After saying our last goodbyes, we checked out of the hotel at 9am on Sunday, July 5th and arrived at the airport an hour later for a 1:00 flight back to the United States. Even going straight to the group checkout counter, it still took quite a bit of time to check in. Around this time, family and friends back home were watching fireworks since it was the night before. I tried not to be jealous. Anyway, by the time all of us got to the gate, we had about 20-30 minutes before boarding time, so I decided to go exploring. I discovered, with much disappointment that there was no KFC in the Shanghai airport. At least not in the section we were in. I was excited that I was able to buy some last-minute souvenirs for people I had missed and also a couple of bottles of water. They bring around water on the flight, but not often enough and only one small cup at a time. I wanted to make sure to stay hydrated so I wouldn't end up with another migraine. I also bought some fun snacks for the plane (Pringles and Oreos and such) so I wouldn't be stuck with just airplane food. Probably the best purchase I made, though, was a neck pillow. That thing was magic. Whenever I put it around my neck, I would immediately fall asleep. I slept the majority of the flight, including the 75-minute delay on the runway. The whole flight was only 11 1/2 hours compared to the 13 on the way. Something to do with wind speed and the tilt of the earth. I don't know, I'm not a pilot. The movie I chose to watch during this flight was Penguins of Madagascar. I found it amusing that the majority of it was based in Shanghai of all places and I had no idea. On the smaller domestic flights we were on during the tour, there were no movies available. That's ok because you really don't need a movie to occupy yourself during a 2-hour flight. Thank goodness we were offered free movies and tv shows during the long flights because I would have gone batty. Today, while the other groups had to take a connector flight to Beijing first, our group got to fly directly back to LAX since we did the layover on the way to China the first day. We landed in Los Angeles at around 11am, a few hours before we left. So, I got to live Sunday twice. After filling out customs forms, claiming Every. Single. Item. we bought in China and walking through the long checkout line, we were finally able to enter our own country. We boarded one last bus that would take us to Balboa Park (San Diego.) It felt amazing to be able to read the signs and to stay in our own traffic lanes again. I hugged my kids good and tight and was so happy to see them again. I've never spent so much time away from them. I tried to stay awake for the rest of the day, but I ended up falling asleep at 6pm. Whoops. I think I slept an hour or two, then got up to put the kids to bed and went to bed myself at somewhat of a decent hour. I took a nap the next day, went to bed early and then was up from 1am to 6am. The 15-hour time change really kicked me in the butt. I was back on schedule in a couple days. After 5 flights on the tour, I took 2 more home to Boise on Wednesday after giving myself time to recover. Five weeks away from home and four away from my husband were definitely tough, but worth it for the experience of a lifetime.
I learned a great deal in China. I learned about the fascinating culture, the beautiful people, a tiny portion of the language, the amazing food and a renewed appreciation for the differences in others. My eyes are opened and I will be forever grateful.
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