IgloONotes

February 12th, 2008
07:09
Location: Beijing Airport, Beijing.
You know what just doesn't make any sense at all? If you're carrying an extra battery for a laptop, you're required to stuff it into a plastic bag. A plastic bag? No bag is gonna do Jack if your battery is going to explode. Unless of course its a fire-retardent, air-tight, kevlar bag. You can tell that law was passed by guys in black suits who think explosions can be stopped by plastic bags.

So here I am, waiting for my 8:55 flight to Tokyo. There's a foreigner in front of me with another Macbook, a business man with a Thinkpad R-series and a girl in a blue shirt that's always looking around.

Oh, I'm also listening to a song from a CD that my Japanese brother bought for me. He was visiting me in Beijing and he was great to have around the family as he had lived with us for one whole year in Windsor.

I'm not going to be back here for at least a year. I'll definitely miss my parents because I won't see them for a long while unless they visit me in Germany. And I can't fail to mention my special girl who I've been missing for the past few weeks. Well, I guess Its not that bad. I do get to travel to Germany for a year and drive on the autobahn, rent a car and race on the Nurburgring, visit Paris, watch a Live F1 race or two...

February 12, 2008,
14:48
Location: Narita Airport, Japan.
So I've just got off the plane and am getting ready to get onto the long haul flight across the Pacific ocean.

I've been trying to hunt for wi-fi internet. wi-fi is abundant but there is no way to access it for free.Ick.

Since I have a two hour stop-over I decided to walk around here a bit more than normal. Its a really nice airport but just a pity that I usually don' t have enough time to stick around. Today, I have lots of time but I feel like I would rather just update this travel blog.

I visited one washroom here which was a real surprise. Its an individual washroom that could easily house a whole family. Inside, there's a toilet, a sink, a daiper changing table, and a sink/basin which I have no idea what it does.

To get in, its not a swinging door that you have to lock. There's a button on the outside which you press. Once you do, the door will slide into the wall, allowing access to your own private area. Once inside, just press the red button on the inside and the door closes informing others of your occupation. Ah! It's 3:25 and my plane is boarding, now!

February 12, 2008
17:00
Location: Somewhere above the Pacific Ocean
I'm right now sitting in seat number 39D. A great seat because I have an empty seat beside me and, its an aisle seat. So basically, I can get out of my own seat whenever I want and never have to get out for anyone. I know some people just adore the window seat for the spectacular views but after flying so much, the convenience of an aisle seat just cannot be beat.

I took a little nap while the plane was taxiing on the runway. It was a nice nap because now I am fully energized to do some work on my laptop. I have to work efficiently because I don't want to run out of battery power when I just come up with something good to write.

They're coming out with snacks now, the usual salted pretzels. The only thing that i am sad about is the removal of peanuts from airplanes. I am guessing its for the better of the passengers, or at least the ones with deathly peanut allergies. I don't think anyone would be happy to have someone die on their plane. The Chinese will think Taboo, the Americans will think lawsuit and everyone else will just be plain freaked out. I know I would be...

17:08
They've just given me a Customs declaration card that I have to fill out every time I take this flight. But before I get into that....

I just got my snacks! I asked For apple juice and well...it tastes like apple juice. I have to mention it because the apple juice on this flight is considerably different in sight from my previous helping. The american brand apple juice is a dark yellow colour and the chinese branded apple juice was a light yellow that looked like pineapple juice. Don't ask me why, and don't even ask me why I am mentioning this...

Now onto the inflight movies. The one movie that I missed from the last flight is actually going to be on this flight! 'The Great Debaters' as I've heard was a really good movie. From what I've read about it, I tend to agree. Time to figure out if they're all true.

On my flight from Tokyo to Beijing I watched Half of 'Just my Luck' and another half of 'The Negotiator'. I watched only half of the Lindsay Lohan chick flick because I had seen the first half on my flight to Beijing. The Negotiator...wow.

Even though I had only seen half, I need to watch the other half. It stars a very famous actor(who I forgot the name) who's job is a police negotiator. In the start of the movie, his partner is murdered and 'Danny' the negotiator is framed for his murder. Its a really cool movie because Danny is the Police Force's best negotiator and knows all the ins and outs of police tactics. After talking hostage takers out of situations all his life, he becomes one himself and fights to win the minds of fellow Police officers who have estranged themselves from Danny.

17:23
Ho boy, I'm now down to my last pretzel and I've finished my juice. My battery is doing okay, with 3 hours left of juice. In no time, I'll be back in Windsor, only to leave for Germany one day later!

18:16
Interesting...the people who sat next to me actually from Hong Kong and they asked my how to spell 'Crystal Bracelet' and 'Necklace'. They also asked what you call a combination of a dress and the top that goes with it...

But guess what? Just after writing this line I figured it out! It's and Ensemble! I hope so at least...haha. So yea, they're both from Hong Kong which almost made me ask if she happened to know my Girlfriend. But no, I decided against it only because tons of people in China ask me if I know so-and-so in Canada. I usually say, "I don't think so...but I'll keep an eye out'

Airline food tastes like cardboard? Um...who ever came up with that notion. I bet it had to be the domestic flights within the US. I however can vouch for the high quality food coming from Northwest Airlines caterer in Japan. The menu says, "Korean Style chicken with mixed vegetables and steamed rice"

Sounds appetizing don't it? It sure was! Not only was the main dish good, it was served with a side of fresh salad, chocolate cake, a warm bun and best of all, Sashimi! Raw smoked salmon would be one of the least expected dishes to encounter on an airplane. The sad fact is, most people on this flight will just toss it away.

18:35
Wow...all the lights in the plane have just blacked out, as well as the sky outside the windows, which is normal. What is odd is the flight from Detroit to Tokyo is its never night outside, we basically follow the sun. This flight, we're basically running away from the sun in Tokyo and catching up with it again in Detroit. Pretty crazy eh?

Well, that's about all for now. I'm looking forward to the next meal, Japanese style Fried noodles!

22:43
Location: Flying over Alaska
The Great Debaters was an awesome movie!!!
Now that the movie was out of the way, I decided to go for a little stroll around the aircraft, taking advantage of my aisle seat. In the back of the plane I met a very friendly flight attendant who had been working with Northwest since 1971!

It was cool because he's travelled to a lot of different countries and we shared our experiences of beijing. The last time he was there was in 1996. Back in those days, there were many more bicycles and the Silk market that I have come to know and love was just an alleyway compared to the now modern shopping complex.

Its was really cool chatting with him because I've never been able to chat with a flight attendant before. Its neat how they go about things and he told me one time he went to 6 countries in 12 days. That's quite the trip. He's also told me of time he was on a plane when a tire exploded while taking off. The explosion was so huge that it made a huge dent in the wing and all the metal in the wheel well was mangled. Somehow, it was a perfect landing and they even rolled right up to the gate.

Also sitting in the back of the plane is a whole crew of students from a University Korea. I haven't talked to them yet but I really want to because they're all part of the Formula SAE team, flying over to compete in Michigan against my University of Windsor! Maybe i'll be able to get some inside tips.

February 13th, 2008
04:22
Location: Detroit, Michigan, United States.
I am back home! Now I'm just waiting for my brother in the lobby of the airport. The rest of the flight was okay, the seats were not the most comfortable but What can you expect? I never did talk to those Korean students because by the time I had any energy left in me it was time to land.

I am REALLY looking forward to going home and just sleeping on my comfortable bed, away from all the noise, the lights, and everything else. I better get rested up for tomorrow because its my only day that I have to pack my stuff for Germany!

Tags: airplanes, china, food, Germany, international traveller, travel