Linda B., Rae H., Elden B. and I are all going to Vegas for close to 2 weeks.  We were told of this hot deal out of Belligham on Allegiant Air.  So Linda and I traveled over on Sunday and stayed at Rae’s so that we could get the flight out of Bellinghan supposedly at 2:30 pm on Monday.  Before going to bed on Friday I think or maybe it was when we got up, someone was notified that the flight was going to be delayed until 3:30.  Then sometime later we got another notice that the flight would be leaving at 1:30 and that the flight number was changed from 222 to ?222.  Okay then we got in a bit of a panic because we had better get going cuz you never know what the traffic is like at the border.  No problem.  We get there in plenty of time.  Well there are people in line….(no clerks on duty to check us in) that were supposed to have flown out yesterday but the airplane had a broken wing so they had been overnighted.  The flight that had been mentioned that was leaving at 1:30 was their replacement flight….hence the different number.  And so we wait.  The screens that display arrival, departures and gates, said our flight was on time but several people besides myself have alerts saying the flight was delayed til3:30. At our gate it says on time.  Even the ticket agent said the flight was on time.  Okay what is it?  The 1:30 people finally leave on their replacement and now our gate says it is delayed until 5:36 now but there are still other sources that are saying that it is on time.  Finally someone that works for Allegiant comes to the gate , gets on the microphone and says that “the 2:30 flight has been canceled. What!!!  That cannot be!  “But there s a flight leaving at 4:15 that they would try to get us on”.  Then a mad scramble happened to get in line ….. first.  Then they don’t seem to know what they have to do about the checked luggage, if everyone that has checked luggage on 222 have to go back through check-in and so also through security check (Linda and I only had carry-on but Rae and Elden had checked luggage).  The rigamarole that we had to go though including emptying so much of our stuff, shoes off, our bodies exrayed in that round-about-thingy….a first for me, patted down, yadda, yadda.  Guess I had too much bling on my top that it set the lights aflashing).  The plane is going to the same destination for God’s sake! Then they decided that we wouldn’t have to do that after all but then we were told we had to move to a different gate.  So…. We got a boarding pass that said flight 220 (for a flight that was supposed to have left at 8 am this morning plus an $8 food voucher for our trouble but we couldn’t use it on alcohol that we all wanted. Oh well!  I am telling you that this was a real circus run by a bunch of monkeys.  Personally I would never book with them again, not only because of this big screw up but also the fact that for our carry-on suitcase we were charged US$30 return and to print off a boarding pass at the airport is a $5 charge, etc., etc.  Talk about nickel and diming!  If we had done the math it probably would have been cheaper to fly out of Victoria at CAD$$$, save on the gas to and from Chilliwack, the ferry return, our share on the gas and parking in Bellingham for the duration plus food and drink at the airport (that was outrageous). And so another lesson learned.  

I would imagine that our dance buddies from Victoria that were to meet us at Gilley’s for line dancing lessons (not sure if I can dance though), are probably disappointed as will Judie, who is picking us up.  I am writing this while still on the flight.  Yes it did eventually go.  I am wondering if they were trying to fill two empty plane cuz there were more empty seats on this flight (so why did they say they would try to get us on this flight?) than I have ever seen before.

Our rain is influenced by Typhoon…lots of rain
Mu5151 flight number to Beijing  2 hrs. …domestic …..Hungqiao airport.

26 million in Beijing … 1.3 billion in country.  Since 1979 only one child…..fined if have more than one…man could lose job.. .  Farmers are allowed more. 8 million killed because there were more born….mostly girl babies.  30 million men now cannot find wife.
Lottery to get licence plate.
Pushers cram people onto subways(as in Japan) although we never saw any…..ladies could find themselves pregnant and no shoes……(lol… guides sense of humour)

6 times bigger than Hong Kong
10,000$ /sq. m. ….2,000,000 yuan…..to purchase condo.
From 1420 th dynasty <strong>Tianimen  square</strong>.  Largest in world….44 hectares , hold a million people.  Oct.1/49. National….liberation day….so we were here on the day in 2015….66 years after it began.
<strong>Forbidden City</strong> …Imperial Square.     Poy last emperor. 9,999.5 rooms in Forbidden City.  Couldn’t be 10.000 cuz there is supposed to be that many in heaven.  You can not imagine how big this place is….all for one emperor.  It was <strong>home to 24 emperors</strong> of the Ming (1368–1644) and Qing (1644–1911) Dynasties. Started to be built during the Ming Dynasty (1406), and completed in 1420 using 1 million workers.  The Forbidden City covers an area of about 72 hectares (178 acres) with a total floor space of approximately 150,000 square meters (1,600,000 square feet). It consists of <strong>90 palaces and courtyards</strong>, 980 buildings and 8,704 rooms.  Yellow roofs…symbol of power. Anyone besides emperor with yellow roofs were killed.  You can tell the most important building in each of the MANY squares by how many animal figures are on the roofs.

Beijing is so very different than Shanghai..weather is definitely cooler, the buildings are utilitarian looking, at least from the outside but the hotel we are staying is Japanese, very beautiful lobby and rooms.  Bathrooms with separate shower and bath and toilet seats are state of the art…..are heated, have spray for front and for rear, soft or harder, blow dry.  Amazing!!!

Before 1960 because of natural disasters…drought…no food.
1200 yuan /month income…200$us.

October 1…..its not raining….blue skies.  I guess the typhoon is no longer affecting the local weather.  There was no wind with it.  It also might, and I am guessing here, that the rain took the so-called pollution out of the air because we were never aware of any air-pollution that we all have heard so much about.

First stop today is the Jade factory.  Jade highest value..for the emperor…..is living stone, takes on body oils…translucent more value.
Bangle wear left side…promote circulation….shiny and clear…good health.
Baby dragon (means wealth) at front door and back to protect….no clear path between front and back or money come in and out.
At 12 girls given jade in symbol of year of birth.
Products that are made here. Are taxed at 35%… Very expensive.
1260-1400s Great Wall  built to keep invaders out… During Ming dynasty. 4,300 miles built.  Now 7,000 Kms. long. 7 th century BC started to 221AD   Last part built in 1406AD. 5 sections around Beijing but are unconnected. 5 million died in building of Great Wall.  15 million died building Terracotta Warriors. Longest tomb in the world.We went to the Great Wall.  I’ll have you know that i walked over 8000 steps and did 51 flights of stairs that day according to my Fitbit.  Amazing when you think I am waiting for knee replacements but …….I used my Nordic Walking poles.  If I didn’t have them, I would never have made it.
US$1.1/litre for gas….not too much different than ours.  VW first car manufacturer in China.  Doesn’t seem to be any Chinese cars.  Lots of Audis, VW, BMW (be my wife), some Hondas, Toyotas, Hyundais.
Goals to own in:-1970…bicycle, watch, sewing machine,
-1980… Colour TV, fridge, wash machine
-1990… House, car, iPhone
-2010s… Private plane???
There are 54 minority nationalities plus the majority that are Hun.

October 2/15….we fly home today via Icheon airport in Seoul, Korea.  Although we never left the airport so cannot say what the country is like, the building itself is very nice.

Both legs of our journey home were on Korean Air.  We are most impressed!  Lots of legroom, fed a meal on the 1.5 hour trip from Beijing to Seoul plus of course on the leg from Seoul to Vancouver….no charge for anything.  Flight attendants were professionally dressed (wow) and absolutely lovely.  If I ever have the option to fly with them again, I certainly would.

FYI….There were more crowded conditions on the bus from the Bridgeport Station to the ferry than at any time in either China or Japan.