Advertisement
Published: December 28th 2008
Edit Blog Post
Hey Guys,
Since the people at the Peoples Republic of China has deemed fit that wordpress be blocked. I'm now going to post my stuff here:
Here is the blow by blow of my first day in China:
27th of December 2007
6:30am: - Wake up call, didn’t sleep too well, too anxious and way too muggy. That’s fine I’ll sleep on the Plane (wishful thinking). It’s finally dawned on my - I’m off to China and Asia for close to two months. It’s been 6 years since I last traveled overseas and the first time I’ll be travelling as a photographer. It’s exciting and a little nerve wracking. But in a couple of hours we’ll be on the plane and all will be well.
7:15am: - We arrive at the airport for the nightmare that is airport check in. With three little kids in tow as well as older kids it’s getting a little stressful. The queuing begins. The counter opens up in about a ½ hour. Grandpa is barking orders at everyone to get ready - not an unexpected reaction. The Kids for the most part are doing okay. Since mum and I have
a separate ticket, check in is much easier, the check in clerk was a very courteous and helpful and even let me though with my heavy bag (score one for checking staff).
Mum and I get through pretty quickly and wait on the rest of the family to catch up - they’re a lot of them, 13 people including us, so it takes a while.
8:00am: - Check in done and off to the customs area. Again very courteous and a very smooth interview and we’re through - to another security checkpoint, the checkpoint is pretty shabby, looks like its going through renovation - there’s scaffolding everywhere and it’s a hive of activity, but no dramas. Through the checkpoint is the duty free shops - ahh…I love the smell of commerce in the morning - well actually I don’t but that’s fine since I won’t be buying anything duty free.
10:00am: - Waiting at the gates - tedious - especially since the flight has been delayed (I knew our string of good fortune couldn’t have lasted that long). Also Chinese people tend to panic when it comes to getting on first and taking whatever overhead storage space
there is (we carry a lot of shit) and to add insult people don’t really care if you have young kids in tow and will try and push in line. But we preserver and eventually get on the plane - an aging airbus A330.
10:40am: - We’re on the plane and getting ready for take off - I gather the flight will be mostly uneventful, but will keep you guys updated as I go along.
12:00pm: - Lunch Time! “Chicken or Beef”, both equally as bad as the other. Didn’t expect anything less really. I wish I took a picture, but probably better you didn’t see it
1:00pm to 5:00pm: - This plane trip is becoming awfully tedious, the kids are getting rattled and seem to be chucking tantrums every fifteen minutes, Trying to concentrate on my Book (1421: The Year China Discovered The World) but no real success. But the bright side is that dinner has arrived and it looks a hell of a lot more edible then lunch. At least there is only about 2 hours left on this flight and the kids seem to be calming down…
8:30pm: - We’ve finally landed -
its over! Guangzhou airport is HUGE; it really does make you feel tiny. By this time, everyone is tired and a little stressed out from the journey and nerves are starting to fray - after a twenty-minute wait for a bus to the hotel (Guangzhou is a overnight stopover) we’ve arrived and checked in. The hotel from the outside doesn’t look like much (although inside its quite good) and the city is just like how I remembered it - Polluted, but I guess that’s the charm of China - I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t expecting it. We’ve ordered room service and are probably hunkering down for the night. I might go out for a walk to see what’s out there. I’m pretty buggered.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.069s; Tpl: 0.013s; cc: 10; qc: 49; dbt: 0.0354s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
Paulie
non-member comment
Well done
Lol gratz man u made it safe lol no final destination shit going on over there lol .... are u sure it was chicken or beef ... u know cause how i recon maccas substitutes chicken with fish lol ... it could of been pigeon though hmmm ... lol