we're in China!

MK would have you believe that it was all me that caused us to almost miss the plane (I know, I know . . . I should have called my bank and credit card but I was taking care of other things like packing and getting traveler’s checks). The truth is that we both assumed that there would be a boarding call in between “Flight 99, your plane is ready” and “Final Boarding call for Flight 99.” But there wasn’t! Luckily, the President’s Club was right across from our gate. AND we certainly were not the last people boarding the plane. We were both a little startled by the rush, however.
I’ll agree with MK that First Class or Business First is the way to fly! We were greeted by a number of different flight attendants who were all helpful and nice. We ate A LOT, with lots of choices and at various times. Overall a really pleasant customer service experience, with much more attention paid to us than ever possible in economy. Not to mention that the bag restrictions are hardly restrictive! When traveling Business First, you can check up to 3 bags up to 70 lbs (instead of the usual 50 lbs) and you can have 2 carry on items as well as one personal item.
The taxi ride from the Hong Kong airport to our hotel was good too. Its very British and driving on the left isn’t so big a deal. Loved the signs saying “Stay to left unless overtaking.” Sounds so much more aggressive than our “Keep right, except to pass.”
The Harbour Plaza Metropolis (which I have decided to call the Harbour-tropolis) is a lovely hotel, right across the street from the train station. The pool and gymnasium are really nice facilities. And the room service was yummy!
Tomorrow we leave for GuangZhou on the train. And yes, it is hot here! Even at 8 at night.

We arrived in GuangZhou on the train from Hong Kong. The train ride was pleasant once we were told that there were assigned seats and that we were in the wrong ones (oops!). The Hong Kong Train station was very clean and well-signed, including the signs saying that hand grenades were strictly prohibited. Luckily, I didn’t bring mine with me. We also had the opportunity to weigh our suitcases. MK was not thrilled to know that mine weighed less than hers (18.3 to 19.2 kg)!
We had a little struggle exchanging money, because our hotel, The Victory, does not exchange currency. Hmmmm. OK. But the banks were all closed! We started to worry. But we went to the Holt Office at the White Swan, and Katherine (one of our Holt guides) came through for us and made arrangements so that we could exchange money there, even though we didn’t have a room. We were sooo appreciative!
Shamian Island is much as I remember it. We went to Lucy’s for dinner which was great because we had been there a number of times on our previous trip.

Special notes to people who may be reading this . . . hopefully, you will know who you are!

• I should have kept all the tanks and ditched the t-shirts. Its REALLY HOT here!
• MK’s suitcase weighed more than mine, even though you thought mine was heavier. ☺
• Hey AK, I’m in CHINA!!! (top that one!)
• I already swam in one hotel pool and I hadn’t even been here more than 12 hours at the time. AND I swam even in a downpour. That is dedication
• Yes, I am still planning to train here. Even if it means just swimming and riding the exercise bike every day.

I’m taking pictures of the signs with the best translations but my favorite signs so far:

• “Passengers not fit for escalator should use steps.” I wanted to take a pic of this one but it was in the airport or train station, where there were signs saying no pictures (I think because of immigration and customs)
• At Lucy’s Café: