We got up at 4:00 am, left the house at 4:45 am, and arrived at the LR airport at 5:15 am. We went to do the self check-in with Delta but a screen flashed up that we had to proceed to the counter. Just the way we wanted to start out the trip! But it turned out to be a blessing. The agent worked his magic, confirmed that we were on our flights, and even switched our seats so we'd have a row to ourselves on the 15 hour flight. The LR airport is under construction so the security checkpoints were backed up. I was worried that we'd miss our flight. We waited and waited and waited in line. Finally it was our turn! I walked through the metal detector and heard a 'beep'. I was randomly selected for a baggage search. The TSA agent grabbed my bags and walked me over to the screening area. While searching my bags, he asked where I was going. I said Hong Kong. Why? My husband and I are adopting our daughter from China. He and I then proceeded to have a conversation about Chinese politics and adoption. He ended the baggage search with a congratulations and we were on our way to the gate. By this time, it was 5:50 am and our plane was scheduled to depart at 6:05 am. We walked to the gate and boarding had not even begun! Thank God! We rushed to the closest cafe, grabbed a bagel, and hurried back to the gate. Everyone was boarding. We took our place at the end of the line. Yielding? Yielding family? Why is someone calling our name, I wondered. It was the counter agent scanning everyone's ticket. We're the Yieldings, I say. I need y'all to step over to the counter please. We did. How many are in your party? 2. No baby? No baby. I need to change your tickets because we have it in our computer system that you have a baby. So we waited while he reprinted our tickets. Are y'all adopting? Yes, we are. Congratulations! Thank you. We finally were able to board the plane.
We arrived in Detroit about 2 hours later. We had a 6 hour layover. We spent the time sleeping, reading, eating lunch, and playing on the computer. The time went pretty quickly. Eventually, we boarded our flight to Hong Kong. We were at the back of the plane and this section was about 25% empty. It was wonderful! Ben and I had a seat between us so we could really stretch out. The in-flight entertainment systems all worked. We had many selections of tv shows, games, and movies. I started the flight by reading and Ben watched a movie. Eventually our first meal came. It was your standard airplane cuisine. I took 2 sleeping pills, drank a glass of wine, and nodded off. I slept on and off the entire fight as well as Ben. I'd sleep for 1-2 hours, wake up, for 1-2 hours, and repeat. We were served 3 meals and I drank wine with each meal. It kept me drowsy, which was the goal. Interestingly, Ben never got up the entire 15 hours. He just stayed in his seat sleeping or watching a movie. I got up about 3 times to use the restroom. I had low expectations going into the flight. It turned out to be the best overseas flight that I've ever taken!
We arrived in Hong Kong at 7:15 pm. They are 13 hours ahead of us. Immigration was fairly painless. We had to wait in a long line but that's to be expected. All 4 pieces of luggage made it and were waiting on the carousel for us. After some initial confusion, we found our hotel's shuttle desk and were whisked away in a wonderfully air conditioned bus to our hotel - the Royal Pacific Hotel and Towers in Kowloon, Hong Kong. Check-in was a breeze since we were the only people arriving. I will say that while everyone speaks English, it's still difficult to understand them. They speak English with a Chinese accent. I only understand about 50-70% of what is said to me. Ben just looks at me when others are speaking.
We finally got to our room. I knew that our room was going to be small but I didn't expect it to be tiny. There's enough room for 2 twin beds and a desk. We can't even open our luggage on the floor because of the lack of space! They're piled up on top of each other in the closet. I'll take a photo of the tiny room tomorrow. Right now, I'm too exhausted and in need of a shower. Luckily, the internet works and a VPN is not required here in Hong Kong. That will change when we get to Guangzhou on Saturday.
Good night everyone! (Or I should say Good morning as you're getting up while we're going to bed)....
We arrived in Detroit about 2 hours later. We had a 6 hour layover. We spent the time sleeping, reading, eating lunch, and playing on the computer. The time went pretty quickly. Eventually, we boarded our flight to Hong Kong. We were at the back of the plane and this section was about 25% empty. It was wonderful! Ben and I had a seat between us so we could really stretch out. The in-flight entertainment systems all worked. We had many selections of tv shows, games, and movies. I started the flight by reading and Ben watched a movie. Eventually our first meal came. It was your standard airplane cuisine. I took 2 sleeping pills, drank a glass of wine, and nodded off. I slept on and off the entire fight as well as Ben. I'd sleep for 1-2 hours, wake up, for 1-2 hours, and repeat. We were served 3 meals and I drank wine with each meal. It kept me drowsy, which was the goal. Interestingly, Ben never got up the entire 15 hours. He just stayed in his seat sleeping or watching a movie. I got up about 3 times to use the restroom. I had low expectations going into the flight. It turned out to be the best overseas flight that I've ever taken!
We arrived in Hong Kong at 7:15 pm. They are 13 hours ahead of us. Immigration was fairly painless. We had to wait in a long line but that's to be expected. All 4 pieces of luggage made it and were waiting on the carousel for us. After some initial confusion, we found our hotel's shuttle desk and were whisked away in a wonderfully air conditioned bus to our hotel - the Royal Pacific Hotel and Towers in Kowloon, Hong Kong. Check-in was a breeze since we were the only people arriving. I will say that while everyone speaks English, it's still difficult to understand them. They speak English with a Chinese accent. I only understand about 50-70% of what is said to me. Ben just looks at me when others are speaking.
We finally got to our room. I knew that our room was going to be small but I didn't expect it to be tiny. There's enough room for 2 twin beds and a desk. We can't even open our luggage on the floor because of the lack of space! They're piled up on top of each other in the closet. I'll take a photo of the tiny room tomorrow. Right now, I'm too exhausted and in need of a shower. Luckily, the internet works and a VPN is not required here in Hong Kong. That will change when we get to Guangzhou on Saturday.
Good night everyone! (Or I should say Good morning as you're getting up while we're going to bed)....
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