The Beijing airport was really nice, clean and... deserted. It was weird seeing a major international airport so empty. I guess not many people traveling at 3pm on a Wednesday? The Starbucks, McDonalds and KFC there were good little reminders of home. I got some nice pictures but they are on my phone... can't email pics to myself yet.
I was worried about the pollution and how it would affect us, but it wasn't too horrible that day. It did feel (and still kind of does) like someone handed me a bag of cigarette smoke and chalk dust and told me to breathe it in, but all in all, not as bad as I was expecting.
Customs was a breeze, thanks to the special line that Nathan gets to go through.
Then we got all 12 pieces of our checked luggage (including car seats) and caused quite a spectacle when we went out through to the main area. I swear cameras were flashing left and right. Not everyday you see a white guy trying to manage 12 pieces of luggage walking with a Korean lady with a baby strapped on, pushing a stroller with a toddler in it, while holding hands with a 6 year old, I guess. (Ning- we tried to find the people to help us with our bags but no help was to be found! Maybe because the airport was so empty when we arrived?) We left most of our bags at the baggage lockers and headed off to our hotel.
The Hilton Beijing Capital Airport Hotel was luxurious and the service was superb. We splurged and got the Kind Duplex Suite. It is spread over 2 floors (I think it was bigger than our apartment when we lived in Arlington) with 2 bedrooms, 2.5 baths and a living area. I really wish I could have taken pictures of the place before we trashed it. You can go and check out the website. But the idea was so that we could rest. And how could anyone rest with 5 people crammed in a little hotel room? And rest we did, to the best of our ability. We landed in Beijing at 3pm. (3am Eastern time) We were able to stay awake until 8pm that night and we all crashed at the same time. But at 10pm K woke up and was ready to go. J woke up at 11pm and NJ woke up at 1am. Party party. From that point, everyone has been staggering their sleep times. We just went with the flow. Again, Nathan and I didn't sleep well.
The next day we had an amazing breakfast buffet and packed up to leave for Shenyang. Nathan wasn't going to try and juggle all the bags on his own this time so he asked the concierge on how to best find help at the airport. But the concierge assigned us one of their staff to accompany us to the airport and help us through the whole process! Talk about above and beyond service.
I didn't realize this, but our flight to Shenyang required us to take a bus that shuttled us right to the airplane. Literally, in front of it. Then we climbed up some stairs directly into the airplane. The problem was that we had our coats in our checked bags. We were FREEZING and people were giving us looks of both pity and disgust, as Chinese people apparently believe that dressing too cold (especially kids) is one of the worst things you could ever do.
The 1.5 hour flight to Shenyang was way harder than the 13.5 hour flight to Beijing because the kids were SO jetlagged. Tired, cranky, all three of them. Fortunately, everyone passed out about 20 minutes into the flight.
We arrived in Shenyang on schedule and met our sponsors (fellow foreign service family) the Allens, who took us home. Jen has been communicating with me for months, answering all my questions. She stocked our fridge ahead of time and provided a meal for us the first night. In short, she has been so amazingly helpful and we feel well cared for.
Friday, March 29, 2013
Packout!
(I'm retroblogging. This should have been written like a week ago.)
We survived our very first packout. The thought of doing this every 2-3 years makes me have a slight panic attack, but I will relish in the fact that is it DONE (for now). No, really, it wasn't that bad.
Basically, we are not allowed to pack anything. I guess it's for insurance purposes, in case something breaks or whatnot. But we do have to decide where every single piece of our belongings will go: UAB, HHE, long term storage, consumables, suitcases. The UAB is the air shipment (up to 800lbs), which arrives about 2 weeks after we get to China. The HHE is the boat shipment, which arrives anywhere between 2-6 months afterwards. Long term storage is for the items we won't be bringing with us to China, mostly furniture. (Did I mention that our house in China will be furnished?) We are entitled to 2500lbs of consumables to be shipped for free (hygiene, food, etc) for our particular post. I will have to dedicate a blog post just for that. And suitcases- the items we will be taking with us on the plane. We are entitled to 10 checked suitcases plus carry-ons.
So how does one go about putting all her items into 4 piles? The thought of tackling this task overwhelmed me at first, but we got some good advice from friends who went through this before.
1. Pack your suitcases ahead of time (or at least gather what you want to take with you on the plane) and store them in the car, a friend's house or lock them up in the bathroom. We've heard horror stories of people who accidentally had their passports packed.
2. Make 2 piles for UAB- one for the items that you really really really need soon, and one that you'd like to include if there is room. Some examples of items that went in my really really really need pile were toys, crockpot, kitchen knives, good pots and pans, toolkit, sheets, extra clothes. It ended up being mostly kitchen and baby stuff. We will have a "welcome kit" with the basics- sheets, towels, kitchen items, etc. but there is just something about using your own knives and sleeping in your own sheets. And I hear that the quality of items in the welcome kit isn't all that great. And toys, of course. I estimated 800lbs of stuff almost perfectly- we got everything from both piles in!
