day 1.

after the past whatever number of crazy days of work, exam prep and meeting up with everyone I possibly could pre-departure...
I'm finally HERE.

... the last night with dear high school friends was simply unbelievable. missed everyone SO much and it was so amazing just to see everyone together again. <3. thank u all so much for making the effort and coming out. =). Too bad it was too cloudy for the sunrise, but it meant the world nonetheless.

the goodbyes at the airport were surprisingly calm and uplifting with parents, and none of the emotional goodbyes that I had been avoiding for so long. Maybe my parents are starting to get used to this =). Walking through the long corridors at the airport on my own, everything seemed so surreal. only 24 hours ago I was still working. o.O.

As I sat sipping my last Tim Hortons, all around me I begin hearing perfect Beijing mandarin being spoken around me, and I was just there, taking it all in. The excitement and the lack of a first class seat made my 13 hour flight impossible to sleep in -_-'. instead, read Sam Walton's autobiography and watched 3 movies and felt like I was more caught up with civilization. lol. I really should go see the Dark Knight... Additionally, the 2 notebooks in which everyone left their messages entertained me for a good hour and bit - good job you guysss! =D. I'm so glad I made you guys all write, reading through is just.... absolutely overwhelmingly amazing. THANK YOU. Finally, as we were landing, the flight attendant started attempting to speak mandarin over the speakers, congratulating Beijing's Olympics and the Chinese team's medal count so far, and the entire plane started clapping - pretty cool. There was a family of 5 sitting near me, 2 girls and a lil boy with their parents. As we landed, the two girls clasped their hands together in excitement, and looking out the window, "BEIJING! We're back!" and they hugged. and that was exactly it - we're back. I'm home.

I CAN"T believe my 2 elementary school friends attempted picking me up at the airport and I didn't see them. SOOOOOOOOo disappointed. GOSH. keep wishing I could relive it and come out the other gate and see them properly. but yes, still super touched that they were there.

----- Interesting Sightings -------

1. Brazilian guy pulls a Brazilian flag out of his backpack at the airport and wears it as we board the plane, and every other Brazilian on the plane waves him down and befriends him almost immediately.

2. Caucasian-Catholic-rosary-wearing lady proudly sports a "Serving the people" bag of the Chinese Cultural Revolution period.

3. ... I swear there was more. drawing a blank at the moment. =T


Anyhow...
The first night is probably always the most difficult, with awkwardnesses of re-meeting family that I haven't seen in years and not knowing the right things to say or do in these situations. =T.. As well as living in different conditions and places, etc. But I keep reminding myself that ... the unfamiliar doesn't mean the unlikable. I just need a little time to get reacquainted with this city and fall back in love all over again. So I'm about to embark on my first day of wandering around in the streets and getting re-familiarized with everything. However, my body... as of this morning... appears to be severely allergic to Chinese air... o.O. Or I may have caught a cold last night because it was so chilly here. -_-".

Today is bright and sunny and skies are BLUE, and only about 22 degrees this beautiful morning in Beijing. This is Tina Chen reporting live from Beijing =).