Day 1: We are in Shanghai Safe and Sound

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At around 4:30 pm our flight touched down at Shanghai Pudong Airport. Even though the flight was very smooth and eventless, some passengers started clapping with joy. We went through immigration very quickly as a group. I had a hard time deciding if we should go through windows for foreigners or Chinese citizens. I went to ask a staff member and told him I want to keep the group together. We were sent to windows for Chinese citizens where there were only a few people. I collected passports immediately after everyone went through. At the baggage pick up area we waited for some time and finally got all our suitcases.

When we passed the exit, a Qiaoban representative was already waiting for us. The traffic was light from the airport to our hotel since it was the weekend. We arrived at our hotel before 6:00 pm. What a relief! We finally arrived and everything was just fine!

We had hardly unloaded our luggage when a student with a worried look came up and told me she lost her backpack with her laptop and other belongings in side. Turns out she forgot it in the baggage area after she got her suitcase. When Mr. Sun, the Qiaoban representative, and the hotel manager heard this, they immediately started a series of phone calls to contact the airport and tried to find out if they found the bag there. Half an hour later, a message came back: security in the baggage area found it, but we have to go there to pick it up! That means at least 3 our travel by car back and forth. and we don't have extra people to go there! (to be continued…)

The following is the first entry by Katie and Lucy:

July 8, 2011 - Our Journey Begins...
Ni Hao! Ready or not, here we come China! Our journey began with us meeting our group in yellow shirts at the airport in one area Friday July 8th @ 10 am. We were so nervous but also excited. We came with our family and friends so we could say goodbye to them as well. Since we already met our roommates a few weeks before, it was nice that we already had a friend to talk to. We checked in our luggage and received our boarding passes. Before we knew it came the hardest part…leaving and saying goodbye. No one likes walking away from their parents. It was tough. Just before entering security, we handed in our boarding passes and then waited in line for our carry-on baggage to get checked. All of us waved to our parents one last time. Most of us knew it was time to look forward not behind and so we did. As we waited for our group to get together again, we got to know each other and chatted with our roommates. Some students knew other students on the trip from other camps or programs, so that made it easier. Some of us were shy but still made some friends. We headed to our gate only to have to wait for 3 hours! Our flight was delayed an extra hour. The Waiting Station...the “best” part. Yes and no depending on how you look at it. Either you were going to sit and do nothing for 3 hours or make the most of it. To some it was boring, but to most of us, it wasn’t. By that time, most of us knew each other. Some of us played on our iPods, some on our laptops and some of us just sat down and talked. At the “Waiting” station, no one was alone and had a friend to be with. 3 hours later, our plane finally arrived! You could see all the smiling faces. When we boarded the plane, some of us sat together and some of us were separated. There were many things to do on this flight like: Sleeping, reading, snacking, watching a movie, going on your laptop or iPod, or simply looking out of the window. Some of us slept for a couple of hours and some of us were up and about. We also got airline food. First we had dinner with a choice of pork or chicken and rice on the side. It was very delicious. Every hour or so the flight attendants would come to usand offer a drink. After that delicious meal most of us relaxed. If you were looking out of the window you could see all the pretty places we were passing by like the Arctic and Beijing! It was very cloudy (not raining yet) so some of us saw the airplane zooming through the clouds. Before we knew it, it was lunch time and Instant noodles it was. Many people liked them...Yummy! They were fried with chopped up veggies. For the ones who didn’t like noodles, they had congee instead.

July 9 -THE NEXT DAY
For those who didn’t sleep, you may have not known that it was the next day. It would be hard to tell since it was bright out the whole time! The day started with breakfast which most of us missed out since by that time, many of us were sleeping or too tired. Breakfast was eggs and potatoes - not a highlight to many. We knew we were close to Shanghai but not there yet. Most of us slept but for the ones who didn’t sleep, they just did their own thing. When we arrived in Shanghai we all got up at once and gathered our things. The airport is very modern & BIG. We went to grab our luggage and then go through customs. By that time, all of us were tired and grouchy. Some of the tour guides led us to our bus. The bus was huge with different colour seats which was very COOL! As we were going to our hotel, some of us were searching up songs and some sat by the window looking outside. Shanghai is very busy compared to Toronto. There were many people riding bikes and there were many tall buildings. Once we arrived at the hotel, we had a little snack. More people arrived which meant more people to meet. Wenjie gave us 1 room key for 2 people which meant that 1 person was in charge. For the rest of the night, we were in our rooms with our roommates drinking free Pepsi and having fun. We're guessing most of us stayed up late 😊

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