Sunday, August 17, 2008
Greetings from Beijing!
This is just a quick post to let everyone know that Paul and I made it here safe and sound. We have been wandering around Beijing trying to get our bearings. We do not yet have the internet connection set up in the room, but hope to later today or tomorrow. Once that is done I will put up more photos for you to enjoy.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Some Final Thoughts Before I Leave
Tomorrow is the big day! Part of me can't believe it has finally arrived. But the part of me that controls my appetite and ability to sleep believes it in full force! In my true travel fashion my body has chosen insomnia over appetite. I know I should eat, but I am not hungry and I know I should sleep but I have not packed since I still have laundry to do. Perhaps my lack of sleep tonight will enable me to sleep on the plane, but I doubt it.
I'm not the greatest plane passenger in the world. I merely tolerate it as a means to an end. Let's face it, flying to Beijing is a whole lot easier than swimming! And I am less likely to get eaten by a shark in the air. I'm just glad we aren't flying over the Andes, and I am fairly certain that Alive will not be the feature film on the way over.
All that aside, I am looking forward to China with a great deal of anticipation. So many of my friends and family have been very supportive along the way, and I thank them as well. One day I walked into my cubicle and there was a post-it note flashcard stuck to my desk with Chinese on the front and English on the back. I knew immediately it was from Chunling. She made special little signs that say things like "Take me to my hotel" and "How much?" just in case I get stuck.
It is getting very late, and I am getting quite sleepy now. By the time you read this post I will either be wandering aimlessly around Pearson airport with Paul, going through security, or flying high in the sky. My next post will be from the opposite side of the world in a land far far away. I can't wait to tell you all about it!
I'm not the greatest plane passenger in the world. I merely tolerate it as a means to an end. Let's face it, flying to Beijing is a whole lot easier than swimming! And I am less likely to get eaten by a shark in the air. I'm just glad we aren't flying over the Andes, and I am fairly certain that Alive will not be the feature film on the way over.
All that aside, I am looking forward to China with a great deal of anticipation. So many of my friends and family have been very supportive along the way, and I thank them as well. One day I walked into my cubicle and there was a post-it note flashcard stuck to my desk with Chinese on the front and English on the back. I knew immediately it was from Chunling. She made special little signs that say things like "Take me to my hotel" and "How much?" just in case I get stuck.
It is getting very late, and I am getting quite sleepy now. By the time you read this post I will either be wandering aimlessly around Pearson airport with Paul, going through security, or flying high in the sky. My next post will be from the opposite side of the world in a land far far away. I can't wait to tell you all about it!
Monday, August 11, 2008
The Family Visit
I took this weekend off from travel arrangements, tattoe searches, and vaccinations to visit my family before I go. Every time I go on a journey I like to see them - its a tradition, or supersticion, or something like that.
Mom picked me up at the train station on Friday night in Woodstock and took me out for supper at Tim Horton's. It felt like that commercial where the guy was in Europe and his folks sent him their love in the form of a care package that consisted of a tin of special coffee grounds. As a souvenir of the evening, Mom saved the extra butter packets that came with my whole wheat bun. If something ever happened to me, like getting my hand stuck in a tin of coffee, she can always send her love and the ability to grease my way out of the coffee tin at the same time!
After that we made our way to my brother Doug's place. He was busy putting up a light fixture on his front porch, so I decided to hang out with my two youngest nephews. We took turns scaring each other, and when the lustre of that game started to dwindle, I decided to rest on the chesterfield. My nephews invented a new game whereby they would jump off the back of the chesterfield and land on me. The bruises all over my shins are lasting much longer than that game did.
The next morning I rose bright and early to return back to Doug's place and accompany him to my nephew's soccer game. I almost felt like a soccer Mom! For one Saturday, it was a great novelty.
