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May 11, 2008
Flight 'Round the World
Hello from Beijing! The flight to Beijing from China was not so bad, it went by pretty quick because of some Ambien. When me and my two friends got to our seats, we had a baby sitting in front of us and thought "Oh no...!". She was a cute little Chinese baby, who was very calm the whole flight and never made a peep. There were a bunch of babies on the plane and we had the best.
The biggest dissapointment of the trip was a tie between the surprise lack of power outlooks on the plane and our awful flight attendant. For the last three months I was under the assumption we were on a 777-200V2, which has AC power plugs in each set of 3 seats. We were on a 777-200V1, which only has the DC-Empower ports on rows 26 and forward. No go on power. As for our flight attendant, he was this large African American guy with dreadlocks, who was just mean throughout the trip. When dinner came around, I asked for the Cod...and he responds with nothing.....and I ask again....and then he goes "Beef 'o Fish?". Really? Can't respond to Cod?
Our personal TV's were not the cool ones found on Air France for example, which let you pick what movies you want to watch. It just had a set of 9 repeating channels. I watched the Bucket List though, which was a great (but sad movie). After that I popped my pill and went to bed for the next five hours and woke up with 5 hours left. Went by pretty slow, but nowhere near as painful as my flight to Australia in 10th grade.
When we got through customs and on to the bus a few hours later, the drive to the hotel was far from what I expected. First, the highways and buildings are all very modern. Tons and tons of high-rise living complexes, and a lot of stuff for the Olympics. Passed by Olympic Village and their amazing main stadium - fantastic architecture. Meanwhile, when we got to the hotel, I feel like we're in a sub-city of Beijing. There is very little congestion, not many people, not a lot of noises and tall buildings...and no risk of getting hit by traffic as there is a bridge to cross the street. I am sure I will see the real Beijing soon.
Posted by brianhe at May 11, 2008 05:12 PM