How can this be? What is this? Now what do we do?

Above the smog the air was beautiful

I think I understand where the term "Chinese Fire-drill" comes from!

I think he spends half his time with binoculars focused on our window.

As we have said many times, a day is not complete until we have our

“How can this be?”
“What is this?”
“Now what will we do?”

 moment. Many times we continue in our state of confusion. Often we stumble along. Gratefully, on the stickier issues, there is always the tender mercy.

We have been writing several blog entries today. We have written in airports, on the airplane, and now in a hotel lobby. After most of the above has been completed, we have begun having an interesting series of our "special" yet typical “China moments.”

It started with the announcements on the airplane. They were in Chinese, perhaps also Cantonese, and then supposedly English. We have heard announcements for years and sort of know what they are by heart. This time we could not understand what they were saying - in English - sort of....

We began wondering - it was clear we were not landing at our destination. That has happened  before when we thought was a flight was non-stop and it was merely direct. Since we could not understand what they were saying, where we were, and what we were supposed to do, we were concerned we took the wrong plane.

As we got off the plane, we showed our tickets to the flight attendant. She told us it was the right plane, we just needed to all get off, take the shuttle bus to the terminal, and then when they called us, take the shuttle bus back out. Ok. The first wondering what is going on is resolved.

Hanging around the front of the hotel.

Everyone gets off the plane. Some get on one bus because they are at their destination. It heads to the terminal.

Those of us going on, the majority, get on a 2^nd bus. It slowly heads to the terminal, drives the length of it, and makes a U-turn. Since it has doors on both sides we think it wants to line up to drive straight back along the front of the terminal.

It doesn't stop. It keeps driving. Slowly. It never stops. It drives right back to the airplane we just got off of.

We are really scratching our head wondering “What is going on here?” Fortunately almost the entire bus (we were the only non-Chinese on it) burst out laughing. It is as odd to them as it is to us. That is comforting. Ignorance likes company.

We get back on the plane, never having left the bus and only being off the bus maybe 15 minutes. Second wondering is never explained, but we take comfort the Chinese also don't know. So much odd stuff always goes on. It really is funny how much odd stuff constantly goes on.

We grab a taxi at the airport and head to our hotel. We get within several miles of it and suddenly there are blockades everywhere and lots of police and military. Soon the road is blocked the way our driver wants to go. He heads in another direction and while there is more military and more guns, we seem to get closer.

About 8 blocks from our hotel there is a final blockade and our non-English speaking driver signals us to get out and walk. It is about 90 and very humid. We grab our suitcases and start walking down the security lined street. We get to our hotel drive but the official looking guard will not let us go in. No paperwork. Someone from the hotel comes by, tells the official to let us in, and takes us in his golf cart the rest of the way. What is going on here?

Turns out there is a big Asian financial summit going on at the Sheraton Hotel next door. That hotel is closed. A large percent of our hotel rooms facing the Sheraton have been closed by security. We are on the 7^th floor in the room closest to the Sheraton. The English speaking concierge who has walked us to our room explains they inspected our room and said the angle from our balcony was different (different for what? a clear aim?) so they allowed use of the room.

As I type now I am looking at an officer on the roof of the Sheraton with binoculars looking back at me. I wonder if we will be able to stay. Oh, and all the local seafood restaurants, all the restaurants in fact, and all the shops and stores we were looking forward to are closed for a week or so because of security.

This morning at the breakfast buffet we arrived just as it was closing. We had been told, or at least we had understood, that it would be going on for another 45 minutes. They recommended we come during the last hour.  Hurry and grab some food - since everything outside the hotel was closed, this was our only chance to eat and we wouldn't want to starve!

As we ate the manager of the dining room came over to welcome us in person as is the Chinese way. When she realized that we had missed most of the buffet she personally went to the kitchen and came back with fresh fruit and other goodies for us (such typical Chinese kindness). Where did we go wrong?  We left fully satisfied and happy but again wondering "How can this be? We are positive of the words they told us."

All in all it would have been nice to know. Interesting to be trapped in the hotel. Number 3 mystery at least understood. China is so interesting.