China 2/12/2018 - 2/21/2018

Prologue

We first visited China in 2014, on the recommendation of Toni from Myths and Mountains. She told us about her friend Wang Jun, who is a fantastic guide. Wang Jun works primarily in Guizhou, a southern province, and the tour focused on the ethnic minorities in that area. Guide quality can make or break a trip, and this sounded amazing to us and we signed up. We had a wonderful trip and really bonded with Wang Jun.

We enjoyed China so much that 6 months later we returned to visit some of the more popular tourist destinations. At the end of the trip, we returned to Guizhou to visit Wang Jun and get to meet his family, including his wife Xiao Yi and infant daughter Ziting. We also met his mother, sister, and brother-in-law, and reunited with driver Mr. Zhou. Wang Jun and Xiao Yi asked us to be unofficial godparents to Ziting. We were honored, but since their culture doesn't really have the concept of godparents, we weren't sure whether it would "stick". But they seemed very serious about it, and said that we should return in the future to celebrate the Spring Festival which coincides with the lunar New Year with the family.

2018, the Year of the Dog, is when it all came together. Wang Jun coyly told us that he would be putting together a program for us to travel with the family (pretty much everyone in China gets a week off to celebrate the festival), but he kept the details a secret.

Monday, February 12, 2018 - Departure

Unusually for us, we left for this trip on a Monday morning. It worked out well, as we had the entire weekend to finish preparations. Craig's brother Steve drove us to the Logan Express bus at 6 a.m., and we arrived at the airport shortly before 7. We checked in, went through security, and enjoyed an egg, sausage, and aged cheddar bagel sandwich at Berkshire Farm Market.

The first leg was a short one, flying to Dulles in Washington, D.C. We then boarded a United Boeing 787 Dreamliner for the long haul to Beijing. Craig was seated next to a Chinese man who used a translation device to chat with us. He had apparently been in the U.S. to attend the Grammy Awards, as he had a program book and photos of himself on the stage.

We were served a meal of chicken with rice and salad, followed by delicious salted caramel gelato. We zoned out on the plane, listening to Bob Dylan music on shuffle on our iPod. We dozed a little, but not much.

Later they came by with a snack: a turkey and cheese sandwich and a small packet of M&M's.

Tuesday, February 13, 2018 - Beijing, Arrival in Guiyang

Shortly before our arrival in Beijing, we were served breakfast. Craig had an omelet and I had apple cinnamon French toast with sausage.

We arrived in Beijing a bit early (around 3:00 p.m.) due to a crazy tailwind that carried us east.

We had around four hours to kill before our connecting flight to Guiyang. By now we were exhausted and just wanted to get there; so near and yet so far.

We decided to get something to eat since we had so much extra time. There was a food court upstairs where you could sit comfortably and eat. There were a variety of choices, and of course we didn't want to eat at Burger King. We saw that there was a My Mill, a noodle restaurant where we had eaten in 2015. At that time we had had a delicious spicy sirloin noodle bowl, so we decided that we should eat there again. Unfortunately, the menu was a bit different. We got the closest thing they had to the spicy noodle bowl (I didn't enjoy it as much as I had last time) along with a Fanta to drink.

Our Air China flight to Guiyang left at 8:10 p.m. We were seated across the aisle from Danni, a young woman from Guiyang who had gone to college in Indiana and worked in Chicago for a year. In September, she moved back to China and works at a software company in Beijing. She was returning home to visit her family for the Spring Festival.

She was quite friendly, and curious as to why we would be going to China during the Spring Festival. She explained that most tourists avoid that time. Few restaurants or attractions are open, because almost the entire population has the week off. We explained that we were visiting friends and celebrating the festival with their family. She was relieved, saying that she had been worried for us. She was very sweet.

We rested on the flight and arrived in Guiyang at 11:30 p.m. We were last off the plane because Craig uses a wheelchair in airports. The distances are too far for him to walk, especially since his legs lock up after being on a plane for many hours.

As we went to the baggage collection area, we caught a glimpse of Wang Jun through the glass doors. He excitedly waved to us, but we could tell he was a bit taken aback by the sight of Craig in a wheelchair.

After gathering our bags, we exited the airport and greeted him, reassuring him about Craig's condition.

We went out to the curb and Craig immediately recognized Mr. Zhou's black van. Mr. Zhou emerged, wearing the New England Patriots hat that we had given him. We gave him a big hug. It was so nice to be reunited with our two friends with whom we had had such fun on our prior trip.

As I climbed into the van, Craig said "Be careful!" pointing to the arm rest. On our prior trip, the arm rest on my chair had fallen off, and I had held it up in a bewildered manner. Mr. Zhou started to laugh at the recollection, and Wang Jun didn't miss a beat, saying "Chicken leg!" (They had joked, over drinks that night, that when I held the arm rest aloft, it resembled a chicken leg). God, it was good to be back with these two!

At this time of night there was no traffic, and we got to the Poly Hot Springs New Island community where Wang Jun lives in less than 20 minutes. We checked in to a brand new hotel right across the street from Wang Jun's high-rise complex, Hot Springs Mid-Level Hotel.

The guys helped us to bring our luggage up, and Wang Jun told us that he and Mr. Zhou would meet us in the early afternoon when Wang Jun gets out of work. This would give us plenty of time to sleep. They would then pick us up and take us to Mr. Zhou's parents' house for a pre-New Year dinner! What a nice surprise!

We said goodnight to them, after trying unsuccessfully to thank them. Wang Jun won't accept thanks because we are now family, and re-iterated what he told us last time, "Don't say thank you. It is not the Chinese way for families. Just say 'good.'"

Although it took us a little while to wind down, we were soon fast asleep.

Beijing Capital International Airport

Guiyang Airport