Following that, I spent some time with my three other nephews at Eastpark Golf Gardens in London. After watching a couple of them ride around the go-cart track for a while, I decided to get a bucket of balls and head off to the driving range. Its been about a decade since I went to a driving range, and it showed. In the past 10 years of golf retirement, I seem to have mastered the art of hitting the ball three feet in front of me. One of my nephews looked at me and said "Yeah, I don't want people to think I know you, so would you please go to the other end of the driving range?" I responded by hitting the ball three feet in front of me. In the middle of the driving range there is a sign that showed the phone number of someone who provides golf lessons. After hitting the ball three feet in front of me again, I said "What am I doing wrong?" and my other nephew said "You're not calling the number on the sign!"
I finished the last ball in my bucket with the joy of having spent time with my nephews, the satisfaction of having improved my swing by eventually hitting the ball past the 100 yard marker, and the pain of using my right shoulder in a way that it has not been used in about 10 years. I remembered that my next Hep shot was scheduled for Monday and figured I would put the pain of golfing to good use by having it mask the pain of the upcoming Hep shot.
After we returned back to my Mom's house, my niece and I sat on the kitchen counter and chatted about important stuff like clothes and boys. Mom walked through the kitchen and reminded us that she has a large number of chairs strategically placed around the kitchen table, and perhaps we should consider using them. I thought it was a great idea, since the blood was starting to congeal in my feet, so I moved a couple of them over to the counter to use as foot stools. Mom shook her head and left the room, my niece and I continued to talk. She commented on my clothing choice, and threatened to nominate me for the show "What not to Wear". It's sad that my 13 year old niece already dresses better than I do. I texted Paul for sympathy, but he agreed with my niece. Next time she is in Toronto, she told me that she and Paul are taking me shopping. I hope I don't wind up looking like Hannah Montanah.
I needed to return to my geeky normal self, so I spent the next little while helping my nephew decode strange letters on his PSP. I didn't do a very good job at that either, but he was happy that someone was talking with him about his game.
Sunday I returned back home with the satisfaction of knowing that I got to spend a great weekend with my family. As I leaned back on my chesterfield to bask in my familial glow, I reminded myself that I had my next Hep shot appointment on Monday, and I should put my immunization record in my purse for the appointment. Today the doctor asked me if I had the immunization record with me, to which I responded "No, but I did get a good night's sleep!"
A lot of people must forget their immunization records because he responded with "Oh, that's okay, I can give you a sticker for your records, then we can write it in when you come back in 6 months for your final shot." I imagined it would be a sticker just like what I would get in grade school after getting my shots there. In my mind it was one of those joyously yellow happy face stickers that would say "I just got my shots for: _______" and the school nurse would fill in the blank with Measles, or Polio, or Tetanus.
He filled the needle full of inactivated hep juice and proceeded to vaccinate me in my left arm. WAIT! The last time he used my right arm, and that is where I was sore from "golfing" on the weekend. CURSES! Now both shoulders are sore again.
After that he sat at the desk, and proceeded to write some things down. He turned around, and handed me my immunization sticker. As I proceeded to receive the immunization sticker from him, I realized that it was not the joyously yellow happy faced sticker I had dreamed it would be. My immunization record is on a HOT PINK POST IT NOTE!!
I don't know how this stuff always happens to me. But this little anecdote serves as the perfect illustration as to why Paul keeps me around as his friend. Even if I do talk too much.
Mom picked me up at the train station on Friday night in Woodstock and took me out for supper at Tim Horton's. It felt like that commercial where the guy was in Europe and his folks sent him their love in the form of a care package that consisted of a tin of special coffee grounds. As a souvenir of the evening, Mom saved the extra butter packets that came with my whole wheat bun. If something ever happened to me, like getting my hand stuck in a tin of coffee, she can always send her love and the ability to grease my way out of the coffee tin at the same time!
After that we made our way to my brother Doug's place. He was busy putting up a light fixture on his front porch, so I decided to hang out with my two youngest nephews. We took turns scaring each other, and when the lustre of that game started to dwindle, I decided to rest on the chesterfield. My nephews invented a new game whereby they would jump off the back of the chesterfield and land on me. The bruises all over my shins are lasting much longer than that game did.
