Escape to Guangzhou

I know you are all waiting for more Tales of Evan, but I must write about our experience in the Zhengzhou airport for a bit, if only to debrief and try to short-circuit the onset of a sure case of PTSD. 

Yesterday morning, we awoke eagerly anticipating our departure.  Frankly, we did not enjoy Zhengzhou – it is, I’m sure, the “Detroit” of China – and that might not be fair to Detroit.    We were packed and ready when the guide arrived to take us to the airport.  I was a bit anxious about Evan’s first plane ride, but otherwise felt it would be a good day.   Irony awaited us. LOL.

Our guide brought us into the airport and helped us get our boarding passes.  Then, she brought us to security which is where she had to say goodbye.  We went through the airport security and I looked down at our boarding passes.  It was then that I realized there was no gate listed.  And our guide was gone. And no one spoke much English, at all.  You know those helpful television monitors that list flights and numbers and gates in airports all over the U.S.?  There weren’t any of those, either. 

We attempted to ask someone at a gate to help us, and they directed us to an “Information Counter.”  The airport was terribly crowded and noisy, but as we approached we could hear yelling.  The Information Counter was lined with people 4 and 5 deep, all holding out their boarding passes and yelling at the 3 employees behind the counter.  As they checked each person’s boarding pass, they pointed to a gate number handwritten on a chalkboard propped up on a chair.    We realized we would have to join the mob to get any attention, so Anita waited outside the fray with Evan while I pressed in and waved my boarding pass.  When I finally got someone’s attention, she looked at the flight number and said, “No gate.” 

“What?????”    

“No gate.” 

“What do you mean, ‘No gate?’ 

“No time.”

“No time?????? When does this plane leave?  Is it flying today? Where should I wait?”

“Wait here.” 

OK.  No gate.  No time.  Wait here.   I had a sinking feeling that we were in for a lengthy stay and no one could give me any information.  I approached a young man in a nearby line who looked like he might speak English.  He suggested I go into the First Class Lounge and try to get some information.  He informed me that flights to and from Guangzhou were delayed due to rain and fog.  I went to the First Class Lounge and they called someone on a phone to explain to me in some English that the plane was just leaving Guangzhou now and would be about 2 hours.  I wasn’t thrilled, but at least I had some information. 

Anita, Evan and I decided to try a Chinese restaurant in the terminal.  It was quite crowded, but we found an open table near the doorway.  I pointed to an item on the menu.  The waitress said, “No. We don’t have that.” 

“Ok, how about this?”

“No.”

“What about that?”

This time she pointed to every item in the section and said, “No, no, no.” 

I pointed to some ice cream.

“No.” 

 Now she pointed to the first three menu items.  “Yes, yes and yes.  That’s all.”

I ordered some noodles for Evan. Anita and I had a Coca Cola and ate pumpkin seeds we had bought for the plane.  We were feeling a bit shell shocked and we were not in any hurry to dive into the sea of angry people to get more information about our plane.  We were trying to not eat and drink much because the restrooms we’ve encountered along the way leave you with a constant feeling of revulsion, like you should have packed your hazmat suit. Some things are just unavoidable.  In this case, the restroom came to us right there in the restaurant.  I glanced over to the doorway and saw a very cute Chinese toddler in a squatting position.  She was oblivious to the people dashing up and down the corridor with their rolling bags as she proceeded to take a healthy dump right there in the entryway.  Her dutiful father looked on and waited for her to finish.  She moved over to another spot and released a puddle of pee.  Then, a small sidestep over so she could squeeze out the last lump.  Yep.  I was pretty happy I wasn’t eating.  The dad called the mother over and she took out some tissue and picked up the feces.  The puddle remained.  The family left. 

Anita and I looked at each other and didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.  We waited for Evan to finish his noodles and started to walk back to the No-Information Counter.  Anita this time offered to go to the counter.  I waited with Evan and watched, certain she would return frustrated.  Amazingly, this time the man wrote something down on her ticket.  A gate number!! 

We walked to Gate 12 and waited approximately 45 more minutes.  Finally, it was time to board the plane.  Evan was extremely excited for his first plane ride.  He enjoyed looking out the window and generally did quite well.  In Baggage Claim, he enjoyed riding on the cart with the luggage.  Our new guide Helen met us there and we were pleased to discover she speaks excellent English.

  Guangzhou is very different from Zhengzhou.  There are no scooters whizzing down the sidewalks, the sky is blue, and our hotel has WIFI and an extra clean-water faucet so we don’t have to stock bottled water to brush our teeth.  The city is much cleaner, more people seem to speak some English here, and there are Western-style options in the restrooms.   This is a city on an island that is accustomed to hosting tourists. 

Our day today (Monday) started with a trip to the doctor so that Evan could have his official medical exam.  Evan cooperated nicely with the doctor and didn’t even cry when they administered his TB test.  His vision is exceptionally sharp.  We will have to return in two days to let the doctors read the results of his TB test and then we also have a visit to the consulate to get Evan’s visa. 

We spent the afternoon touring a very nice Folk Art Museum.  I had visited this museum on my trip to adopt Benjamin and I wanted Anita to see it.  There are amazing carvings with details so intricate it is difficult to believe anyone has this much patience.   We saw a variety of artwork including painting, embroidery and sculpture.  The building itself is a work of art with hundreds of figurines carved on the rooftop and ornate details everywhere you look. 

Overall Evan is doing well.  He and Ben are quite opposite, as most siblings are.  Right now, I am listening to him giggling and laughing at cartoons. Sometimes he is very sweet and affectionate and he is giving me more hugs now.   He can also be quite sour at times and gets angry at me whenever I want him to do something he doesn’t want to.  When he is mad, he waves his hands and “yells” at me and pouts a great deal.  My own mother is quite amused at this since I was the tantrum-thrower in our family and I am sure she wished this on me at least once or twice. J 

Tomorrow morning Anita leaves for London, and then the States.   I am so grateful she was able to make this trip with me.  It will be Evan and I from here on out.  Wish me luck!  We will be here until Saturday when we take the loooong flight home.  More updates soon!