On the way from Orlando to Memphis I overheard the 45-year-old woman behind me tell her seat partner how she was going to Japan for a Sony convention...to play Everquest. lol. Apparently she is in one of the top ten guilds. She's also diabetic and obsessed with sudoku. That was an interesting plane ride.
Memphis to LA wasn't bad, I don't remember much of it except the amazing view towards the end of the flight [no one really knew what desert/mountain range it was]. Not once did I get a window seat. :(
The flight from LA was about 12 hours over the Pacific, and they force-fed us like 3 meals...none of which actually made sense for anyone on the plane! First we had a mid-flight snack of pretzels, then I think dinner (?), after which they shut off the lights and made everyone close their windows. Keep in mind that at this time, it was probably like 5pm in the US, EST... then they gave us breakfast at something like 2am (omelet from a plane, anyone?) and then maybe 4 hours later fed us more dinner food, but this time it was more like a Japanese Bento box. It was at about this point that I lost track of what the hell time it was anywhere. I guess maybe that was the point.
We also had the bitchiest flight attendant ever!! She's now known as the notorious Cathy of PUT YOUR TRAY TABLES UP, WE'RE EATING, or BEEF OR CHICKEN, I HAVEN'T GOT ALL DAY. We think maybe it's because she stubbed her toe after tripping on someone's headphones about 2 hours into the flight, but no one can be sure.
Japanese Toilet.
Arrival/customs went fine, and miraculously both of my bags appeared at the airport right on time! (Note to Kim, apparently you can't check intl bags at the skycap with NWA. frowny face.) We met up with Greg, who is our program coordinator, and his assistant Mani (not sure of the spelling). Once everyone got their stuff (except poor Shanita...her bags are "somewhere in the US," according to NWA) we got on a bus that took us through the city, right to our dorms. Not having to figure out the subway/train/bus system after all that flying was a blessing. :D
My dorm room is a little ghetto, not too far from the aesthetics of Riker at UF. At least I have air conditioning though!! (But only in my room--which I have to pay for. Not in the hallways, elevators, or shared bathrooms.) The heat here is brutal! All the other kids are from up north (i.e. Michigan) so they're sweating like little polar bears in Hawaii. :) There are three other girls who live nearby, and all of them are very nice.
Views from the window:
We've been through an orientation and a tour, and the campus is great. Everything is close by (as far as the basics--food, work, sports, music rooms) so we don't have to travel far on a daily basis, unless we want to go shopping or see the city. We're in the New Territories, which is about an hour away from "Hong Kong the city." It's really beautiful and calm here, but it is kind of an effort to get to downtown HK, so to speak. Manie took us on the bus to the KCR rail system, which took us to Tai Po Market and then Sha Tin (I think) to go shopping for electrical stuff --voltage converters and ethernet cords--and room essentials. GUESS WHO HAS AN IKEA NOW!!!! I almost went crazy in there, but then I had to remind myself that I had to make one month's check go for two months' time. We're going back, though. Have no fear about that. :D
Today we have the day off, so people are meeting for dim sum at 11 and then we're going to explore some more. I will be posting more pictures soon, don't you worry.
