@ the Airport

I’m actually uploading this blog from the Taiwan airport but this was written around 9/7/15

Right now I’m at a layover in the Guang Zhou International Airport. I’ve been in airports and on planes for over 24 hours now, with around 3 hours more of waiting and an hour of flight time left. I was originally going to write a piece about my algorithm for solving “really hard” Sudoku puzzles, but I spent that layover updating my LinkedIn profile. Also I’m way worse at it than I remember, I successfully completed 1 out of 5 puzzles? (But 4 of them were really close (like really really close)).

A vehicle taxing an airplane? Guang Zhou International Airport

Anyway, airports and commercial airplanes suck. Something about spending time in them turns everyone around you (and you) into an asshole. Like my first flight where enthusiastic laptop dude kept elbowing me in my sleep so he could type comfortably. Or that one guy behind me that kept trying to shove me into the people in front of because they were taking forever putting their luggage into the overhead bins.  Or that other guy who felt the need to keep clicking his seat belt while everyone else was trying to sleep. I gave them all dirty looks but apparently that skill is ineffective in this terrain.

See?? I don’t suck

I spent the first flight getting elbowed while closing my eyes and doing Sudoku (separately of course). I spent the second flight trying to preempt jet lag by staying up and reading “The Martian” by Andy Weir (I went to sleep around 6pm China time which would translate to 7am Kansas time? Booyakasha). Which by the way is a great book, highly recommend. And now my butt hurts (I’m one of the luckier ones too, no one sat next to me, and I got an aisle seat). Though would it kill them to install squishier seats for international flights? I also took a peak into first class, and honestly it didn’t look that much better. It was like grey cubicles with fatter chairs. I bet they got ice cream though.

I’ve definitely noticed a language barrier. I’ve learned that tu3 dou4 ni2, which literally translates to potato mud, actually meant mashed potatoes. Because I look Chinese (and I am, though when I’m traveling I prefer to present as an American), people will speak to me in mandarin. Like when the airport people are like “So and so, please come to the information counter,” only they totally did my entire announcement in Chinese; could have completely missed that train. For the most part it’s fine, I usually understand enough bits to piece together meaning, but it irks me when the airport people manning the “foreigner line” for international to domestic transfers don’t speak a lick of English.

Anyway, there is no real coherence to this story (though I think it’s in semi-chronological order), I feel kinda tired already and I still have a full day ahead of me.

Oh and one thing I learned was you know those weird pillow things that attach to the airplane seats that move up and down? They are foldable, so you can pull them outward like a trifold so you can avoid awkwardly falling asleep on the person next to you.

Travel fanny pack selfie

Post China thought:

Language barrier was a little less of an issue than I thought. Transitioned to speaking Mandarin pretty well. Did have a terrible time trying to speak coherent English in between sentences though.