The next morning I rose bright and early to return back to Doug's place and accompany him to my nephew's soccer game. I almost felt like a soccer Mom! For one Saturday, it was a great novelty.
Following that, I spent some time with my three other nephews at Eastpark Golf Gardens in London. After watching a couple of them ride around the go-cart track for a while, I decided to get a bucket of balls and head off to the driving range. Its been about a decade since I went to a driving range, and it showed. In the past 10 years of golf retirement, I seem to have mastered the art of hitting the ball three feet in front of me. One of my nephews looked at me and said "Yeah, I don't want people to think I know you, so would you please go to the other end of the driving range?" I responded by hitting the ball three feet in front of me. In the middle of the driving range there is a sign that showed the phone number of someone who provides golf lessons. After hitting the ball three feet in front of me again, I said "What am I doing wrong?" and my other nephew said "You're not calling the number on the sign!"
I finished the last ball in my bucket with the joy of having spent time with my nephews, the satisfaction of having improved my swing by eventually hitting the ball past the 100 yard marker, and the pain of using my right shoulder in a way that it has not been used in about 10 years. I remembered that my next Hep shot was scheduled for Monday and figured I would put the pain of golfing to good use by having it mask the pain of the upcoming Hep shot.
After we returned back to my Mom's house, my niece and I sat on the kitchen counter and chatted about important stuff like clothes and boys. Mom walked through the kitchen and reminded us that she has a large number of chairs strategically placed around the kitchen table, and perhaps we should consider using them. I thought it was a great idea, since the blood was starting to congeal in my feet, so I moved a couple of them over to the counter to use as foot stools. Mom shook her head and left the room, my niece and I continued to talk. She commented on my clothing choice, and threatened to nominate me for the show "What not to Wear". It's sad that my 13 year old niece already dresses better than I do. I texted Paul for sympathy, but he agreed with my niece. Next time she is in Toronto, she told me that she and Paul are taking me shopping. I hope I don't wind up looking like Hannah Montanah.
I needed to return to my geeky normal self, so I spent the next little while helping my nephew decode strange letters on his PSP. I didn't do a very good job at that either, but he was happy that someone was talking with him about his game.
Sunday I returned back home with the satisfaction of knowing that I got to spend a great weekend with my family. As I leaned back on my chesterfield to bask in my familial glow, I reminded myself that I had my next Hep shot appointment on Monday, and I should put my immunization record in my purse for the appointment. Today the doctor asked me if I had the immunization record with me, to which I responded "No, but I did get a good night's sleep!"
A lot of people must forget their immunization records because he responded with "Oh, that's okay, I can give you a sticker for your records, then we can write it in when you come back in 6 months for your final shot." I imagined it would be a sticker just like what I would get in grade school after getting my shots there. In my mind it was one of those joyously yellow happy face stickers that would say "I just got my shots for: _______" and the school nurse would fill in the blank with Measles, or Polio, or Tetanus.
He filled the needle full of inactivated hep juice and proceeded to vaccinate me in my left arm. WAIT! The last time he used my right arm, and that is where I was sore from "golfing" on the weekend. CURSES! Now both shoulders are sore again.
After that he sat at the desk, and proceeded to write some things down. He turned around, and handed me my immunization sticker. As I proceeded to receive the immunization sticker from him, I realized that it was not the joyously yellow happy faced sticker I had dreamed it would be. My immunization record is on a HOT PINK POST IT NOTE!!
I don't know how this stuff always happens to me. But this little anecdote serves as the perfect illustration as to why Paul keeps me around as his friend. Even if I do talk too much.
Only 4 Sleeps Left
I can not believe how quickly the departure date is approaching. 4 days until we are in the air for Beijing and the Olympics.
I took the morning of 888 off so that I could watch the Opening Ceremonies in peace and quite and in HD. The show was amazing, until about 10 o'clock when my phone rang.
