The slow boat to China

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After months of planning and dreaming about this day, it’s finally arrived and we almost wish it hadn’t as we are so nervous and unsure of what to expect… Still, it’s about time we took ourselves out of our comfort zones and try something new. Don’t think you could get much further outside the comfort zone than this! We use the afternoon to finish packing and making sure we have everything and then make our way over to the airport for our evening flight.


By the time we get to the airport I am chalk white and almost lock myself into the car so I don’t have to go- all these thoughts about what we’re actually doing are swimming through my mind. Will the kids like us? Will they understand us? Will we like the job? Will we be good at the job! Before I can protest any further, Greg has dragged our cases out of the car and opened the car door for me to get out. We meet up with Greg’s family and my mum and dad and check in at the emirates desk. Our little 2 year old cousin Stephanie is aware something is going on, but can’t quite work out what it is. I think she has a fair idea though as she keeps coming over to hold my hand and wants hugs. As we put our suitcases onto the carousel, I see that the weight registers 53kg! My suitcase is huge and all of a sudden I’m panicking that I’ve grossly miscalculated how much I have in my case and I’ll need to pay ridiculous extra luggage charges as a result. But thankfully Greg points out that is the weight of our two cases combined, phew! So, suitcases checked in and tickets collected, all that’s left is to say goodbye…. This is the part we were dreading, as usually we’re just popping over the border for a few months and then back, but this time we’re going half way round the world for an entire year… There’s tears all round as we head through security with a final look back at everyone, including Stephanie who is upset because everyone else is upset, and Alex the dog who is looking at us confused like ‘where are you going? Why isn’t George following you like he usually does?’ It’s pretty heartbreaking to say the least, and we both shed a few tears as we go through security.


The first leg of the flight to Dubai is fine- no turbulence, good in-flight entertainment and tasty meals as usual. The only thing we can complain about is the baby 2 rows behind that keeps gurning every hour and the tetchy Australian flight attendant who seems so put out that we ask for more than one alcoholic drink. Eh hello! We’re Scottish and it’s free so of course we’re going to make the most of it! Before we know it we’ve landed in Dubai airport. Being the creatures of habit that we are, we head to the same cafeteria that we went to the last time we were here. Whilst eating our dinner/breakfast/lunch, I notice a guy sitting at the table behind us who looks distinctly like Nelson Mandela. Or perhaps I’m just absolutely tripping. Our body clock is all over the place now- technically its 5.30am in Britain, but in Dubai its 8.30am, and we’re chronically tired after not getting any sleep on the airplane.


We head to the next departure gate and at first we’re not sure it’s the right flight, as there is an eclectic mix of people in the waiting lounge. Most of the people look Nigerian or something and they are wearing traditional dress. It’s like a scene from the movie ‘coming to america’ and greg starts singing ‘she’s your queen’ under his breath. There’s probably less than half who are chinese, and then of course there are us- pretty much the only two white people on the plane. This time the flight isn’t that fun- for a start neither of our tv screens are working, and we are really tired but can’t sleep. Half way through, we look out the window to see a lightning storm – it lights up the clouds in the sky and is really mesmorising and beautiful- lets hope it doesn’t get too close though as although I’m sure it would be ok, I don’t really want to see how a plane reacts when struck by lightning!

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Comments

[Cheryl]

Great to hear from you!
Hey guys, Glad you arrived safely. Your flat looks nice! Best of luck with getting settled and starting work, looking forward to hearing more soon. Love and hugs, Cyril Xx