travel notes

It was a looong trip, but a few nice things that happened along the way made it seem shorter. Namely the day I spent in China.

Since I had a fifteen hour stopover in Guangzhou and I've never been to China I decided to get a transit visa and go out of the airport. Also one of my friends' family lives there and he wanted me to bring some things to them. I assumed that one of them would pick the stuff up from me, direct me to some nice places to look around and spend the day and that would be that. Instead his mom spent the whole day with me. His brother met us for lunch. And when his mom heard I hadn't slept at all the previous night, since my flight was at 11:00 p.m., she took me to her friend's appartment so I could shower and rest for a few hours.

I went on to the next leg of the journey feeling much more refreshed, and very happy that I'd gotten to see at least a little bit of China.

Landing in Los Angeles was a bit strange. I think it's been about seven years since I'd been back there. The last couple times I visited my family I went to South Africa. Before even if it had been a year or two  arriving at the airport always felt a little like coming home. This time it didn't at all. It all seemed very foreign. And it was cold outside the aiport. I don't remember April evenings being so cold before.

Now I'm just resting, getting over jet lag, and enjoying the time with my mom.

travel prep

I haven't been writing much lately as I have just under a week left before I'm off and away for a few months. Looking forward to the trip, and even don't mind the first leg of travels which looks like it will take nearly two full days, but boy I will be tired by the end of it.

Hopefully, if I get the transit visa, I get to spend a day touring Guangzhou, China, and can add another country to my list of places I've visited. (I don't count them unless I actually leave the airport). Today I went in to apply for the visa and I just have to say that it always surprises me how people think getting upset at the officials will help push their application through. I've been in some pretty frustrating situations and have been guilty of that a couple of times, so I understand how it happens, but from what I've seen it always has the opposite effect. Today a man was insisting that he didn't need a paper that they wanted and could go there "any time he liked". Needless to say, this did not go over well.

I just got my camera back from the repair shop and have been taking pictures and small video clips of Kathmandu to show to my mom who has never been here.

Here's a couple of photos:

Ooh, and in other news, all the extra power is awesome. Now our cuts are only about ten hours a day instead of the previous fourteen.

Now excuse me while I go and find something else to get distracted with instead of actually packing and doing other prep. I think something must be wrong with me, because try as I might to do travel prep ahead of time, I find it impossible to pack until the day before I'm actually leaving. It just doesn't really work before then.

So long and goodnight.