Getting There - China, Part 1

October 8, 2013

Our Korean Airlines flight was all about the food. Kimchee! Bibimbap! Mystery sauce in a tube! My only worry was about the beautiful haughty flight attendant. When D asked for water between meal services, I feared that her icy stare would turn him to stone. We got our water, but after that I decided we'd be fine without it for the remaining 9 hours of the flight. Anything to avoid being looked at that way again.

Our flight had left late, leaving us with only a 30-minute connection in Seoul. Toward the end of the flight, we were moved from the cattle car to Business Class so we could get out faster and catch our connection. That last half hour was bliss, all stretched out in a recliner. The flight attendants made the rounds, bowing and thanking each passenger for his or her patronage. Everyone, that is, except for us peons from economy. But by that time I was too exhausted and comfortable to care.

When we finally stepped out of the Beijing airport, I thought there was a fire nearby. Then we realized it was the thick smell of cigarette smoke and smog. Even in the semi-darkness the air looked hazy. We'll spend 4 days in this city and I wouldn't be surprised if I developed asthma on the spot. Thank goodness our friend Stan is a doctor. He's touring with us and I sure hope he brought his prescription pad.

 

 

October 9, 2013

Frank, our guide, says our group has a lot more Yin than Yang: 13 women and 5 men. We'll be living closely together for two weeks,  and I find myself sizing up my comrades during the orientation. Which of these people will I get along with best? Who's up for an adventure? Who will be high maintenance? Mark introduces himself, and he refers to the empty chair next to him as his wife, "who will always be late." Uh-oh. Then Bob raises his hand and asks if we can get hepatitis from drinking the tap water. Oh dear. It is not looking good for Team Yang.

Four of the women are traveling together from Rhode Island, not all from the same town, but you can cross the entire state in 45 minutes so they might as well be. Patty and her friend Diane "No Relation To Justin" Bieber are from New Jersey, but absolutely not from Jersey Shore. They want us to be clear on that. Sue is 87 and is the mother of Mark's invisible wife, Jennifer. Thomasina was named after her father, Thomas. She is also married to Cautious Bob. She is soft-spoken but I suspect she has a lot of inner strength. Carol and Mary are educators from San Diego. I'm not exactly sure what Carol means by that, but I figure they're either school teachers or administrators. But definitely not nuns.

And then there are Stan and Cathy from North Carolina, who we met two years ago on a tour in Turkey. Stan is a doctor in a women's prison and for that reason alone I hope to never be one of his patients. Cathy is retired, recently took up golf, and has since hit three holes in one. They suggested out of the blue that we join them on this trip, so here we all are.