'Hello' (stern and nasty greeting)
'Hi, how are the Opening Ceremonies?' (high pitched sequel voice of Lori)
'Team Canada is just walking in, you have absolutely perfect timing' (mental thought - this is annoying I want to watch this not talk on the telephone)
Of course, Lori just had to keep talking until she realized I was not really paying any attention to her. I think I will have to do that in Beijing if she starts to get to me.
Actually, come to think of it. I think I will go to my doctor and ask for some strong sleeping pills for the flights. 15 hours of Lori talking.
I am just kidding. Lori amuses me and makes me laugh. She is a very good friend, besides, I know that in any situation she can be counted on to provide the comic relief, if only for her take on the situation.
So much to do and so little time to do it in before we go.
I took the morning of 888 off so that I could watch the Opening Ceremonies in peace and quite and in HD. The show was amazing, until about 10 o'clock when my phone rang.
'Hello' (stern and nasty greeting)
'Hi, how are the Opening Ceremonies?' (high pitched sequel voice of Lori)
'Team Canada is just walking in, you have absolutely perfect timing' (mental thought - this is annoying I want to watch this not talk on the telephone)
Of course, Lori just had to keep talking until she realized I was not really paying any attention to her. I think I will have to do that in Beijing if she starts to get to me.
Actually, come to think of it. I think I will go to my doctor and ask for some strong sleeping pills for the flights. 15 hours of Lori talking.
I am just kidding. Lori amuses me and makes me laugh. She is a very good friend, besides, I know that in any situation she can be counted on to provide the comic relief, if only for her take on the situation.
So much to do and so little time to do it in before we go.
Sunday, August 10, 2008
The Countdown to the Trip Continues
Well, Paul, its good to see you have finally spoken! What people reading this blog do not know is that I had to sing continuously in order to get him to add an entry. He finally put one up just to get me to stop my caterwalling!
I can vouch for the fact that Paul has our itinerary planned down to the half hour. I must take this moment to remind Paul that he doesn't refer to me as "Princess Lori" for no reason. See, I am a lot more laid back than Paul and treat itineraries more as a loosely defined suggestion. However, beings that I will be in a place I have never been before, and may not ever get a chance to go back to, I figure my tardiness will go into remission for 15 days or so. Or at least that is what I am hoping. Maybe the travel immunization clinic will have a vaccine to combat tardiness, too.
Now here is a recap of what has happened this past week.
On Monday I braved the tourists and wandered up Yonge Street in search of temporary tattoes. I was in a rather large quandry because the tourists were getting in my way, and I found it rather frustrating. Then I reminded myself that very soon I will be the tourist getting in everyone else's way.
On my tattoe quest, I went into store after store, and the search for tattoes was proving fruitless. My lunch hour was dwindling short, so I decided just to go into one last store then turn around to go back. I asked the clerk if he had any tattoes of Canada flags or maple leaves, and lo and behold he did! He showed me one card full, but I wasn't really impressed with them. I said to him "Is that all you have? See I am going to the Olympics next week and want to wear them to the events" to which he responded "OMG ARE YOU COMPETING?" I took it as a complement, especially considering how out of shape I am and how old I feel most days. I almost said "Yes" to see what his reaction would be, and also to see if he would give me the tattoes for free. But I am a bad liar, and I was also worried he would try to find my name on a list of athletes that he was secretly holding behind the counter. I could only remember the names of two athletes going to the Olympics, both of whom are men, so telling the guy my name was Adam or Andrew really wouldn't have worked out well for me. I felt bad when I saw the look of dismay on his face when I said "No" but that feeling soon subsided after I forked over $15 for a bunch of tattoes.
