Post script-Beijing arrival

Beijing-the original arrangements were that I should travel from London to Beijing per KLM via LHR- Amsterdam 1320 to connect AMS-PEK 1710. Weather intervened and the 1320 did not leave until 1520 to arrive Schipol at 1700- the Beijing plane left without the 20 or so London passengers who had expected to make the connection!

We were re-booked to travel with South China Airlines to arrive Beijing at 1115 local time, (there is an 8 hour time difference with GMT), The flight of 9 hours was uneventful, smooth and comfortable since I had a ‘bank’ of 4 empty seats and could stretch out and sleep although occasionally disturbed by the Chinese women in the row behind who repeatedly pushed the seatbacks. The food was pleasant and there was an ample availability drinks.( at 35,000 ft beware of dehydration!)

PEK capital is a big airport-there must be 20 or more international airlines servicing it on a daily basis to say nothing of the domestic flights operating to make connections-in the short bus run to the terminal from SCA’s plane I identified  planes from the Ukraine, Russia’s Aeroflot, Uzbeckistan, British Airways, Lufthansa, Air France, United Airlines-this between watching, in apprehension, as buses and planes seemed to be weaving in and out of each others’ paths in the connections between runways. The terminal building is immense - divided into domestic and foreign services and offices on a third floor level. Health, immigration and customs clearances were perfunctory so that I emerged to see what might have been mistaken for the population of China, at least four deep and a hundred yards long, waiting to receive their guests –all with signs for Mr This or Mr That but none read Connor nor was there a sight of a Mr Fu even if I had known what he looked like. There was a counter with Information written above but the single soul had no English. While coming to this conclusion I am approached by a creature about 5ft 2 who wants to talk sidewise making regular glances in the opposite direction. Whatever language he is speaking it’s unintelligible–call him Mr 1. I declined his offer but it takes three further refusals in increasing forcefulness to cause him to go away. I wandered into an area where there was much activity to learn it was the domestic section – then went back to foreign arrivals in search of a KLM counter- if KLM were at least partially responsible for my difficulty surely they should help get me out and they did.  Eventually learn that KLM has an office on the third floor. Push the baggage trolley to the elevator and find myself at the end of a corridor that seems to disappear over the horizon. Suddenly, Mr 2 is at my elbow-Mr 2 has no English but, give him his due, he knows I am lost and that there is board round a corner with the occupancy. KLM are listed in 3201. Mr 2 wants to take over my trolley-I resist and make my way to 3201 where I was well received and managed to establish contact with Prof. Fu who will pick me up albeit will take an hour and a half to get to the airport.

Meanwhile Mr 2 is hovering at the doorway – the lady in the office states that Mr 2 is ‘illegal’ and should not be on the premises but does nothing to get rid of him- I would have given him a modest reward for showing where the occupancy board was located but I have no Chinese currency- I face him and drive the trolley forcefully towards the elevator and he fades to try with another innocent. Mr 1 and 2 are members of a coterie of ‘leeches’, to be found in international airports from New York to Tokyo and anywhere between, seeking what ‘pickings’ they can from the unsuspecting. In all my travels I’ve never been touched before. On arrival in Beijing, I got ‘hit’ twice within minutes-clearly I looked like a soft mark- travel is experience!  J.C.