Airplanes, Banks and Bureaucracy

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Good food and room to sleep

OK, about my flight: We took off about 45 minutes late. I slept for maybe an hour or so. Then, I had linen napkins, a place setting with salad and an appetizer. After that came my beef steak, yummy vegetables, and a potato/stuffing thing. I drank coffee next, and finally, I had apple pie. Flying business is great! I had enough room in my seat so that my legs weren't even squished together! If I put my feet out straight in front of me, they didn't touch the seat ahead of me! My neck pillow worked so well. And, there was room between me and the guy next to me so that I didn't have to hold my arms in front of me. I read two books and listened to some music.

The flight arrived about an hour late. They had a wheelchair for me. There were three Chinese people helping me. One pushed my wheelchair, one carried my carry-on’s on a cart, and the other one spoke the most English of all of them and talked to me as we went. There was lots of discussion that I couldn't make sense of. But, they took my passport and ticket. I was nervous, but I felt that they would know what they were doing. We rode two elevators and one tram. When you're on a tram and in a wheelchair, it is pretty disconcerting. The train starts and stops, and you just hope that you won't roll somewhere. All was fine. Then, we went to customs, and I don't know what they said, but I made it through just fine. They didn't search my bags. After that, we went to baggage claim. They found all of my bags without trouble. I kindly insisted on feeling my bags to make sure they were mine. This involved getting out of the wheelchair without tripping on the footrests. But, all was well. Finally, I heard an American guy say, "Christine Gilson". That was Richard Stites from the U.S. Consulate. He is a very nice man. He was waiting for me. Then, Alison Li from the Centre for Advancement in Special Education at the university of Hong Kong met us also. They directed my wheelchair pusher and bag carrier to a car in the VIP parking lot. The Consulate driver drove me, Richard, and Alison to HKU. In doing so, we drove on Lantau Island, Kowloon, the New Territories, and Hong Kong Island.

Home in Hong Kong

When we arrived at the Graduate House where I am staying, Richard walked with me and Alison to the desk. Alison got me an ID card for the dormitory. Then, we took the lift up to my room. It smells clean except for the toilet. And, that might just be different chemicals that they use in their toilets. I have a pretty big room! And, I have my own bathroom. I have a shower with no water pressure. But, it does have hot and cold water. I have lots of shelves in the bathroom for my supplies. My sink is small but nice. I have two desks in my room with shelves on top and cabinets underneath. I have one long shelf next to my two beds. On the other side of the beds is my double closet. So, the room is quite spacious. I am pleasantly surprised!

So much has happened today. I'll just start at the beginning. Alison met me at 9:40 this morning. She brought Andrew, the Administrative Director of CASE, to my dorm too. He is very kind and friendly, as is Alison. They took me to my office and got my email working right away. Alison copied my documents so that I can apply for a staff card. Andrew bought us Starbucks coffee (in my case hot chocolate) and breakfast sandwiches. They were quite delicious. One was hard boiled eggs cut up with some tomatoes and veggies. The other one was tuna fish with some delicious Chinese-tasting sauce.

Alison and I then went over to the Run Run Shaw Building to apply for an email account for me. It should be active as of tomorrow night.

Money Matters

Our next stop was the bank. What an experience that was. They needed verification of my address in Hong Kong, and a fax was not sufficient. The letter that offered me a room at the Graduate House wasn't sufficient, since there was no signature at the bottom. After I asked them if they could make an exception, they allowed me to open my account as long as I promised that I would bring the actual letter back that day that verified my address. So, Alison did that for me, bless her heart. Then, I asked about applying for a credit card. But, they didn't want to give me one, since I won't be here for a year. So, I decided to get a debit card instead. It is free, and the bank women seemed to think that it would be safer than having a credit card.

They forced me to sign a special form as a "visually handicapped" person that says that it is my responsibility if someone cheats me as a blind person. The bank will not be responsible if someone over charges me or steals my account information. If I didn't sign the letter, they wouldn't open an account for me. I am disappointed about this situation, but I opened the account anyway and signed the letter.

Dr. Lian, my Fulbright sponsor, arrived at this point and hugged me warmly. He is such a nice person. He and Andrew waited until the woman at the bank finished reading me the terms and conditions of my account. She was very kind to do all of that for me. Then, Alison and I were through at the bank.

Dr. Lian took Andrew, Alison, and me out for lunch at the faculty lounge. We had a Chinese meal of beef and vegetables, mushrooms, Peking duck, and rice. Previous to that, we had a soup of pork, octopus, and bone marrow. We had jasmine tea as well.

Then, Dr. Lian took his leave of us, and we picked up my laptop at the office before coming back to my dormitory. Alison has ordered me dinner to be delivered here. My breakfast will come tomorrow from the same people as well.

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