Day 1 - Beijing

Other than overwhelmed, I'm not really sure how to feel. I arrived in Beijing today after a short flight from Korea. Man, what a difference.

I think the stress of leaving and the mix of feelings surrounding going home and traveling vs. leaving my friends and "home away from home" in Korea have made my moods hyper-sensitive to my surroundings, hinging perilously on the weather or on the smile of a passer-by.

The first realization I had was that China is going to be difficult. Trying to communicate with my cab driver from the airport was an exercise in patience (for both of us). The name and address of the hostel were both written in English, which he couldn't understand, and the map apparantly wasn't too good, either. But after consulting with three police officers and calling a friend on the phone, my man finally got me to my hostel. So despite the initial frustration, I feel good about being able to somehow end up where I need to go. Plus, there was a definite cabbie-fare bond forged from our triumph over the language barrier.

The biggest downer about today has been the weather. Dense yellow smog like you wouldn't believe. There wasn't much to see from the highway, and even driving past Tienanmen square couldn't motivate me to get out my camera. Now that night has set in and I'm navigating off the lights from stores and food stalls, Beijing has become a much more appealing place. Here's hoping tomorrow's weather is better.