We're Here!!

We made it to China safely. What a day! We’re all pretty exhausted and can’t wait to get into a bed for some real sleep.

Our flights were pretty uneventful, but the flight to Tokyo was delayed nearly an hour which meant once we landed in Tokyo, we were running to catch our connection to Beijing. We had less than thirty minutes to get off the plane, go through security at Narita (Tokyo) and then get to our gate. The line at security was long, but they held the plane for us and we were able to make it in plenty of time before take-off.

The flight from MN to Tokyo was long (12 hours), but we survived. We arrived in Tokyo in the middle of the night (3:45 AM our time) when we would have liked to be sleeping, but sleep didn’t come easily anyway. Miyah had the hardest time, but eventually she just crashed. I think we’ve each only slept about 3-4 hours and even those weren’t consecutive hours. Miyah tossed and turned and woke up every 20 minutes or so. I hope she sleeps really well in the hotel room tonight. I never thought I’d be anxious to climb into a Chinese bed, but I certainly am.
I was a little worried about how Miyah would do, but she’s been great. She’s still in good spirits with only a little sleep and a lot craziness. I wouldn’t call it a pleasant trip over, but it’s definitely survivable.

We miss you and love you so much, Matt!! We've thought about you throughout the day and wish you were here.....you should be glad you missed this part of the trip though, because all the flying really isn't fun. We'll try calling you again tomorrow.

Oh, and we got the suitcases of donations off to NHF, Rebecca. Thank God all of our luggage made it here safe and sound.

We have a few pictures, but I haven't figured out how to upload them on this computer yet. Pat will help me, but right now he's sleeping in his OWN ROOM! Yes, strange, but he has his own room down the hall. They couldn't even put us in rooms next to each other. I think we'll ask to just cancel the other room because there's room for us all to sleep in one. Apparently they only allow more than three people in a room at this hotel, but I think they may be able to be persuaded.

Oh, I can't believe it, but no sooner did we step off the airplane (no exaggeration), than two different ladies scolded me for not dressing Miyah warm enough. It was so hot on the plane that she was in a short sleeved shirt. It's not like we deboarded outside either and the airports are stinkin hot in Japan and China. The first lady literally ran up behind me and said, "Excuse me, but it's colder here in Beijing, she needs something warmer". Right after that a lady came around the corner and speaking Chinese to another women, pointed to Miyah's arms and said something disapproving in Chinese. It's funny because we never experienced that in last time. We were in Guangzhou with Miyah the whole time last trip and maybe because it's so much warmer there.

Anyway, when in China.... So, now you will see Miyah pictured in at least six layers of clothing. No lie...they really bundle up the children in China. They think it keeps them healthy. It'll be interesting to see if Mei Lin comes bundled even though it's in the 80s in Kunming. Someone recently received a Kunming baby all bundled in a half dozen layers.

I wondered if Miyah would ever settle down to sleep, but I just took a shower and came out and both girls are sound asleep as I type.

Okay, I can't believe I'm babbling on when I haven't slept more than six hours in two days. I had a really hard time sleeping the night before we left and barely slept on the plane. I think my circadian rhythm is kicking in and I'm ready for lunch (it's nearly 1 AM here).

Good night from China! Tomorrow we plan to meet our coordinator for lunch and skip the Temple of Heaven tour just so we can sleep in a bit. Then later we have a hutong tour (rickshaw tour of the old historic back alleys of Beijing) and then we see the Beijing Acrobats.