3. Clean up. Don't be lazy and not take out the trash. Because it has been and can be packed. Our movers weren't as snarky. I did have a pile of trash but I marked it off well and they were totally cool with it. Our movers were actually really really nice and professional.
4. Keep your piles separate if you can, just to make things smooth and easy for the movers. So we took the time and effort to put all our UAB in the dining room. Most of our HHE were brought down to the living room. Our luggage was locked up in bathrooms. Our consumables were in the basement. We put the furniture going to long term storage up against the wall.
I am so thankful that everything went smoothly. We'll see if all our stuff arrives when and where it's supposed to. I'm really hoping to not see our couch. But I really really hope I can be reunited with my kitchen stuff.
We survived our very first packout. The thought of doing this every 2-3 years makes me have a slight panic attack, but I will relish in the fact that is it DONE (for now). No, really, it wasn't that bad.
Basically, we are not allowed to pack anything. I guess it's for insurance purposes, in case something breaks or whatnot. But we do have to decide where every single piece of our belongings will go: UAB, HHE, long term storage, consumables, suitcases. The UAB is the air shipment (up to 800lbs), which arrives about 2 weeks after we get to China. The HHE is the boat shipment, which arrives anywhere between 2-6 months afterwards. Long term storage is for the items we won't be bringing with us to China, mostly furniture. (Did I mention that our house in China will be furnished?) We are entitled to 2500lbs of consumables to be shipped for free (hygiene, food, etc) for our particular post. I will have to dedicate a blog post just for that. And suitcases- the items we will be taking with us on the plane. We are entitled to 10 checked suitcases plus carry-ons.
So how does one go about putting all her items into 4 piles? The thought of tackling this task overwhelmed me at first, but we got some good advice from friends who went through this before.
1. Pack your suitcases ahead of time (or at least gather what you want to take with you on the plane) and store them in the car, a friend's house or lock them up in the bathroom. We've heard horror stories of people who accidentally had their passports packed.
2. Make 2 piles for UAB- one for the items that you really really really need soon, and one that you'd like to include if there is room. Some examples of items that went in my really really really need pile were toys, crockpot, kitchen knives, good pots and pans, toolkit, sheets, extra clothes. It ended up being mostly kitchen and baby stuff. We will have a "welcome kit" with the basics- sheets, towels, kitchen items, etc. but there is just something about using your own knives and sleeping in your own sheets. And I hear that the quality of items in the welcome kit isn't all that great. And toys, of course. I estimated 800lbs of stuff almost perfectly- we got everything from both piles in!
3. Clean up. Don't be lazy and not take out the trash. Because it has been and can be packed. Our movers weren't as snarky. I did have a pile of trash but I marked it off well and they were totally cool with it. Our movers were actually really really nice and professional.
4. Keep your piles separate if you can, just to make things smooth and easy for the movers. So we took the time and effort to put all our UAB in the dining room. Most of our HHE were brought down to the living room. Our luggage was locked up in bathrooms. Our consumables were in the basement. We put the furniture going to long term storage up against the wall.
I am so thankful that everything went smoothly. We'll see if all our stuff arrives when and where it's supposed to. I'm really hoping to not see our couch. But I really really hope I can be reunited with my kitchen stuff.
The flight
I can't believe I'm writing this from Shenyang. It has been a busy few weeks getting ready for the big move. I really wish I could have spent a little time each day to blog about the experience, but time just got away from me. I might have to backtrack and blog about the things past later. But for today, it's all about the flight.
Yes, the 14 hour flight from Dulles to Beijing. I have been both dreading and looking forward to it, mostly just wanting to get over with it.
The kids did GREAT, all things considered. I almost cried when I found out that we didn't get the bulkhead or a basinette for K to sleep in. I really did cry when I found out that even though we requested kid-friendly meals for the boys, the flight attendant said that they didn't receive the order. (That means the boys wouldn't have eaten a real meal for almost 24 hours...) I know, the boys should just eat what they're given but that's a whole another thing. And in all honesty, what we were given was horrible, even by airplane food standards. We're making them fly nonstop to Beijing. The least we could do is give them some chicken nuggets! But in God's kindness, everything worked out.
First off, the flight was shorter than anticipated. We arrived a whole 30 minutes early.
Second, the kids slept pretty well. NJ and J slept stretched out across 2 seats. K slept mostly in the Ergo carrier. Nathan and I did not sleep a wink, aside from dozing here and there but we were not exactly expecting for this to be a relaxing flight.
