, along with a little cultural does and don’ts etc.
Check in is great and the room delightful until... Chucky just had to try all the plugs and the
travel converter and of course he blows the fuse [hmmmm didn't this happen in Florence, Italy too]. Now to get someone at the front desk [housekeeping and service don’t answer] to understand the problem. Seconds later a knock a the door and a delightful young lady comes in and after my broken Chinglish [Mandarin/English] explanation she decides she can’t handle it and will send a manager… who turns out to be the engineer on call. I show him the plug and converter, and he immediately pops open the ceiling, resets the fuse and we begin an interesting exchange in my pidgin Chinglish and his sign language as to the effectiveness of the not so trusty travel converter and the right settings… this leads to a call to another young squire, one Jack Liu who attempted his English and resorted to writing 110v on the desk pad… more attempts on all parts to decipher the right setting for the converter and then get it into the 3 way 240v plug by the bed where I want to put the phone charger… and of course they need to test it first before they let me blow anything else up so they unplug the TV and Mini Fridge unit and drag it close enough to the plug to try blowing up the TV first before they’ll let me plug in the phone charger. All is we'll, even the blow dryer works there… not that she'll use it in front of a blank wall…but it looks like makeup will be done at the desk."Xie Xie’s and "Bu ke Xie's" all around and they're off to solve another wayward tourist problem.
We head out for a quick tour of the neighborhood, the department store across the way to get bottled water and maybe a more trusty converter..[hmmm this happened in Spain too] and a quick bite before we crash. Might make it a few blocks down to Tienanmen Square for the national Flag lowering ceremony… then again...probably not.
BEJING… WE’RE HERE!!!!!!
再见朋友
Zài Jiàn Péng-You
Chuck
and the now fading fast
Dragon Lady
[Hey… she got the sleep on the plane…]
