We're in Beijing

We woke up at 2:00am Wed. morning to head for our 6:00am flight out of Akron/Canton. When we checked in, it looked like our Chicago flight was delayed. The ticket agent assured us that it was probably just a typo and we should check when we get to Chicago. Sure enough, when we arrived in Chicago our flight was delayed until 6:45pm Ohio time. That meant nearly 11hrs. of waiting 'til we could begin the final 12 hour leg of our journey. As discouraging as that was, we just waited it out and got to eat breakfast, lunch, and supper on United tab.

As it turns out, there were 3 other families on our same flight and we didn't even know it. We spent some time getting to know them and exploring Chicago O'Hare.
It was a huge double decker airplane. Our upgraded section of seats actually had very few people in it, so we were able to spread out. Dad had 3 seats to himself and Greg and I shared 4 middle seats. It was awesome! I actually slept horizontally on our flight. What a blessing! I don't think we would have had this opportunity, had it not been for the delay. To top it off, it looks like we'll be getting some kick-backs from United to make sure that we are still their happy customers. The flight was smooth and uneventful.

The Beijing airport was absolutely stunning! We arrived in a new terminal that's only been open for 1 month. It is absolutely massive. All of our luggage came through tonight and we got through customs easily.

We were so happy to see our CCAI rep, Helen. She loaded us all up on a bus and gave us a quick overview of Beijing during the 30 minute ride to the hotel. It was a rainy 60 degrees when we arrived at 8:30pm China time.

We're staying at the Holiday Inn Downtown, Beijing. The rooms are really nice and newly revonated. The rest of the night was spent trying to figure out how the light switches work, how to use the Internet, how to use Skype to talk to folks at home through the computer, etc.

Tomorrow, we begin bright and early at 8:00am to go sight-seeing. We'll see Tianamin Square, the Forbidden City, tour a silk factory, and see an acrobatic show. Helen is going to introduce us to Peking Duck for supper. Greg is already in bed, so I better try to get some sleep and shake the 12 hours of jet lag. We'll post some pictures from around Beijing tomorrow.

Please say a prayer for Greg's mom. She went to the hospital last night with a TIA. They're running some tests, so hopefully we'll know more tomorrow. She seems to be doing well, but now they're looking for the cause.