Third, I'd say 95% of the plane was filled with Chinese people. And they were too charmed by our kids to be annoyed at them even for handful of times they made a fuss. I guess it's somewhat of a rarity for them to come across hybrid kids, part Asian, part white. They just kept coming around to stare at them. And I guess it's a part of their culture to just stare, and not even bother to be nonchalant about it. I was fascinated by their fascination. It got to be a bit much though, when I was trying to discretely nurse K at one point, I peeked over my shoulder, and hello! There was a Chinese lady practically face to face to me. We're still trying to figure out what the protocol is in responding to all the staring and invasion of personal space. Stare back? Smile? Ignore?
The hardest part of the flight was when NJ started crying and freaking out because he had to poop really bad but wasn't allowed to get up because the plane was landing. As soon as the seatbelt light went off, he booked it to the bathroom and did his business.
I scrubbed his little booty extra good at the hotel that night.
Next up: our first taste of hard core jet lag.
Yes, the 14 hour flight from Dulles to Beijing. I have been both dreading and looking forward to it, mostly just wanting to get over with it.
The kids did GREAT, all things considered. I almost cried when I found out that we didn't get the bulkhead or a basinette for K to sleep in. I really did cry when I found out that even though we requested kid-friendly meals for the boys, the flight attendant said that they didn't receive the order. (That means the boys wouldn't have eaten a real meal for almost 24 hours...) I know, the boys should just eat what they're given but that's a whole another thing. And in all honesty, what we were given was horrible, even by airplane food standards. We're making them fly nonstop to Beijing. The least we could do is give them some chicken nuggets! But in God's kindness, everything worked out.
First off, the flight was shorter than anticipated. We arrived a whole 30 minutes early.
Second, the kids slept pretty well. NJ and J slept stretched out across 2 seats. K slept mostly in the Ergo carrier. Nathan and I did not sleep a wink, aside from dozing here and there but we were not exactly expecting for this to be a relaxing flight.
Third, I'd say 95% of the plane was filled with Chinese people. And they were too charmed by our kids to be annoyed at them even for handful of times they made a fuss. I guess it's somewhat of a rarity for them to come across hybrid kids, part Asian, part white. They just kept coming around to stare at them. And I guess it's a part of their culture to just stare, and not even bother to be nonchalant about it. I was fascinated by their fascination. It got to be a bit much though, when I was trying to discretely nurse K at one point, I peeked over my shoulder, and hello! There was a Chinese lady practically face to face to me. We're still trying to figure out what the protocol is in responding to all the staring and invasion of personal space. Stare back? Smile? Ignore?
The hardest part of the flight was when NJ started crying and freaking out because he had to poop really bad but wasn't allowed to get up because the plane was landing. As soon as the seatbelt light went off, he booked it to the bathroom and did his business.
I scrubbed his little booty extra good at the hotel that night.
Next up: our first taste of hard core jet lag.
Monday, March 11, 2013
She's the one
Well the futuristic looking purple coat didn't end up working out after all. The fit wasn't right for me. And honestly, it was filled with this thin yet supposedly awesome effective synthetic down filling and I just wasn't convinced that it could withstand the Shenyang cold. So I returned it and found this lovely one. I came across it as it was listed as an item "others also looked at." Well played, Amazon.
It got awesome reviews. I was sold when this one reviewer said that she wears this in Mongolia, where it gets down to -25. Perfect. As soon as it arrived, I put it on and I felt like I was putting on a big fat huge cozy soft hug. But without the bulk. As soon as Nathan saw me in it, he said, "You look cute." So functional yet stylish- I love it. Can't wait to wear it next winter!
Speaking of Amazon, I just signed up for Amazon Mom (which is basically Amazon Prime) and I've been enjoying online shopping like never before. It definitely is better than lugging two babies out in the cold to buy everything we need for move across the world. 2 days and bam, it's here. I shipped some diapers and wipes to China for our friends to hold for us and it took exactly 2 weeks. Not too shabby.
Friday, March 8, 2013
It's official!
Nathan passed his language test, so we really ARE going to China in 18 days. I've had a daily to-do list for a while now, and I guess I have to take them seriously. So much to do. I'm just glad that Nathan is done with language classes. They were so intense and time consuming.
18 days... and 5 of those days will be taken up with a trip down to Orlando, FL with my amazginly generous parents. NJ has NO IDEA that his dreams are about to come true. Disneyland, Sea World, Legoland, oh my! Shhhh, it's a surprise. Can't wait to see his reaction when he hears the news.
It takes a mere 2 hours to fly down to FL. It will be a good mini practice for the 14 hour monster flight to Beijing.
18 days... and 5 of those days will be taken up with a trip down to Orlando, FL with my amazginly generous parents. NJ has NO IDEA that his dreams are about to come true. Disneyland, Sea World, Legoland, oh my! Shhhh, it's a surprise. Can't wait to see his reaction when he hears the news.
It takes a mere 2 hours to fly down to FL. It will be a good mini practice for the 14 hour monster flight to Beijing.
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