Getting to China

The trip from the mountains of North Carolina to the city of Kunming was by turns exciting, difficult, tiring, and trying. Annalisa's parents drove us to Charlotte, even uphill on a sheet of ice with the aid of some kitty liter. They are from Wisconsin, so the weather and the road conditions were no big things for them. Annalisa and I caught the shuttle from the hotel to the Charlotte airport before dawn. Our itinerary included a layover of less then two hours in Chicago before flying to Seoul, South Korea and then Kunming, China. In Charlotte as we were boarding there was an additional security check. Some passengers were pulled out of line for a wanding and pat down. The guy doing this was big and burly. He poked one guy in the back as he was patting him down, which caused the passenger to let out a "ha" sound. "You think that's funny?" demanded the security guy. The passenger, looking like he didn't know what to say, replied "I guess so." "Well I don't!" the security guy shot back. Once we boarded the airplane the pilot announced that a sink was leaking and had to be repaired before we could take off. Visions of a missed flight in Chicago danced in my head, and all I could think about was spending 24 hours in O'Hare International Airport while waiting for the next flight to Korea. After a while, the pilot announced that the airline did not employ their own maintenance personnel, and that they were waiting on contract help, with no ETA. Eventually, we took off. Upon landing at O'Hare we got our carry on luggage from the over head bins and waited. And waited. The pilot had another announcement for us: the airport knew we were coming, but nobody was there to swing the walkway from the terminal to the airplane into place. We waited some more. A mad dash ensued to get to the Korean Air gate, which we reached after they were lining up to board. Our flight took us north, over Siberia. It was like looking at another world, with white, crinkly mountains dividing the white plains. Korean Air seems to me close to what I imagine flying to have been in the 1950's and 60's. The flight attendants wore stylish uniforms of teal and cream with slim, stiff bows in their hair and applied their makeup pancake style. Service was very good, and the wine flowed, even in economy class. I had only one glass with the first meal, but I could easily have gotten befuddled if I had taken full advantage of all the refills offered. The first meal served to us, Bibimbap, was pretty good. It is a Korean dish of various ingredients mixed with rice, oil, and a pepper spice paste. The food was downhill from there, though. We tried to catch some sleep on the 14 hour flight, but naps were short and fitful. By this time I was feeling about as thin as a thrice-used teabag. When we reached Korea Annalisa hit the wall. We bought a fruit drink before boarding the plane to Kunming. That flight had us seated with two empty seats between us, so Annalisa took advantage of this arrangement and curled up for most of the five hour trip. The airport in Korea had been immaculate. The one in Kunming was anything but. My first taste of China was in the restroom as I walked into a cloud of cigarette smoke. Bad omen. Next entry: Matthew tries to make a costly mistake.