The alarm clock buzzes at 3:00 a.m. - we drag ourselves out of bed and prepare to embark on our great adventure. I called the night before to schedule a taxi and he pulls up in front of our house at 4:00, right on time. We load our luggage (three large suitcases on wheels and two big carry-on backpacks) into the trunk of the cab and drive off for the airport. Our driver is a long-haired, lanky guy in thick glasses who seems to know an awful lot about Chinese history and politics. Not surprisingly the streets are empty this early in the morning, and we reach the airport in no time at all. Following the airline's recommendations we arrive at the airport 2 hours early, but there are no lines for check-in or for security so we reach our departure gate within minutes of leaving the cab. Up to now Ive been going on adrenaline - the excitement of the upcoming trip. But now, sitting at the departure gate with nothing to do the excitement rapidly burns off and gives way to exhaustion. I spend the next hour fighting sleep, wishing we could go ahead and get started already. Our flight departs right on time at 6:30 and we arrive in Chicago at 6:37 that's a pretty quick trip if you dont factor in the 1 hour time change. Im sure this time warp effect will have gotten quite strange by the time we finally reach China.
We have a 5 ½ hour layover in Chicago before our plane leaves for Tokyo. We stop for breakfast at McDonalds - beyond that there doesnt seem to be much of anything to do but sit and wait. We can't proceed into the international terminal without boarding passes, and the JAL ticket counter hasn't opened yet. I had only a few hours sleep the night before and right now I feel about as tired as Ive ever felt before. I get out my notebook and pen to start on this journal, but Im just too tired to concentrate. Im also distracted by worries about how the boys are doing. How was their first night away from home? Are they worried, do they miss us? Did everyone make it to school OK? I finally give in, find a pay phone, and call my brother at work. He reports that they had an excellent night and that everyone got off to school just fine. I feel enormously relieved! For me, the hardest part of this trip will be letting go and accepting the fact that while Im on the other side of the planet I really cant take care of my sons. I will have to have faith that the people helping out back home will do a good job and will be able to handle any problems that arise. With time, this will become easier.
Finally its time to go. We board the enormous JAL 747 and were on our way to Tokyo! The plane is huge, but the seats are tiny (narrow with very little leg room) and were in for a long flight 13 hours. The 747s lavatories are tiny, claustrophobic, closets. As the plane bounces through some turbulence I brace myself against the counter/changing table and wonder, how in Gods name could you possibly change a baby in here? I have a feeling that Ill become something of an expert before I see home again. Although the plane is cramped, the service we receive from JAL is exceptional! The food is excellent and the flight attendants circulate continuously between meals handing out drinks (unlike domestic flights, beer and wine are gratis here), snacks, pillows, and blankets. Its a shame that JAL doesnt have any flights within the United States.
We chase the Sun following the Great Circle Route along the edge of the Pacific Ocean. We fly northwest across Alaska, across the Bering Strait, and then southwest along the eastern edge of Asia to Japan. Each seat is fitted with a small video monitor and a remote control which allow the passenger to watch movies and play video games. There is also an option to see the view from a camera pointing down from the planes belly. Its a neat idea, but most of the time we can see only clouds or wide expanses of ice and snow, which look pretty much the same from 30,000 feet. Its just getting dark as our plane touches down in Tokyo.
Couples who are part of our adoption group will be coming from all over the United States, taking various routes and airlines. We wont actually be a group until were all together in Beijing. But by some cosmic coincidence the couple sitting right beside us on the plane (Dave and Kay) turn out to be part of our adoption group! We dont realize it until were nearly to Tokyo and they pull out a pair of the pins which our adoption agency sent us to help identify ourselves upon arrival in China. Dave and Kay are prepared, but our pins are sitting on my desk back in Louisville. I can only hope that they're the most significant thing weve forgotten. When we get off of the plane Dave and Kay introduce us to Mike and Marie, a third adopting couple who were on our flight, but seated elsewhere. I must admit that I had some concerns about the other people that wed be traveling with. Im greatly relieved to find that our new friends seem to be normal people, just like us. Over the two weeks we'll spend in China well get to know and like everyone in our group, but we will become particularly close to these two couples.
Navigating the Tokyo airport as part of a group is far less daunting than it would have been if it were just the two of us. It's just a short walk to the departure gate for out flight to Beijing. I stop in the airport restroom and notice that one stall has a very unusual plumbing fixture. Instead of the standard commodes featured in the rest of the stalls, this one contains a large porcelain bowl set into the floor at ground level. I can't imagine what it is or how it might be used, and I'm far too tired to feel like experimenting with it. Little do I know that I've just seen my first traditional Chinese toilet.
After a brief layover in Tokyo we board a much smaller (and much less crowded ) JAL jet for the final 4 hour hop to Beijing. We land in Beijing at 9:30 p.m. local time on November 15. Weve been traveling for 27 hours or so but since it was morning when we left and evening when we arrive (we followed the Sun for the entire trip from Chicago to Tokyo) it feels like its been a single really long day. Since leaving Chicago weve had 4 meals, seen lots of in-flight movies, and done several rounds of exercises (seated, of course) with the video that JAL shows every couple of hours.
We deplane in Beijing ready to present our passports and entry cards. The signs instruct Chinese nationals to line up on the left and foreigners to line up on the right it feels quite strange (and a little exciting) to be a foreigner! Within 45 minutes weve cleared Chinese customs, collected our bags (a little worn, but at least theyre here in China with us), and hooked up with our adoption agency's Chinese coordinator, Cynthia. For the next two weeks Cynthia will be in charge of our group. She speaks excellent English and seems to have a lot of energy. We climb onto the waiting bus and head for the Jinglun Hotel.
Beijing is a huge city! Tall skyscrapers stretch out as far as the eye can see. Standing in the aisle of the bus, Cynthia narrates the 45 minute drive from the airport to our hotel through the nighttime city (its about 10:00 pm, local time). Shes obviously quite proud of her home town and is eager to show it off to us. There's no talk of Communism vs. Capitalism, or government mandated family planning, or student protests in Tiananmen Square, or anything else that we Americans instinctively associate with China. In the United States it's very difficult to discuss China without political overtones. But now that we've arrived in China, we're getting a non-political, unapologetic tour of Beijing from a proud native guide. I've been eager for a taste of the real China, and now I'm finally getting it! Upon returning to the States we'll find that many people will be surprised to learn that we actually enjoyed our time in China. They seem to think that traveling in China for two weeks was something we endured in order to adopt our baby.
Its wonderful to finally arrive at the Jinglun hotel - the first leg of our journey is complete! As we get off the bus we purchase a couple of bottles of water from the driver. Because of poor sanitary conditions, we've been very strongly cautioned to not drink any tap water in China. Things to avoid include ice, fresh vegetables which may have been washed in tap water, and opening one's mouth in the shower. For the first few days it will be difficult to remember, especially when doing routine things like brushing my teeth. But after two weeks it will have become second nature and drinking water from the tap will feel a little strange for the first day or so back home.
Our room is quite nice, although it features (as will the other hotels we visit in China) a pair of narrow twin beds which are quite low to the ground and very firm. By 11:30 weve settled in - Ive had a badly needed shower and am enjoying an equally badly needed Tsing Tao from our rooms mini-bar. Tomorrow were off to tour Beijing Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, and the Great Wall how exciting!
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