Friday I was supposed to stop by Paul's place on the way to work to watch some of the opening ceremonies. My plans were thwarted by sleeping in, then by panicking over the fact I was going to visit my family near London and hadn't packed my suitcase yet. I got to work and freaked David my boss out by parking my suitcase outside my cubicle. He looked at it and said "You're leaving today? I thought you weren't leaving until next Friday???" I reminded David that I was a girl, and that tiny little suitcase would not even come close to holding what I would require for a two week trip. Then I alleviated his fears by confirming I was only going to my Mom's. He then pulled out his copy of the Globe and Mail and showed me the bare chested photo of Andrew van Koeverden on the front. I thanked him profusely, told him I would be busy in a rather unproductive way for the next little while. He laughed, but hovered and waited for me to return his copy of the Globe. I took it as a sign that I should stop my drooling and get back to work.
Shortly after 10:00 I decided to call Paul to find out how the Opening Ceremonies were. A rather frustrated Paul answered the phone and said "Nice of you to call just as Team Canada is walking in". This time I didn't even mean to torment Paul. But I hung up the phone with the satisfaction of knowing that I did. Its going to be a long 15 days trip! I hope Paul is up for it.
I can vouch for the fact that Paul has our itinerary planned down to the half hour. I must take this moment to remind Paul that he doesn't refer to me as "Princess Lori" for no reason. See, I am a lot more laid back than Paul and treat itineraries more as a loosely defined suggestion. However, beings that I will be in a place I have never been before, and may not ever get a chance to go back to, I figure my tardiness will go into remission for 15 days or so. Or at least that is what I am hoping. Maybe the travel immunization clinic will have a vaccine to combat tardiness, too.
Now here is a recap of what has happened this past week.
On Monday I braved the tourists and wandered up Yonge Street in search of temporary tattoes. I was in a rather large quandry because the tourists were getting in my way, and I found it rather frustrating. Then I reminded myself that very soon I will be the tourist getting in everyone else's way.
On my tattoe quest, I went into store after store, and the search for tattoes was proving fruitless. My lunch hour was dwindling short, so I decided just to go into one last store then turn around to go back. I asked the clerk if he had any tattoes of Canada flags or maple leaves, and lo and behold he did! He showed me one card full, but I wasn't really impressed with them. I said to him "Is that all you have? See I am going to the Olympics next week and want to wear them to the events" to which he responded "OMG ARE YOU COMPETING?" I took it as a complement, especially considering how out of shape I am and how old I feel most days. I almost said "Yes" to see what his reaction would be, and also to see if he would give me the tattoes for free. But I am a bad liar, and I was also worried he would try to find my name on a list of athletes that he was secretly holding behind the counter. I could only remember the names of two athletes going to the Olympics, both of whom are men, so telling the guy my name was Adam or Andrew really wouldn't have worked out well for me. I felt bad when I saw the look of dismay on his face when I said "No" but that feeling soon subsided after I forked over $15 for a bunch of tattoes.
Friday I was supposed to stop by Paul's place on the way to work to watch some of the opening ceremonies. My plans were thwarted by sleeping in, then by panicking over the fact I was going to visit my family near London and hadn't packed my suitcase yet. I got to work and freaked David my boss out by parking my suitcase outside my cubicle. He looked at it and said "You're leaving today? I thought you weren't leaving until next Friday???" I reminded David that I was a girl, and that tiny little suitcase would not even come close to holding what I would require for a two week trip. Then I alleviated his fears by confirming I was only going to my Mom's. He then pulled out his copy of the Globe and Mail and showed me the bare chested photo of Andrew van Koeverden on the front. I thanked him profusely, told him I would be busy in a rather unproductive way for the next little while. He laughed, but hovered and waited for me to return his copy of the Globe. I took it as a sign that I should stop my drooling and get back to work.
Shortly after 10:00 I decided to call Paul to find out how the Opening Ceremonies were. A rather frustrated Paul answered the phone and said "Nice of you to call just as Team Canada is walking in". This time I didn't even mean to torment Paul. But I hung up the phone with the satisfaction of knowing that I did. Its going to be a long 15 days trip! I hope Paul is up for it.
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
The Fat Lady has Sung
Well, I always said I would never add to this blog until everything was in place for the Olympics. This week I picked up my Chinese Visa, how sweet. It looks so nice, wow, I am going to China!!!!!!!! WOW!!!! I am going to the Olympics, in China.
THE FAT LADY HAS SUNG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
All my life I have always wanted to go to China and I have always wanted to attend the Olympic Games.
In 1975, I traveled with my parents, by car, to Nova Scotia. One of our stops was a drive around the Montreal 1976 Olympic Site, how amazing to see the venues being constructed. I guess construction is my blood, I love to watch things being built. I just don't know what a hammer is.
That was my closest experience with the Olympics.
As for China, there are many Chinatowns in this city I live in, but I don't think it will compare to going to the actual Country.
Did I mention, I AM GOING TO CHINA!!!!!!!!!!!
Excitement is building. I know Lori and I will have an amazing time and I know this trip will be unforgettable.
I am a little anal, so, taking a cue from my bff LDR, I have created an itinerary for Lori and I that has adventures right down to the 1/2 hour.
I even built a packing check list. How sad is that.
More to come in the coming days.
Oh, by the way. I took Friday morning off so that I could watch the Opening Ceremonies live.
Saturday, August 2, 2008
Busy Week
Things have really come together for the trip now. Sunday I met Paul at the Eaton Centre and we went to Black's to get passport photos taken for the Visa applications. I learned something important that day - do not wear a white shirt. Unfortunately I learned that after I got there only to discover the white shirt I was wearing was blending into the white backdrop they use for passport photos. As the girl was about to snap my photo she said "You look like a floating head" followed by a flurry of activity whereby she scrambled to find a black lab coat for me to wear. I thought the floating head would look better than the lab coat I wound up sporting in the photo, but since she was the passport photo expert I trusted her judgement. At least the Black's logo was not visible in the picture.
Up until now most of the trip preparations had centred around completing tasks like getting accommodations, getting a plane ticket, etc etc. I decided I wanted to do something enjoyable, so I went to The Bay and picked up an official Team Canada Olympic Shirt (pictured on the left). I would have loved to have picked up an official shirt for each of the 4 events that I am going to, but decided for 3 of the events I would settle for wearing some inexpensive red shirts, or some inexpensive shirts that just say Canada on them and save this one for the most special event that we are going to be attending.Paul and I then wandered around some of the dollar stores downtown looking for temporary tattoes of maple leaves and Canadian flags. I figured that temporary tattoes of Canadian symbols would be fairly easy to come by, what with Canada Day having been a short time ago. Apparently not! If anyone is reading this post and knows exactly where I can find them in the GTA, then please let me know. There are still a large number of dollar stores along Yonge Street that I have not been to yet, so I will resume my search next week during my lunch breaks.
In order to apply for the Chinese Visa, I had to list on the application each of the regions and cities I would be visiting while staying there. So Paul and I poured over the travel books to strike our final itinerary. So many things to see in China and so little time! Of course we will be going to the Great Wall - that's pretty much a given for anyone going there. In the end we have picked a number of interesting temples and historic sites to see.
On Monday I made my way up to the Chinese Consulate on St. George Street to submit the Visa application. The whole process was very efficient - it actually took me longer to take the subway from work to the Consulate than it did to stand in line and submit the application. Thursday I made my way back to the Consulate to pick up the Visa. Yet again my co-workers had to endure me skipping around the office and forcing them to look at my Visa. They really are a tolerant bunch. I now have everything I need to go to China!
Today I took my final dose of Dukoral. I learned something last week - the smaller the glass I use, the less carbonated raspberry suspension I have to drink! Its really not the most enjoyable flavour in the world.
For the next week or so I will be reading up on each of the sites we have picked so that I can have a good solid background in what I will be visiting before I get there. I also have to double check what I am allowed to bring on the plane, and what I am allowed to bring with me to China. It doesn't sound like much is left to do, but there is less than two weeks left until I leave, and next weekend I will be visiting my family before I go.
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