There was a Chinese man prancing around the living room swinging a birdcage earlier today. But I should explain how we got to that particular hilarity.
On Friday morning, I woke up at 4:45 and got ready for a very long day. My dad drove me to LAX, where he left me and my luggage at terminal 2. That’s where Air China is. It was just after 6 AM when I arrived,and the flight wasn’t going to leave until 10 AM, so I was not worried that there were only two other people there.
Well, 7:30 came and went. Ernie, Rita and I were still the only ones there. Not even Air China people were there. Oh, and yes, the three of us got well acquainted in that time! Finally some airport guy told us we needed to be at terminal 7. Rita and I had about 100 pounds of luggage each, so even getting onto the tram was an adventure. Then the tram driver kicked us off at terminal 6! Finally we figured out what was happening. Our tickets said Air China, but in small print it said something about United. Terminal 6 had United International, but the only flight there was going to Tokyo. We were not going to Tokyo! So we dragged all our stuff to terminal 7 and FINALLY got checked in. Then came the endless line to x-ray the carry-on luggage. That went remarkably well. Finally we were off to our gate.
Strange thing about being me, my roommate accuses me of knowing at least 25% of the planet’s population. My two compatriots and I were at the McDonald’s by our gate when I looked up and said, “That’s Larry!” He works for the organization I went to China with in ’99. Yup, I found someone I know at LAX!
Hours and hours later, after a stop in San Francisco and twelve hours on the plane (with a very nice flight attendant from Slovakia- love the accent), we finally landed in Bejing. After all the mafan of customs, Ernie, Rita, and I bid each other farewell. Not long after, I saw a sign with my name on it among the crowd. Becki had arranged for her friend Wendy to meet me, and she had a paper with my name printed on it! It was funny. Wendy and a guy named Simon helped me wrangle my luggage, laughing all the while, to where we could “make plans.”
A view of Siberia on the way to Beijing
Aside Those who have traveled with me know me to be a very light packer. I can live out of carry-ons for two weeks. So why am I carrying so doggone much luggage? One word. Becki. Most of what I am lugging is her shopping list. This is why they were both laughing at me.
The idea was that Wendy would help me navigate to the hostel I planned to stay at, but just about the first thing Simon said (ha ha!) was that I should stay with Wendy’s friend. So Wendy text messaged them, and soon a guy was there to pick me up. We drove around- lost- trying to find his apartment, taking fortyminutes for a twenty minute trip. I didn’t see him again, but his wife Erica and I had a really nice chat before I fell asleep at 8:30!
Erica works for the company that runs the school Becki works at. Come to think of it, so does Simon. Now think for a moment about my situation. What kind of person would take a complete stranger into their home on the recommendation of a person who has also only just met the guest? I was completely floored by this turn of events, but this is how it should be among family. Americans need to relearn this.
In the few hours that I spent in Beijing, I met three people I will not soon forget. There is so much I could add here, but I won’t for now. We’ll just remember that Erica, Simon and Wendy inspire me.
Fast-forward to Sunday afternoon. Becki returned from Thailand in the morning and we took a bus to Tianjin. It was hot and rainy. We had to drag everything up to the fifth floor! When my suitcases and Becki’s were unpacked, the livingroom was a disaster! It was fun though. I have a cute stuffed oliphaunt from Thailand now. :)
We went to the fabric market on Monday. It was insane! There are so many vendors and so many fabrics at each vendor. We got some fabric, then came back. Yesterday, Tuesday, we took those fabrics to the tailors. We’ve also been cleaning the apartment. Becki was moved to this apartment while she was gone, and her new roommates are home for the summer. There was such a mess! We finally finished today.
In the middle of all this was the craziness of broken air conditioners and broken internet. The maintenance guy has been here three or four times this week, including this morning’s visit when he found a birdcage and pranced around the livingroom with it!
