I'm so Shanghai-ed right now...
So I'm in Shanghai right now and finding it to be both incredibly fascinating and also perplexing in the extreme. But I'm getting ahead of myself...
Sunday night: A friend's birthday party at the Brisbane Hotel - had a little bit more to drink than I intended, and got up to more "mischief" (code for something that I'm too prim to describe here lol) than I had time for. Suffice to say, my final packing was a bit of a throw-together affair. Not helping the matter was the birthday girl coming home hammered as I'm mid-pack, and my other housemate (who was taking me to the airport) having to help her.
Finally made it to the airport and realised, as I was in the check-in line, that I'd left my money at home. Clever. Lucky they have ATMs at the airport. Although, now I have $2000 sitting in my room...
Plane leaves at 1am. I'm becoming mostly sober by this time. Mostly. Exhaustion hits me. I doze on the plane until one of the stewards wakes me up to ask if I'd like a drink. I realise that I'm so thirsty that my mouth is cemented shut. I nod in agreement.
Doze a bit more. Woken up for dinner. Realise I haven't eated at all that day (probably why I managed to get myself so drunk) and scarf down some tucker. Discover that I can't sleep now. Yay.
Monday morning: Arrive in KL Airport feeling like a train ran over me, reversed, then rolled over me again. Then some bastard threw the lime on the wounds. Okay, perhaps I'm being dramatic. Let's just say I felt pretty average. Ate some very oily food and drank some hot chocolate (with cow's milk because I was too tired to ask for soy) and laid down on some chairs while I waited for them to allow us into the departure lounge. I think I offended some asian people as I lay sprawled out across about 4 seats... I was far too tired to care.
Get onto the plane, after being gawked at by the entire contingent of Indian and Chinese older men [yes, I am blonde and I have tits... deal with it, people]. Sat down, put my neck pillow and my ipod on and promptly fell asleep.
Monday afternoon: Arrive in Shanghai where it's 10 degrees. I kid you not. And the plane had been really hot, so it was rather a shock to the system to step into the chill air - after the epic line to get through quarantine and immigration - once again, gawked at all the way along the line. It's as though these people have never seen a blonde woman before, or perhaps they thought I was a porn star? Either way, creeeeepy.
What was weird, is that they have this long video on customs and how you can't take certain things into China (and that you'll get fined heaps if you do) as your flight is landing, but there is no real fuss made when you go through. You either declare or you don't. Odd.
Jump in a taxi, because the idea of dragging my luggage onto a train and attempting to figure out where I'm going is far too draining a concept for me to even imagine. Honestly, it took over an hour to get from the airport on the outskirts of Shanghai to the hotel in downtown Shanghai. The traffic and roads are so convoluted, it would be really difficult to get around if I were the one driving.
Later Monday Afternoon: Get into the hotel and it's fantastic. If anyone is thinking of going to Shanghai I highly recommend staying at the Holiday Inn Vista. Great rooms, fantastic service, heaps of amenities... spectacular. Drag myself into my room, throw my clothes off and jump into the shower (having not showered in over 24 hours by this time), climb into my nice clean and comfortable bed and sleep the sleep of death!
More to come tomorrow....
Sunday night: A friend's birthday party at the Brisbane Hotel - had a little bit more to drink than I intended, and got up to more "mischief" (code for something that I'm too prim to describe here lol) than I had time for. Suffice to say, my final packing was a bit of a throw-together affair. Not helping the matter was the birthday girl coming home hammered as I'm mid-pack, and my other housemate (who was taking me to the airport) having to help her.
Finally made it to the airport and realised, as I was in the check-in line, that I'd left my money at home. Clever. Lucky they have ATMs at the airport. Although, now I have $2000 sitting in my room...
Plane leaves at 1am. I'm becoming mostly sober by this time. Mostly. Exhaustion hits me. I doze on the plane until one of the stewards wakes me up to ask if I'd like a drink. I realise that I'm so thirsty that my mouth is cemented shut. I nod in agreement.
Doze a bit more. Woken up for dinner. Realise I haven't eated at all that day (probably why I managed to get myself so drunk) and scarf down some tucker. Discover that I can't sleep now. Yay.
Monday morning: Arrive in KL Airport feeling like a train ran over me, reversed, then rolled over me again. Then some bastard threw the lime on the wounds. Okay, perhaps I'm being dramatic. Let's just say I felt pretty average. Ate some very oily food and drank some hot chocolate (with cow's milk because I was too tired to ask for soy) and laid down on some chairs while I waited for them to allow us into the departure lounge. I think I offended some asian people as I lay sprawled out across about 4 seats... I was far too tired to care.
Get onto the plane, after being gawked at by the entire contingent of Indian and Chinese older men [yes, I am blonde and I have tits... deal with it, people]. Sat down, put my neck pillow and my ipod on and promptly fell asleep.
Monday afternoon: Arrive in Shanghai where it's 10 degrees. I kid you not. And the plane had been really hot, so it was rather a shock to the system to step into the chill air - after the epic line to get through quarantine and immigration - once again, gawked at all the way along the line. It's as though these people have never seen a blonde woman before, or perhaps they thought I was a porn star? Either way, creeeeepy.
What was weird, is that they have this long video on customs and how you can't take certain things into China (and that you'll get fined heaps if you do) as your flight is landing, but there is no real fuss made when you go through. You either declare or you don't. Odd.
Jump in a taxi, because the idea of dragging my luggage onto a train and attempting to figure out where I'm going is far too draining a concept for me to even imagine. Honestly, it took over an hour to get from the airport on the outskirts of Shanghai to the hotel in downtown Shanghai. The traffic and roads are so convoluted, it would be really difficult to get around if I were the one driving.
Later Monday Afternoon: Get into the hotel and it's fantastic. If anyone is thinking of going to Shanghai I highly recommend staying at the Holiday Inn Vista. Great rooms, fantastic service, heaps of amenities... spectacular. Drag myself into my room, throw my clothes off and jump into the shower (having not showered in over 24 hours by this time), climb into my nice clean and comfortable bed and sleep the sleep of death!
More to come tomorrow....