Off on another adventure

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Friday morning just before 1am I flew out on another adventure in my teaching life.



Initially I flew to Southbank TAFE Thursday morning to pick up my laptop, chat with Bev who has just come back and get what I need to teach in Jinan for the next 9 weeks.

My expectations were that I would be in a small city with no westerners but able to cope based on my previous 12 weeks that I had spent in Shanghai in 2008/2009.



I only received my Cathy Pacific boarding pass at Brisbane airport, and was told to go to the transfer desk in Hongkong to collect my next one.

CP also booked my luggage all the way to Jinan but asked me to make it less than 23kgs, so I loaded the pack back up the hilt with 8kgs of crap.



I managed to get a couple of hours snooze at the airport prior to departure, great movie on the plane, red wine, meal and more sleep. Window seat allowed me to see the sunrise, nice breakfast and hello HongKong.



Transfer desk here I come. But no I was told, you must have a forward booking pass.

Go down there and see the airline desk to get one.

Multiple corridors, travelators, escalators, I finally found some desks but not of my airline.



KLM almost felt like home so I asked the guy behind the counter where to find the China East airline counter. Upstairs he pointed and said, so off I went to be turned back again due to the lack of a forward boarding pass!

Think he had his up and down mixed up as the next helpful person directed and me lead the way downstairs via huge escalators.

Did I mention that my packback weighed 8kgs, soooo heavy!



Follow the signs to E1 I was told, so I did. Boarded a train, more corridors, follow and ask and finally the China East airline desk.



After I got my hard won pass I sat and gathered my wits and composure. Free wifi, English TV and my stashed Courier Mail helped to unruffled the feathers a little.



Back I ploughed into immigration, more corridors, I find a food court and Maccas and COFFEE!!!!! And did I say more wifi?



Back down escalators again, seriously thinking of ditching the books in my pack, onto a bus, more corridors and hello gate 507. And Starbucks and free internet terminals.

Jinan here I come.

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