Greetings from Beijing

Now that's a lot of flying. 16 hours from Austin to Beijing. We'll never complain about Lubbock again.

Our day started at 3:30 a.m. Wednesday 5/25 in Austin, and ended at 6:30 p.m. Thursday 5/26 in China. We saw sunrise leaving Travis County, sunset from our hotel in Beijing, and no night in between. Marc was able to sleep quite a bit on both flights, Dianne less so. That probably explains why Marc is up at 1:00 a.m. on Friday ready to start the day! Ohh boy. He may have some more adjusting to do.

We arrived early so that we'd have time to adjust and to have a free day in Beijing for a few sites not on Saturday's tour. There's nothing more fun than a day to conquer a foreign city and enjoy the frustration and helplessness that comes with the unfamiliar.

Marc sat next to a little old lady from Beijing who spoke no English, slept with a blanket over her head, and chastised Marc for eating United Airline hot noodles with a spork. She was also wonderfully open, and we managed to have a conversation using nothing but hands, pen & paper, & patience. She has a doctor son in Oregon, and she knows our adoption story as well. It difficult to talk to or watch elderly Chinese without thinking "my goodness, the things you have seen in the last 50 years." I'll leave it at that until we get back to the States. :)

Our experience so far is confirming all we were told about China. Yes, there are no lines. Elderly women seem to be the worst of all. Yes, driving is reckless. Almost took out a bicycle? check. Passed between two cars with no lane? check. More honking than NYC? check.

Also, chinglish chinglish everywhere. Marc swears he is going to offer a modest salary to the PRC to correct it all. Can't they just run this by some dude in London? We may write them all down and do a separate Chinglish post.

Our agency guide Grace is extremely helpful, and offered some good advice for Friday's free day on the way to the hotel (avoid rush hour metro! Shoot, that sounds like fun :)). We'll see her again on Saturday with many other American families. She believes that all of this week's families will be traveling alone to their respective provinces.

Hunan, like Sichuan, is known for its spicy food. And girls from Hunan are commonly referred to as "spicy little girls". That's what we'll be getting in Malia, so says Grace. :)

16 hours of flying for two is doable. 16 hours of flying for two and a half on the way back will be, uh, interesting. Touchdown in Austin will be the most welcoming landing ever.